Agriculture in South Africa
Agriculture in South Africa contributes around 5% of
According to
The South African government has set a target of transferring 30% of productive farmland to 'previously disadvantaged' black people by 2014.
The government has been accused of either putting in too much effort,[11][needs update] or not enough effort,[12] to tackle the problem of farm attacks as opposed to other forms of violent crime.
Some predictions show surface water supply could decrease by 60% by 2070 in parts of the Western Cape.[13] To reverse the damage caused by land mismanagement, the government has supported a scheme which promotes sustainable development and the use of natural resources.[14] Maize production, which contributes to a 36% majority of the gross value of South Africa's field crops, has also experienced negative effects due to climate change.[citation needed] The estimated value of loss, which takes into consideration scenarios with and without the carbon dioxide fertilization effect,[15] ranges between tens and hundreds of millions of Rands.[16]
History
Based on prehistorical archaeological evidence of pastoralism and farming in southern Africa, ancient settlements closest outside the present-day South African border region, related to Bantu language speaking peoples, so far was found in sites located in the southernmost region inside the borders of what is now Mozambique, and dated 354–68 BCE. Findings similarly based on pastoralism and farming within South Africa thus far – is from sites identified in what was the
Production
In 2018, South Africa produced 19.3 million tonnes of
Crops
Cereals and grains
Grains and cereals are South Africa's most important crops, occupying more than 60 percent of hectare under cultivation in the 1990s.
Wheat production, which is concentrated in large, highly mechanised farms, increased after World War II.[19] Wheat cultivation spread from the western Cape where rainfall is fairly reliable, to the Orange Free State and the eastern Transvaal, primarily in response to rising consumer demand.[19] As of 2018, South Africa produced 1.8 million tonnes of wheat.[18]
Other small grains are grown in localised areas of South Africa.[19] For example, sorghum—which is native to southern Africa—is grown in parts of the Free State, as well as in the North-West and the Northern provinces, with yields often exceeding 200,000 tons as of the mid-1990s.[19] Sorghum has been used since prehistoric times for food and brewing purposes.[19] Barley is also grown, primarily in the Western Cape.[19] In 2018, 421,000 tonnes of barley were produced.[18]
South Africa also produces peanuts, sunflower seeds, beans, and soybeans.[19]
Fruit and wine farming
As of the mid-1990s, fruits (including grapes for wine) earned as much as 40 percent of agricultural export earnings in some years.[19] (Fresh fruit finds a good market in Europe because it matures during the northern hemisphere's winter.[19]) Deciduous fruits, including apples, pears, and peaches, are grown primarily in areas of the Western Cape and the Eastern Cape, where cold winters and dry summers provide ideal conditions for these crops.[19] Almost 1 million tons of deciduous fruits were sold fresh locally or were exported each year in the early 1990s.[19]
Pineapples are grown, primarily in the Eastern Cape and KwaZulu-Natal.[19] Tropical fruits—especially bananas, avocados, and mangoes—are also grown, especially in the northeast and some coastal areas.[19] More than half of citrus production is exported in most years.[19]
As of the mid-1990s, more than 1.5 million tons of grapes were used domestically in South Africa's renowned wine industry, which dates back to the seventeenth-century vineyards introduced by French Huguenot immigrants.[19] More than 100,000 hectares of land were planted in vineyards as of the mid-1990s, centred primarily in the Western Cape.[19] Smaller vineyards are also found in the Northern Cape, Free State, and Northern Province.[19]
Sugarcane
Statistics
Value in millions of South African rand:[20]
Commodity | 2009 |
---|---|
Poultry | 23,165 |
Maize | 16,346 |
Cattle and calves | 12,808 |
Wheat | 6,356 |
Milk | 9,138 |
Deciduous and other fruit | 8,040 |
Vegetables | 7,843 |
Sugar cane |
4,769 |
Citrus | 4,628 |
Potato | 4,058 |
Production of important field crops:
Commodity | 2009[21]
(tons) |
2015[22] (fifth forecast)
(tons) |
---|---|---|
Canola
|
40 350 | 101 500 |
Sugar cane |
20 411 000 | |
Malting barley | 216 000 | 357 487 |
Maize | 12 567 000 | |
Vegetables | 2 442 000 | |
Citrus | 2 218 000 | |
Wheat | 1 928 000 | 1 501 190 |
Deciduous and other fruit | 1 829 000 | |
Sunflower seed | 833 000 | |
Subtropical Fruit | 655 000 |
Agricultural cooperatives
There are a number of Agricultural cooperatives in South Africa, including:
- KAL Group
- Sentraal-Suid Koöperasie
- Oos Vrystaat Kaap Kooperasie
- BKB Limited
- (VKB group) Vrystaat Kooperasie Beperk
- (NTK) Noord Transvaal Kooperasie
- Karakoel en Lewendehawe Koöp Beperk (KLK)
- Die Humansdorpse Koöperasie, trading as The Co-op
A lot of the cooperatives have changed with time in line with the changes in their individual business strategies.
