Cultivating ’Black Gold’

This paper assesses the possibility of sustainable agriculture in South Africa in the context of recent policy initiatives. The new environmental strategy for agriculture represents a significant break with policy initiatives developed during apartheid. The likelihood of sustainable farming practices being adopted in South Africa will, however, face at least three obstacles. These are the integrated structure of industrial farming, the concern over yields, and current political and economic changes in South African agriculture. It is argued that sustainable techniques are unlikely to develop in the large scale farming sector in the near future. If the considerable research and extension resources of the state are reoriented quickly enough, sustainable farming methods can be embraced by an emerging class of black commercial farmers.

In the 1950s, land was expropriated from many farmers in South Africa to create segregated townships based on racial classification. The apartheid government gave rise to the Group Areas Act of 1950, which created spatial segregation along racial lines in and around South Africa. As a result of this legislation, the township of Chatsworth was established exclusively for the Indian population. In accordance with the racial hierarchy that existed, there were differential service provisions and housing deficits. The major problems that existed in the Indian townships were overcrowding, lack of housing and poor service delivery. In post-apartheid South Africa, the government attempted to address these issues through the formation of social and development policies such as the White Paper on the Reconstruction and Development Programme (RDP)developed in 1994, the Growth, Employment and Redistribution (GEAR) strategy of 1996, and the National Development Plan (NDP) which was drafted in 2012, among others. Regardless of these post-apartheid initiatives implemented by the government to address the issues, large areas still experience the problem of a lack of housing and poor service delivery. This study seeks to understand whether the current ways of addressing housing deficits have been effective in the Indian neighbourhoods of Chatsworth, that were created on the basis of the apartheid (segregated) legislation. Globally, empirical studies have been used to distinguish the differences between what is provided and what is needed by citizens. This is an essential tool used by both public and private sector to aid in satisfying the aspirations of the public. Residential satisfaction studies are useful and essential because they identify housing deficits in countries and outline specific housing needs of an area. They also assist planners in determining the extent of reconstruction of a residential area by using a residential assessment. They reveal not only the needs of the area’s inhabitants but also the various other factors that influence overall household satisfaction levels. Studies have been based on three major theories: the housing needs theory, the housing deficit theory and the psychological construct theory. This empirical study of residential satisfaction was based on a household survey from representative settlement typologies in Chatsworth that focused on the areas of Bayview, Woodhurst and Crossmoor. The main aim of this study was to establish the nature and extent of housing deficits in the formerly segregated Indian township of Chatsworth, Durban. The type of research methodology that was used in the study is the mixed methods approach, which contains quantitative surveys of the sample population and qualitative open-ended interviews with the stakeholders of Chatsworth. The sample population comprised three of the oldest housing typologies. This includes 2-storey social housing, 3-storey council flats, and informal housing. The key findings derived from this research in terms of demographics showed that Chatsworth contains mostly Indian people and that a large number of the respondents were female. When there are more than two people in a household, dissatisfaction is likely to occur and most dissatisfaction in terms of household features came from the informal settlement. The research also found that these informal settlements have no proper access to water, ablution facilities or electricity. Although there were no major public facility issues, the cost of healthcare and education did raise a challenge. This research proposes an indigenous model that consists of seven steps to address housing related problems. The empirical findings acquired from the literature review as well as the surveys that were conducted has enabled the researcher to develop significant recommendations that would complement and address the housing challenges that are currently being experienced in Chatsworth.

