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The 27 August issue of the magazine contains an article regarding the current macadamia harvests that are drawing to a close. Erasmus explains that at the moment it is reported that the season will end on a high note with an 11% increase compared to last year’s crop in volume terms.

However, Macadamia South Africa (SAMAC) has expressed concern that nut quality this season has declined compared to the previous season. Erasmus adds that figures show that the crop ended on about 54 000 tons of (dry nut in shell) macadamia harvested. This was up from 48 900 tons harvested in 2020.

According to Liezel Pretorius, CEO SAMAC, while the season had a promising start, despite the damage associated with a very cold winter in 2020, trees did flower profusely, which led to the bumper crop. Erasmus adds that unseasonal rain had unfortunately brought cool and wet conditions during critical times of flowering.

Furthermore, fruit and vegetable farmers, particularly those who paid Product Control for Agriculture (ProKon) for inspection services since 2017, should demand refunds.

BJ van Zyl, director at ZZ2 and chairperson of Tomato Producers’ Organisation (TPO), responded to the Supreme Court of Appeal (SCA) in Bloemfontein, upholding an appeal with costs in favour of ZZ2 as well as the Northern Onion Committee, against the Department of Agriculture, Land Reform and Rural Development, amongst others.

Van Zyl says that around 2017, ProKon was appointed by the department as an assignee and the company was able to conduct inspections within the fruit and vegetable sector on farms, in storage facilities, as well as fresh produce markets.   

He adds that while they are not against the inspections, they were unhappy about the manner in which the fee was determined and the fact that the Agricultural Product Standards Act enabled ProKon to determine its own fees.

Erasmus says that the SCA found that ProKon’s consultation process was insufficient and that it did not publish the basis or methodology that was used to determine the fees.

Lastly, another article takes a look at the development of a market for cultivated meat products in South Africa. Erasmus says that a new survey has found that South Africans are generally open to experimenting with their food and would buy meat cultivated from animal cells on a regular basis, if this was available.

The survey also found that South Africans are also willing to pay more for these products than they would for conventionally produced meat or other protein products.  

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