31 May 2024
Even if someone has access to good land and enough water, and receives a boost from the government, that does not make them a farmer.
Being a farmer requires an entrepreneurial spirit, perseverance and a willingness to take responsibility for the risks you need to manage. This was the message from emerging and commercial black farmers who spoke at Subtrop’s recent transformation summit in Letsitele, Limpopo.
Before determining how South Africa is progressing with the transformation of the subtropical fruit industry, one must understand that farming is a business. Therefore, the primary measure of success should rest on business principles, said Stephen Mantsho, Subtrop’s transformation coordinator.
“The goal of the transformation summit,” according to Mantsho, “is to inform, inspire, and introduce people who want to earn their income from the production of subtropical crops to experts, other farmers and buyers.”
Mantsho explained that many people attending the summit have access to land and know how to work on it, but their business sense has not yet been activated. “Our goal is to activate you.”
Lessons to learn
Dr Matamela Madua of Liduna Farming in the Vhembe district spoke about the lessons he had had to learn since he started farming in 2015. Initially, there was a long waiting list for avocado trees. He could plant his orchards only piece by piece as tree availability and cash flow allowed.
To top it all off, his first harvest in 2022 was not good because the manager he had hired to manage his orchards did not take proper care of the trees.
Since then, he has planted another 2 000 trees, and thanks to better management he had a good harvest this year.
He has the following advice for emerging farmers:
- One of the important lessons is not to hire family members. It is difficult to hold them accountable and discipline them.
- Spend money on training workers. Untrained workers cost money and slow down the progress of the farm.
- Madua said initially he bought the wrong trees from the wrong people. Cheap is expensive. Buy good trees from a reliable nursery from the start.
- The government will not necessarily help black farmers. Two of Madua’s funding applications were rejected. He had to borrow money from the bank like any other commercial farmer.
- Manage the farm’s Eskom account, ensure the farm is on the optimal package for its needs and make sure the meters are read correctly and on time.
- Diversify. It takes a long time before tree crops produce a first harvest and even longer to break even. In the meantime, plant cash crops and, if possible, introduce a livestock component to the farm. This helps with cash flow.
Mantsho said significant progress has been made in transforming the subtropical fruit industry. Black growers like Madua produce avocados on 1 252 hectares. Black farmers also produce mangoes on 720 ha and litchis on about 250 ha.
He pointed out that more and more black farmers are entering the export market and not relying only on the local market to sell their fruit.
In 2022, products from black farmers made up 2% of South Africa’s fruit exports, and in 2023 this doubled to 4%. Mantsho said this is encouraging and shows that progress is being made with transformation, not just in production but also in terms of market participation.