The importance of adopting modern technology in agriculture, especially in a changing climate, cannot be underestimated in Africa. The aim of this review was to highlight the past and the status quo with regard to the adoption of current farming practices in relation to climate-smart agriculture (CSA) by communal livestock farmers in South Africa. The impact of animal agriculture on climate change was also deliberated. Different internet search engines and databases, like Google Scholar, EBSCO Host, Science Direct, etc., and peer-reviewed articles, books, and government and academic reports were employed to provide information to adequately address the aim. Keywords like “the impact of climate smart agriculture on communal livestock farmers”, “communal livestock in South Africa”, “communal farming and technology adoption”, etc. were used for the search. Various issues pertaining to the impact of animal agriculture on climate change, greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions, and implementing CSA in livestock farming were extensively discussed. The findings indicated that there is limited research on the adoption of CSA by communal livestock farmers in South Africa. The review concluded that strategies to adopt modern technology in communal areas should address the issues to enhance knowledge of farmers and all stakeholders, through increasing awareness, trainings, and skills programs. The government should build local capacity in innovative and affordable water and agricultural solutions, and reliable financial mechanisms should be in place to implement innovative sound technologies in communal areas.

"Introduction to the Special Issue on Conservation Agriculture in South Africa." South African Journal of Plant and Soil, 38(3), p. iii

After a virtual absence from South African writing under apartheid, there has been an explosion of crime fiction in post-apartheid South Africa, largely within the various thriller sub-genres. This article examines Deon Meyer's Heart of the hunter (2003). Drawing on distinctions between the traditional detective story and the thriller, I argue that Meyer uses the ambiguity and radical perspective of the latter genre to challenge the binary oppositions of black and white, and good and bad that dominated thinking and culture in apartheid South Africa. In doing so he adapts the form to the post-apartheid context, revealing how the thriller can be used as a vehicle for postcolonial investigation and suggesting why it has become the genre of choice in a democratic South Africa. The novel presents multiple, and often conflicting, representations of the main protagonist, Thobela Mpayipheli, a former Umkhonto we Sizwe soldier and assassin for the KGB. By linking these activities to a longer history of resistance to colonial domination, through Nelson Mandela and historical Xhosa figures, Meyer invites readers to question the true source of “crime” in the apartheid and post-apartheid contexts of South Africa. By ultimately refusing a simple inversion of good and bad, however, he mobilizes a textual web of re-reading and re-interpretation that, I argue, should be read as a postcolonial and political strategy, appropriate for a country in a state of transformation.

Smallholder fruit crop farmers in South Africa's rural areas face significant economic and food security challenges due to postharvest losses (PHLs). Fruits are more susceptible to PHL, which occurs at various stages, including harvesting, handling, transportation, storage, and marketing. Reducing PHL is crucial for promoting circular agriculture principles, which aim to minimize waste, optimize resource use, and promote regenerative practices. By reducing PHL, smallholder farmers can retain more value from their produce, reduce waste, and contribute to more sustainable and efficient food systems. This study investigated the PHL faced by smallholder fruit crop farmers (FCFs) in the Vhembe District of Limpopo Province, South Africa. Data were collected from a random sample of 224 smallholder FCFs through a structured questionnaire and analyzed via descriptive statistical analytical tools. The results of the data analysis revealed that 63.9% of the participants were male, whereas 36.1% were female. The educational levels attained by the farmers are relatively high, as 48.7% of them have completed secondary education, with agriculture being the primary income source for 84.4% of them. The findings also indicate fruit crop production diversity among farmers, with 95.5% of them owning land, thus providing security and stability for long-term investments. Additionally, more than half of the farmers experienced postharvest losses, and the main causes identified included inadequate storage conditions, mechanical damage during transportation, excessive transpiration, and improper handling practices. Some of the measures employed to minimize postharvest losses include cleaning and disinfecting, sorting and grading, among others. The study concluded that improving access to storage facilities, packhouses, credit, and markets; enhancing information dissemination; and promoting effective postharvest management practices are crucial for reducing postharvest losses, and enhancing the livelihoods of smallholder farmers.

