DAFFOfficial newsletter of the Department of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries

August 2015

Minister touched by households’ living conditions

Minister Senzeni Zokwana hands over blankets, food parcels and garden equipment to the community of Wittewater as part of celebrating Mandela Day.

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Editor Piwe Mbiko (012) 319 6936 piwem@daff.gov.zaReporters Thuli Lehong (012) 319 7929 nokuthulale@daff.gov.za Samuel Kgatla (012) 319 7181 samuelk@daff.gov.za Musa Khumalo (012) 319 6695 musak@daff.gov.za Innocent Mhlanga (012) 319 7827 innocentm@daff.gov.za Rony Moremi (012) 319 6622 rincertm@daff.gov.za Jamela Nkanyane (012) 319 6903 jamelan@daff.gov.za Mercia Smith (012) 319 6666 mercias@daff.gov.zaInterns Zama Buthelezi (012) 319 6958 ZamaB@daff.gov.za Dimakatso Modise (012) 319 7819 DimakatsoMo@daff.gov.zaSubeditor Lerato Mofokeng (012) 319 7927 leratomof@daff.gov.zaDistribution Sheila Flockton (012) 319 7141 sheilaf@daff.gov.za Website: www.daff.gov.za

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The living conditions of the two house-holds of the Wittewater community next to Piketberg in the Western Cape Province touched Mr Senzeni Zok-wana, the Minister of the Department of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries. The houses were discovered during a household visit to ten identified house-holds in the community on 21 July.

The visit was conducted by the Minister,

DAFF officials and the sponsors as part of celebrating Mandela Day.

The two houses are in poor condition and need serious intervention from every-one to save other people’s lives. The roofs are leaking badly and people are able to see through their roofs while they are in the houses.

The Minister’s fruitful activities for the 67 minutes, especially at the households, entailed donations of food parcels, seed-lings, gardening tools and a blankets to the needy families. In addition the Minister, DAFF’s Director-General, Prof. Edith Vries and other stakeholders also planted vegetables in the house-holds’ gardens.

The Minister said that they can-not just forget the conditions of the houses. “We must help those who cannot help themselves. It cannot be right when it rains on people while others can only hear it on their roofs. We cannot keep quiet as if nothing happened when we visited those households. Something must be done when we visit this area again. I am calling upon those who have businesses and earn better salaries to come together to buy some zinc, ce-ment and other things. We need permission from the church to rebuild the houses. The community of Wittewater is controlled by the church,” he said.

In addition he emphasised that officials from the department shall

continue to monitor the vegetables they planted.

Gilbert Adams, from one of the visited households thanked the department for choosing him as one of the beneficiaries of the Mandela Day celebration and 67 minutes dedication.

“I know the department could have chosen other households but they chose me and I am grateful for that. They must continue helping us. I will remember the department every time I enter my garden. As for the blanket, I think it came at the right time because this place is cold,” concluded an excited Adams.

By Samuel Kgatla

Living conditions of Wittewater community

Minister Senzeni Zokwana helps one of the learners of Carl Schreve Primary School in Wittewater to put on a as choolbag donated by DAFF.

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The future looks bright for the com-munity of Kwaxolo Village. This comes after the successful planting of cab-bages, spinach, beetroot, maize, but-ternut, beans, onions, potatoes and other vegetables at the Nkothaneni Project on 7 August. The Deputy Minis-ter of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisher-ies, General Bheki Cele together with lively Ukhozi FM female presenters planted 2,6 ha of the 350 ha given by chief of Kwaxolo, Inkosi Xolo.

The visit was also part of commemo-rating Women’s Day to encourage the community in general and women in par-ticular to resuscitate agricultural projects that have collapsed and to start working portions of land that were given out by the Inkosi for agricultural purposes and also to provide mechanisation assistance to some of the portions of agricultural land that is currently lying fallow.

Nkothaneni is under the leadership of Reverend Aaron Lubanyana. He started a soup kitchen at the church to feed church members on Sundays. Later on, the church started catering for other people who were not members of the church. The reverend made a humble request to the Deputy Minister for assistance with the soup kitchen.

To their surprise, General Cele, ac-companied by national, provincial and local officials paid them a life changing visit. They brought garden tools and seed-lings as part of the assistance to sustain the soup kitchen and ensure that other hungry people are being fed in the area. The project is expected to create more job opportunities.

General Cele mentioned that projects such as Nkothaneni deserved to be helped by government as part of fighting hunger and poverty in the area. He made a prom-ise to find assistance in the form of Jojo tanks to ensure that workers do not have to fetch water from the river anymore.