Droughts
In 2015 South Africa experienced the worst drought in 30 years.[23] Many farmers lost whole crops and much of their livestock. South Africa's dams also showed a decline with the Pongolapoort dam losing 20% of its water in just one year.[24]
See also
- Department of Agriculture (South Africa)
- South African Chamber for Agricultural Development in Africa
- Animal husbandry in South Africa
- South African farm attacks
- Western Cape 2012 Farm Workers' Strike
References
- ^ "South Africa - employment by economic sector 2019".
- ISBN 1-56432-263-7.
- ISBN 1-86808-467-1.
- ^ "FAOSTAT 2008 by Production". faostat.fao.org. Archived from the original on 13 July 2011. Retrieved 6 June 2008.
- ^ "Agriculture". South Africa Online. Archived from the original on 23 September 2006. Retrieved 17 July 2006.
- ^ Berger, Sebastien (21 October 2009). "Congo hands land to South African farmers". The Daily Telegraph. UK. Retrieved 30 October 2011.
- ^ "South Africa's bitter harvest". The Times. UK. Retrieved 30 October 2011.
- ^ "South Africans' long wait for land". BBC News. 27 July 2005. Retrieved 30 October 2011.
- ^ "SA 'to learn from' land seizures". BBC News. 11 August 2005. Retrieved 30 October 2011.
- ^ Gerber, Jan (27 February 2018). "National Assembly adopts motion on land expropriation without compensation". news24. 24.com. Retrieved 4 March 2018.
- ISBN 1-56432-263-7. Retrieved 28 October 2006.
- ^ "Farms of Fear". The Times. UK. 7 April 2011. Retrieved 30 October 2011.
- ^ Climate change to create African 'water refugees' – scientists, Reuters Alertnet. Accessed 21 September 2006]. Archived 25 October 2010 at the Wayback Machine
- ^ "Department of Agriculture South Africa". Nda.agric.za. Archived from the original on 11 November 2008. Retrieved 30 October 2011.
- ^ "The CO2 fertilization effect: higher carbohydrate production and retention as biomass and seed yield". Fao.org. Retrieved 30 October 2011.
- ^ J. Turpie; et al. (2002). "Economic Impacts of Climate Change in South Africa: A Preliminary Analysis of Unmitigated Damage Costs" (PDF). Joint Center for Political and Economic Studies Inc. Southern Waters Ecological Research & Consulting & Energy & Development Research Centre. Archived from the original (PDF) on 25 March 2009.
- ^ Lander, Faye; Russell, Thembi (2018). "The archaeological evidence for the appearance of pastoralism and farming in southern Africa". PLOS ONE. 13 (6): e0198941. Bibcode:2018PLoSO..1398941L. doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0198941
- ^ a b c d e f South Africa production in 2018, by FAO
- ^ OCLC 35887272. This article incorporates text from this source, which is in the public domain.)
{{cite encyclopedia}}
: CS1 maint: postscript (link - ^ South Africa Yearbook 2010/11. p. 39.
- ^ South Africa Yearbook 2010/11. p. 42.
- ^ Dredge, Rodney D. (15 December 2015). "Crop Estimates Committee" (PDF). Agriculture, Forestry & Fisheries. South African Department of Agriculture, Forestry & Fisheries Statistics and Economic Publications and Reports. Retrieved 26 January 2016.
- ^ "South Africa grapples with worst drought in 30 years - BBC News". BBC News. 30 November 2015. Retrieved 1 September 2016.
- ^ Fernandes, Luis. "Dam levels drop as drought is set to worsen". www.enca.com. Retrieved 1 September 2016.