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The 30 April issue of Farmer’s Weekly includes an article on South African land price trends over the first few months of 2021. Erasmus adds that during 2020, when many of the deeds offices were closed or operating on reduced capacity as a result of the Covid-19 lockdown, there was very little movement in farm sales. However, she says the farm sales trend for the beginning of 2021 is showing a healthy upward trajectory, as there seems to be a strong demand for new farmland.

Erasmus explains that this positive trajectory interestingly comes at the back of debates about expropriation of land without compensation. She says that this is an indicator that even though this is a very important issue, it does not seem to be deterring investors from purchasing land at the moment.

Furthermore, the magazine also reports on a newly launched online grain trading platform that offers farmers a new alternative to selling their grain crops. Erasmus says this platform gives farmers the ability to trade their maize as well as soybeans, amongst other grains.

Also, another article takes a look at research that has been done on guard dogs that are used to guard livestock that roam over vast areas to protect them from predators. Erasmus says that this research has revealed that these guard dogs, unfortunately, often are neglected by their owners and are left to roam around wild. She says this leads to these guard dogs having an impact on wildlife as they have to hunt for food. She concludes that the research shows that this is turning into an environmental problem.

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