Farmer's Weekly (South Africa)
Agri department’s FMD vaccinations kick off
The Department of Agriculture, Land Reform and Rural Development’s (agriculture department) initiative to vaccinate 40 000 animals in KwaZuluNatal’s Disease Management Area (DMA), following the outbreak of foot-and-mouth disease (FMD) in KwaHlabisa, kicked off at the beginning of March.
“In January 2022, there was a sudden flare-up of the FMD outbreak in KwaZulu-Natal,” Reggie Ngcobo, spokesperson for the department, said in a statement. FMD was first reported in the province in May 2021.
“A new cluster of infected dip tanks was identified in KwaHlabisa, between the two clusters that were previously affected. The outbreak is showing signs of active spread, and some of the newly affected dip tanks are close to the boundary of the [DMA] and the Hluhluwe-iMfolozi [Park]. This situation warrants the use of vaccination to reduce the viral load and thus control further spread of the disease.”
Ngcobo confirmed to Farmer’s Weekly that the agriculture department currently had sufficient supplies of vaccines to vaccinate the relevant animals.
He said the vaccinations had at first been limited to cattle within the DMA to slow the spread of the disease.
“We also hope to prevent spread out of the [DMA] and into the game reserve. The intention is also not to vaccinate all animals inside the [DMA], but only as necessary to contain the spread of the disease.”
PJ Hassard, vice-chairperson of the KwaZulu-Natal Red Meat Producers’ Organisation, said this was in line with the “ambitious plan” that government informed the organisation about in late February to vaccinate 70% to 80% of the animals within the DMA against FMD.
“I am sceptical, because the department does not have enough people or finances for this endeavour. However, I hope they succeed, because FMD is a threat to the entire country.”
Hassard also expressed concern about the department’s focus on communal dip tanks. “Many communal farmers have lost their trust in government. They buy their own dip, and dip and vaccinate their animals at their homes.”
Ngcobo said affected communities would be contacted by KwaZulu-Natal Veterinary Services in coming weeks.
“Movement of cloven-hoofed animals and their products into, out of, through, or within the reduced [DMA] is still only allowed on authority of a permit issued by the veterinary services of the area.” – Susan Marais
Rising input costs are threatening onion production in the Ceres area, which annually accounts for about 35% of South Africa’s total production.
Charl van der Merwe, chairperson of Korkom, told Farmer’s Weekly that the Ceres production season had started slowly in December, gained momentum in February, and would be in full swing from March.
He said current prices were slightly above average, as production had been negatively affected by rain in the Northern Cape. This had seen many farmers there sending onions to the market in December and January.
Heavy rainfall had also resulted in farmers in Limpopo, North West and the Free State planting later, which would result in reduced competition from supplies arriving from the Ceres area in June and July.
Van der Merwe said the increase in prices were, unfortunately, not large enough to absorb the 30% increase in production costs of the past year.
“Farmers will have to foot the bill for these costs, as consumer income is under pressure. People simply go without onions when they cannot afford them.”
He said that in future, farmers would have to downscale production to prevent price pressure. “If they don’t do this willingly now, poor economics will force them to do so over the next three years.”
Van der Merwe added that farmers had to fine-tune and improve their production practices, switch to improved seed varieties, and produce onions in good soils to increase yields per hectare and get the best possible returns.
Dawie Maree, head of information and marketing at FNB Business Agriculture, said the farmers who would be successful over the next 15 years had already adapted production methods to become more environmentally and socially responsible. In addition, such farmers were practising responsible financial management, had already started with succession planning, and had established their own brands.
“Fresh produce farmers can learn a lot from wine producers when it comes to adding value and the branding of products. Don’t sell a commodity; sell a product with a name so you can get rewarded for the quality,” Maree said.
The establishment of more central markets in the different regions could also benefit producers and ‘bakkie traders’ in the absence of much-needed investment in municipal markets.
“Bakkie traders are highly effective in accessing markets that have been traditionally undersupplied by supermarkets. Producers can still learn a lot about the spending habits and product preferences of this market,” he said. – Glenneis Kriel
‘PEOPLE SIMPLY GO WITHOUT ONIONS WHEN THEY CANNOT AFFORD THEM’
Human-induced climate change is causing dangerous and widespread disruptions to nature and affecting the lives of billions of people around the world, despite efforts to reduce the risks.
This was according to the latest Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) report, which stated that people and ecosystems least able to cope with climate change were being hit the hardest.
“The report [is] a dire warning about the consequences of inaction,” Hoesung Lee, chairperson of the IPCC, said in statement. “It shows that climate change is a grave and mounting threat to our well-being and the health of our planet. Our actions today will shape how people adapt and nature responds to increasing climate risks.”
According to the report, the world faced many unavoidable climate hazards over the next two decades, with global warming of 1,5°C. Even temporarily exceeding this warming level would result in additional severe effects. Risks for society, including those to infrastructure and low-lying coastal settlements, would increase.
A greater number of heatwaves, droughts and floods were already exceeding plants’ and animals’ tolerance thresholds and driving mass mortalities. Moreover, these weather extremes were occurring simultaneously, causing cascading impacts that were increasingly difficult to manage.
This had exposed millions of people, especially in Africa, Asia, Central and South America, Small Island Developing States and the Arctic, to acute food and water insecurity.
To avoid a mounting loss of life, biodiversity and infrastructure, ambitious and accelerated action was required to adapt to climate change, as was rapidly making deep cuts in greenhouse gas emissions. So far, progress on adaptation had been uneven, and there were increasing gaps between action taken and what was needed to deal with the growing risks, the report found. These gaps were largest among lower-income populations.
According to Dr Hendrik Smith, conservation agriculture facilitator at Grain SA, the report emphasised the urgency of immediate and increased action to address climate risks.
He said the time had come for South Africa’s agricultural value chain to realise that climate change would have long-lasting consequences if immediate steps were not taken to adapt to the phenomenon and mitigate its effects.
A delay could have irreversible effects on the sector’s ability to produce food and fibre sustainably, affordably and profitably, he added. – Annelie Coleman
Wildfires have ravaged farms, pastures and wildlife in northern Argentina since mid-January, with eight separate fires in Corrientes province devastating almost 800 000ha, government officials reported.
According to Al Jazeera, flames consumed about 30 000ha/day at the peak of the wildfires, destroying up to 9% of a region that is dependent on agriculture.
Strong winds, low humidity and dry conditions caused by drought had fuelled the fires.
“The truth is that the province is experiencing a catastrophe with these fires,” said Luis Candia, one of the residents working with firefighters to combat the wildfires in Corrientes.
“A lot of animals have been lost. On top of that, this was our source of work. If we lose this, what will become of us tomorrow?”
Images from the area showed large swathes of burnt fields, smouldering trees, dead or fleeing animals, and exhausted firefighters, with firefighting units starting to arrive from all corners of Argentina as well as neighbouring Brazil and Bolivia.
Local people had joined the firefighters in a desperate attempt to extinguish the flames.
Estimates indicated that by the end of February, losses had amounted to more than 26 billion Argentine pesos (about R3,7 billion), with experts saying it could take years for Corrientes to recover. – Staff reporter