Simple SummaryIn South African beef cattle smallholder farms, there has been no recommended target benchmark that provide a baseline for improving the reported low herd reproductive performances. A multi-stage sampling approach was performed to examine reproductive performance as defined by pregnancy rate, fetal and calf losses, calving interval and days open to benchmark smallholder herd reproduction. It was found that smallholder farms recorded on average, 50% pregnancy rate and 12% fetal and calf losses, with days open and calving interval achieved at 334 and 608 days, respectively. Targeted benchmarks for performance derived from this study were 54%, 1.4%, 152 and 425 days, respectively for pregnancy rate, fetal and calf losses, days open and calving interval for smallholder farms in South Africa. The study showed that herd management practices including non-culling of old and non-productive cows, no knowledge of body condition score prior to breeding, no record keeping, continuous breeding season and low bull to cow ratio are associated with recorded reproductive performance norms in smallholder farms. The study found that smallholders have the potential to improve their performance levels if management knowledge is provided through advisory and extension services.Smallholder beef cattle farms in South Africa have had low reproductive performance, which has been associated with management practices. Considering current farm management practices, a multi-stage selection study was conducted to assess reproductive performance as defined by pregnancy rate, fetal and calf losses, calving interval and days open to benchmark reproductive performance. Data were collected twice, in autumn (March–May) for pregnancy diagnosis and in spring (September–November) for monitoring of confirmed pregnancies. Overall, 3694 cow records from 40 smallholder herds were collected during 2018 and 2019 breeding seasons from five provinces. The preferred 25th quartile described target performance and GLIMMIX procedure determined associations between management practices and performance. Smallholder farms on average recorded 50% pregnancy rate and 12% fetal and calf losses with 304 and 608 days open and calving interval, respectively. The derived target benchmarks for pregnancy rate, fetal and calf losses, days open and calving intervals in smallholder farms were 54%, 1.4%, 152 and 425 days, respectively. Reproductive performance was associated with no knowledge of body condition scoring before breeding, culling of old and non-productive cows, record keeping and low bull to cow ratio (p < 0.05). The performance benchmarks implied that industry averages may be improved if sustainable management services are provided through extension and advisory services.

The author critically examines the organising principle of the affirmative action provisions of the Employment Equity Act (or EEA), as well as the implications of the recent judgment by the Constitutional Court in its first case involving the application of affirmative action in the employment context (and in terms of the EEA) – SAPS v Solidarity obo Barnard . While reiterating the need for restitutionary measures such as affirmative action in South Africa, the author concludes – probably quite controversially - that the EEA's treatment of affirmative action has nothing to do with the equality right in the Bill of Rights, and that the Act pursues a different (and omnipresent) social engineering agenda by the state. The author calls for this realisation to prompt future affirmative action cases arising from the application of this Act to be removed from the scheme of (and potential defences available under) the equality jurisprudence, and for the courts to critically interrogate the constitutionality of the EEA's affirmative action scheme within its own context. The author believes that Chapter III of the Act is unconstitutional in this sense, and he calls for the scrapping of its provisions. He also calls for a (more) constitutionally-compliant exposition from the Constitutional Court of the parameters of legitimate affirmative action under the Bill of Rights, and adds his voice to the numerous calls for reconsideration of the rationality test expounded in Minister of Finance v van Heerden . More generally, the author considers the apparently all-pervasive application of the government ideology of the pursuit of demographic representivity in transformation of employment and other contexts (expressing grave doubts about its constitutionality along the way). In Part 1 of this piece (which precedes this article in this edition), the author considers the constitutional requirements for a legitimate affirmative action programme or measure. He then examines the affirmative action scheme of the Employment Equity Act , and explains his views on why such scheme is, in fact, unconstitutional. This article forms Part 2 of this piece and the author continues to critically evaluate the Constitutional Court judgment in the Barnard case, and he highlights the biggest areas of disappointment of this judgment within the context of South Africa's equality jurisprudence. After a very brief consideration of the recent amendments to the E mployment Equity Act , the author concludes by providing reasons why the Act's approach to affirmative action needs to be rejected, and soon. Keywords : affirmative action; (substantive) equality; (demographic) representivity; Employment Equity Act , 1998; section 9 Bill of Rights; unfair discrimination; quotas; numerical targets; SAPS v Solidarity obo Barnard ; Minister of Finance v van Heerden ; rationality test

