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Erasmus says, in the 16 July edition of Farmer’s Weekly, they once again take a look at global chains of higher commodity prices with South African sunflower oil being a focal point.  She says many consumers may have noticed that they have recently had to reach a little deeper into their pockets to pay for sunflower oil. This is due to an almost 30% increase in sunflower oil over the past year. She speaks on behalf of Agricultural economist, Luan van der Walt, who says the increase in consumer prices for sunflower oil is due to a global decline in sunflower production. 

Furthermore, she cautions farmers to be mindful when taking stock theft crimes to social media platforms as this may weaken their case considering the fact that it takes time for the police to handle inquiries. This comes after farmers have been urged by the Free State Red Meat Producers Organisation (RPO) to not reveal too much information regarding ongoing stock theft cases on social media.

She further adds that “the number of livestock [units] lost to predation on farms has decreased by about 66% between 2008 and 2020. And this is on farms that participated in a study run by the National Wool Growers Association and the Free State RPO that monitored predation losses on 1 130 farms. The programme's success, these organisations say, is due to a combination of research and experimentation as well as training and empowering farmers and farmworkers with skills and knowledge to deal with the problem of predators and also learning to protect their livestock while conserving the environment”.  Additionally, the outcome of the study is contained in a report that has been published by the Predation Management Forum of South Africa.

Lastly, delving right into commodity news, Erasmus tells OFM News that the Chinese lemon protocol can earn South Africa an extra R325 million in exports for limes. As soon as the recently finalised export deal is countersigned by the Chinese authorities, farmers in South Africa can start making use of this new protocol to export their lemons to the Chinese market, ends Erasmus.

OFM News/Lee Simmons