by Wandile Sihlobo | Sep 15, 2020 | Daily Notes
Some analysts, myself included, did not anticipate that the 2019/20 harvest and agricultural performance would be as robust as we have witnessed. This is clear from one of the essays I wrote for Business Day on December 10, 2019, which was titled – Another grim...
by Wandile Sihlobo | Nov 6, 2019 | Agricultural Production
I am in the Eastern Cape today, attending The Co-Op/Landbou Weekblad conference. The main theme of the conference is Opportunities for Farming. The inputs or presentations from various farmers showcase the good work that’s currently being done across the province. The...
by Wandile Sihlobo | Oct 29, 2019 | Agricultural Labour Market
I just went through Statistics South Africa’s Quarterly Labour Force Survey data for the third quarter of 2019. The primary agricultural numbers were a pleasant surprise, showing a 4.5% y/y uptick to 880 000. I say “surprise” because the third quarter of each year is...
by Wandile Sihlobo | Oct 16, 2019 | Food Security
As we commemorate World Food Day on 16 October 2019 in honour of the founding of the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) in 1945, we should take a moment to reflect on South Africa’s standing on the global food security ladder. Food security...
by Wandile Sihlobo | Sep 27, 2019 | Agricultural Production
On September 25 and 26 I visited the Eastern Cape on the invitation of The Co-op – an agribusiness based In Humansdorp. I also used the visit to scan the agricultural activities in the province, with an intention to assess whether there is an increase in activity (and...