Moringa oleifera’s high nutritional value and bioactive properties have attracted significant scientific research interest as an additive in broiler feed for sustainable broiler production. The tree’s multifunctional characteristics make it a potent alternative growth promoter for broilers and a valuable resource to address Sustainable Development Goals related to poverty alleviation, food security, good health, and responsible consumption. Moreover, it provides a less expensive and environmentally friendly alternative for broiler farmers. However, less is known about the awareness, perceptions, and prevailing practices of broiler farmers and M. oleifera farmers regarding the plant’s use as an additive. This study determined the awareness, perceptions, and practices of M. oleifera use among broiler and M. oleifera farmers in South Africa. Quantitative data collected from 165 purposively sampled small-scale broiler farmers, along with qualitative insights from 11 key informants, indicated that 66.7% of respondents, primarily females, knew about M. oleifera but lacked awareness of its benefits for broilers (82.4%). Awareness varied significantly (p &lt; 0.05) by gender. Only 10.9% of those aware used M. oleifera, predominantly small-scale female farmers. Leaves and stems were common parts used, added to feed, or infused in water. Perceived benefits included improved growth rates and reduced mortalities. Large-scale broiler farmers expressed interest if provided with more information on the nutritional benefits and the availability of bulk M. oleifera to sustain their large operations. The study underscores the need for targeted awareness campaigns, especially among female farmers, and providing guidelines for M. oleifera use. Formulating broiler diets that include M. oleifera as an ingredient will require a consistent supply, which is currently lacking. Therefore, there is a need to address the production capacity to meet the requirements of larger broiler operations.

Decision letter for "Appropriate farmer classification is key to agricultural development: rethinking subsistence agriculture in South Africa"

Purpose - The study aimed to evaluate the market opportunities and constraints confronting resource-poor pig farmers in South Africa. Research design, data, and methodology - Information was collected from 292 households in three municipalities through interviews with key informants. The data collected included socio-economic characteristics, major market channels, prices for different pig classes, average weight of the pigs on sale, number of pigs sold annually, and preferred meat quality attributes. Results - In Ngqushwa, 96% of respondents sold pigs as compared to Elundini (81%) and Ntabankulu (65%). Less resource-poor households and those with market-oriented production had large herdsizes (P < 0.05) when compared to more resource-poor farmers. The probability of selling pigs was high for the backyard production system and educated farmers. For all farmers, opportunities included high pork demand, good prices, employment creation, and a niche market for organically produced indigenous pork. Constraints include disease, feed shortages for large herds, distances to formal markets, lack of training, and drugs. Conclusions - Constraints outnumbered opportunities for the resource-poor pig farmers.

Translocated oysters are well known to act as vectors of marine alien species, but to date this topic has received scant attention in South Africa, despite the fact that oysters have been imported into this region since 1894. Surveys of oyster farms in South Africa revealed four newly-recorded alien species: the black sea urchin, Tetrapygus niger, from Chile; the European flat oyster, Ostrea edulis (thought to be extinct since its intentional introduction in 1946); Montagu’s crab, Xantho incisus, from the North Eastern Atlantic seas of Europe, and the brachiopod Discinisca tenuis from Namibia. Oyster imports are the most likely vector of all these species. The biological attributes of each species, the possible threats posed by their introduction, and the needs for additional control measures to limit or prevent further introduction and spread of alien species via oyster culture are discussed.

Stock theft is among the major challenges faced by livestock farmers in South Africa. It has severe consequences especially for smallholder farmers, who collectively own a large share of the South African livestock herds but individually keep small herds. In recent years, technological improvements and innovations have made it possible to track livestock movements by using GPS animal tracking devices. Low-cost GPS has been developed and used elsewhere and in the local commercial sector. Given the well-known role of extension, i.e. information and technology dissemination, the possibility that smallholders adopt GPS animal tracking devices should be evaluated. However, very few studies have made a case for using this technology in curbing stock theft among smallholder farmers. This review therefore addresses the likelihood that smallholder livestock farmers in South Africa adopt GPS animal tracking devices to mitigate the impact of stock theft. Using a semi-systematic and a snowball literature review approach, we consulted and reviewed the relevant literature and official statistics relating to stock theft and smallholder livestock farming. Results from the reviewed literature suggest that the likelihood of GPS animal tracking device adoption by smallholders will depend on a) the awareness about the devices and how they work, b) the acuteness of stock theft for a farmer and how livestock contributes the farmer’s livelihood, and c) the income level, access to mobile phones and risk behaviour of farmers. Our literature findings identify areas for future research and may help agricultural extension personnel with future research topics.

