Rooibos tea is a popular drink of choice in South Africa and internationally. Exports to over 30 countries, including Germany, Japan, and the United States and local sales, bring the value of rooibos up to R600 million annually. Over the last decade, production has been between 10 000 and 18 000 tones per annum. Local sales account for half of the annual rooibos consumption, but global demand pushed exports to over 6 000 tones/year in 2016, and total rooibos sales…
When it comes to farming cattle, it goes without saying that feeding your animals well is extremely important. But what is the best way of doing this? Grazing is the simple, common-sense solution that most farmers opt for. But continuously grazing the same pasture can present problems of its own. When cattle repeatedly graze the same area, they can degrade the quality of their food, since there is no time for grass to recover. This not only reduces the quality…
When you see the news going around that East Africa is being ravaged by enormous swarms of locusts, your first thought is most likely the Bible story of the Egyptian Pharaoh who was punished by god with, among other things, a plague of locusts. But is what’s happening in East Africa right now comparable to the biblical myth? Are swarms so large that they blot out the sun even possible? Where do they come from and why do they swarm…