Celebrating agriculture’s achievements

At the end of December 2021, senior Farmer’s Weekly journalist Annelie Coleman sent me a video of a flooded maize land in the Free State. This was a sad anticlimax to an otherwise stellar performance by our farmers throughout 2020 and 2021. According to a recent Farmer’s Weekly online article, the maize crop could be as much as 20% smaller than previously anticipated, due to severe rainfall in the Free State and North West. However, in my first editorial to you on the departure of our editor, Denene Erasmus, I’d like to focus on the sector’s achievements in 2021. South African agriculture has gained much ground over the past two years, due in part to favourable weather conditions, but also to farmers’ business acumen and ability to adapt. The Citrus Growers’ Association of Southern Africa reported record citrus exports of 161,9 million, 15kg-equivalent cartons in 2021, up 18,6 million cartons year-on-year (y/y). Apple and pear exports increased too, by no less than 9% y/y. These are outstanding achievements, considering port blockages and local logistics problems. Hortgro also announced that South Africa had finally been given the green light to export pears to China, following many years of negotiation and hard work by stakeholders.

The country produced a maize crop of 16,2 million tons, compared with the 15,3 million tons of the previous season. Soya bean farmers did exceptionally well, producing around 1,26 million tons (previous season: 1,17 million tons). Wheat growers performed superbly, producing about 2,1 million tons, the largest crop since 2008/09. Blueberry exports have flourished, with South Africa touted as an exporter to watch over the next five years by the Blueberry International Organization.

While our farmers have struggled with high input costs and surging fuel prices, soaring commodity prices across the sector have been a boon for many farmers, helping them mitigate these expenses and enabling many of them to remain on the land. By the first half of last year, South Africa’s agricultural exports had already reached R90,49 billion, which was up 30% compared with the corresponding period in 2020.

These are but a few of the sector’s remarkable achievements in 2021. While our farmers faced many challenges in 2021, South African agriculture has been a light at the end of the tunnel. Our farmers have not only managed to ensure a steady supply of food throughout the pandemic and the July 2021 riots, but have largely been a force for good, employing hundreds of thousands of people and generously helping each other in times of need. The COVID-19 pandemic has been exceptionally hard on everyone. But if there’s one thing I’m grateful for, it’s that the pandemic has made more people realise the importance of farmers who produce affordable food. My hope for 2022 is that government will increase its support for the sector by improving infrastructure, fixing ports and actively working on reducing rural crime. A good way for government to show its support for agriculture now, at the beginning of the year, would be to declare a state of disaster in areas where rain has destroyed crops, which would help affected farmers get back on their feet when planting season comes round again.