Reviewed by: Race Trouble: race, identity and inequality in post-apartheid South Africa Rob Pattman (bio) Kevin Durrheim, Xoliswa Mtose and Lindsay Brown (2010) Race Trouble: race, identity and inequality in post-apartheid South Africa. Pietermaritzburg: University of KwaZulu-Natal Press. Race Trouble is a troubling book for activists, academics and teachers in South Africa committed to anti-racist politics. For it questions the efficacy and usefulness of the very category ‘racist’ as a critical and analytic tool for making sense of particular social practices, identifications and relations in post- apartheid South Africa. While ‘racism’ as a concept served as a necessary rallying point for mobilising opposition to apartheid, the authors argue that it is no longer relevant or appropriate in the post-apartheid era because, with the emergence of a predominantly black democratically elected government and a rapidly growing black middle class, race/power relations and divisions are much less clear cut. This is not to say that racism is a dying idea 17 years into democracy. In spite of a growing black middle class, there are still massive racial inequalities and, while segregation is no longer prescribed, living and recreational spaces are still racialised. Furthermore the memory of apartheid racism lives on. How do the material and cultural legacies of apartheid influence and affect social relations and identifications in a new society where people of different races must co-exist and interact and where they are expected not to be racist? This is a central question in Race Trouble which focuses on the proliferation of concerns about and accusations of racism which make race a constantly troubling preoccupation in the post-apartheid era. [End Page 163] The book ‘aims to understand how race and racism are reproduced in the post-apartheid context’ and advocates a research approach which explores how people construct, justify, explain, account for and make sense of their lives in a ‘troubling’ context in which race operates as an ever-present, if unstated, backdrop. Drawing on the work of Judith Butler, the authors argue for research which makes performativity the central focus of concern, which questions the routine ways people present themselves and negotiate relationships in a context in which social inequalities, living, working and recreational spaces are still racialised and which investigates the kinds of subjectivities people inhabit and which are produced by these practices. They provide rich examples from their own research and observations which illustrate the kinds of methodological, conceptual and analytic approaches they advocate, and this makes the book particularly engaging and insightful. They draw, for example, on observations of beaches where contact ‘between races’ is ‘kept to a minimum’ with white people moving away, as black people fill the beach, as the day progresses, and venture towards the places where white are located. These, they argue, are patterns of behaviour, structured by the legacy of apartheid, which produce new racialised subjectivities and troubling relations. Conversations with white and black beachgoers revealed how race came to operate in troubling ways as a source of identification and difference, with blacks attributing the movements of whites to ‘racism’ and whites complaining about blacks ‘crowding them out’. The movement of black people into what were and, in many cases still are defined as white spaces, such as formerly white schools or particular suburbsis, the authors argue, a feature of the post-apartheid era, which reflects continuing white privilege. But rather than drawing on concepts of racism to explain how, on an ideological level, such dynamics are maintained, the book focuses on the complex ways people negotiate their identities in such a troubling context. One could argue, as many commentators do, that social class has become the source of division and inequality in the post-apartheid era, and that race is troubling only because it is discursively produced by, among many others, the authors of this book. Why did the authors look only at race and not class when examining beach movements and explanations and rationalisations of these? Do, for example, middle class black people on the beach withdraw from less affluent blacks who they perceive as encroaching on their space? But even if class is no longer tied to race, class relations, the authors...

RETRACTED: Climate change perception and impact of on-farm demonstration on intensity of adoption of adaptation strategies among smallholder farmers in South Africa