It is no secret that for most farmers operating out of the North Coast region, the lingering drought has had a devastating effect on the success of their crops.
In need of a regular water supply, many of these crops have suffered greatly and according to one local farmer, this is bad news for the consumer.
The drought has hit the region’s sugarcane farmers particularly hard, as their choice crop only grows on dry land. This means it is totally dependent on rainfall for water.
According to farmer Ant Goble from Upper Tongaat, Darnall and Amatikulu are the hardest hit by the drought, with the Darnall sugar mill temporarily closing its doors earlier this year.
“Upper Tongaat has seen a drop in sugarcane yield of 36%,” said Goble, one of many farmers who have been hit by a significant drop in their total cane production.
Kim Hagemann, owner of Bethany Farm in Darnall, told the Courier that he has also suffered major losses to his sugarcane crop over the last growing season, with a 70% reduction in his total cane harvest.
Yet, despite these serious blows, the price of sugar has and will continue to remain much the same. This is bitter-sweet for the consumer, says Goble.
“There is actually an overflow of sugar in the local market as exports have been reduced, so the price of sugar remains relatively unchanged.”
It therefore seems that while the drought has dramatically impacted local sugarcane farmers, consumers at the end of the sugar supply chain continue to be somewhat unaffected for now.
The bigger picture is more frightening, as farmers’ heavy loss of revenue has already led to massive job losses throughout the province. The R12bn industry makes up a hefty portion of the KZN economy.
According to Goble, however, the real concern, both in agricultural and economic terms, lies with maize.
“There has been a 30% drop in national maize production, which has led to a higher demand for imported maize from Mexico,” he said. There are two different types of maize which can affect the consumer in two ways.
‘White maize’ is used exclusively for human consumption. Made into porridge and pap, this food item is used daily by millions of South Africans, who can expect the price of their staple food to go up as maize imports become more common.
The same is true for the second type, ‘yellow maize’, which is for animal consumption and is used for both cattle and poultry feed. Import duty will see the price of these feeds also increasing, which could also drive the price of meat up – affecting farmer and consumer alike.
In terms of other local crops, the impact on litchi production is still not known, as litchi trees actually require a colder and drier ‘dormant’ period between April and July to encourage sufficient flowering.
The Litchi Orchard’s Jeremy Eb said that the farm is yet to see how the drought has affected their trees as the harvest period is only in December.
“Because the trees need the dormant period during the winter months, the drought we are experiencing could have a positive impact on our fruit production, although it is a bit early to tell,” said Eb, who highlighted that the farm’s trees are currently flowering and developing small fruit.
Eb added, however, that once the litchis ripen and start to swell in size, it is important that the trees get decent rainfall right through to harvest.
“If the trees do not get enough rain, they will become stressed and drop the developing fruit in order to conserve energy for survival and growth.”
According to the department of agriculture, litchi trees need regular watering and because the edible portion of the litchi fruit has a water content of 86%, the availability of water remains critical during the fruit’s development.
“We need rain in the months ahead, as we do not irrigate our trees unless conditions become critical,” said Eb, who added that in such instances, the farm uses stored rainwater which they ration by focusing on watering the trees bearing the most fruit.