“We are here today trying to fight hunger. As you know 14 million people go to bed hungry in South Africa and we

are trying to address it. We are trying to make this project viable and permanent. This is a women driven project looking after vulnerable and suffering people. With this project, I think many people are going to get more food and employment. I do not want to see this project collapse. As for officials, please continue working with the projects. I urge Ukhozi FM to also continue spreading the message of food security. Let us help each other to fight hunger,” he said.

The General also visited the Kwaxolo

By Samuel Kgatla

General Cele commemorates Women’s day with Kwaxolo community

Poultry Abattoir project and the Sizabantu Community Garden as part of the activities of the Women’s Day celebration.

Moreover, Dr Simphiwe Mkhize, Head of Department for Agriculture and Rural Development in KwaZulu-Natal also encouraged people to plant their own vegetables to fight hunger. He added that government continues to help those who want to be helped. Lastly, he requested communities to start cooperatives so that they can easily get assistance from DAFF and the provincial department.

General Bheki Cele, Deputy Minister of DAFF getting lessons from CT Organics officials during the Forestry outreach programme.

Forest grower showing DAFF officials how to grow timber.

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The 30 of June marked the end of Min-ister Senzeni Zokwana’s Youth Out-reach Programme. The programme consisted of a series of activities tar-geting the youth around the country. To close off the programme, 450 student representatives from 11 agricultural colleges around the country were in-vited to a round table discussion with the Minister in Benoni at The Lakes Hotel.

The purpose of the day was presented by Mr Mortimer Mannya, Deputy Direc-tor-General: Food Security and Agrarian Reform. Mr Mannya addressed the youth in attendance as to why the Minister had decided to meet and sit down with them as his last event for the month. “The pur-pose of this event is to engage with you, as potential future producers, employers, wealth producers to make you aware of the opportunity you are sitting on,” said Mannya. His address was reiterated in a speech given by the Student Representa-tive Council Chairperson, Sabel’esihle Ngcobo from Elsenburg College of Agri-culture, Stellenbosch. Speaking on behalf of students from agricultural colleges and the youth from non-farming communities, Ngcobo asked for more effort to be put towards marketing agricultural colleges, particularly to the youth in rural areas. “Only when we are in agriculture, do we find out how exciting and interesting agriculture is”, said the passionate Ng-cobo. He put it to the Minister that if the department is serious about agriculture then the youth in agriculture should be taken just as seriously.

Because the event was a round table discussion, the students were given the platform to voice their grievances. A selected few took the opportunity and raised issues that they face in their respec-tive colleges. The most prominent issue raised, was the state of the equipment and machinery. The students feel that they are not given access to utilities that will assist them in acquiring skills; they also showed great concern and discomfort

over the transfer of agricultural colleges from the Department of Agriculture, For-estry and Fisheries to the Department of Higher Education and Training. Muzi Mthalane from Owen Sithole College of Agriculture in Empangeni north of Kwazulu-Natal asked the Minister to help them put their diploma’s to good use by locating under-performing farms and integrating graduates into those farms in order for them to help bring the farm back to health and gain valuable experience.

Having listened attentively to all the issues raised, Minister Senzeni Zokwana opened his address by reminding the students in attendance that the youth of 1976 took their journey so that the youth of today don’t go through what they did. He echoed the words of one of the stu-dents that “it is treason to make a promise and forget about it the next day”; with those words he vowed to look at all the issues that have been raised and ensured the students that he will engage with rel-evant counterparts and return with a solu-

tion that will bring about much needed transformation in agricultural colleges, including the students’ discomfort of the transfer of colleges to the department of higher education and training.

“We need to improve the way we have been doing things at colleges,” said Minister Zokwana. He addressed the principals in attendance that colleges are key drivers in skill development and the green revolution, we know that food se-curity can never be achieved without the cream of young people who understand the aim and want to play a role in the sector. The minister then challenged the principals to make sure that their colleges produce quality students, and also urged them to be proud of their colleges.

In closing his address, Minister Senzeni Zokwana assured the students that a team will be set up, that will interlink with principals to monitor the development of the issues raised. He thanked the students for honouring him with their presence and urged them to take the baton from the youth of 1976 and run further with it.

Minister hosts students from Agricultural Colleges

By Fundiswa Buthelezi

Soybean is known as the “golden bean” and is an exceptionally nutritive and very rich protein food.

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The history of South Africa tells us of the women who marched against pass laws to the Union Buildings in 1956. Today we see another generation of women also writing their history in the struggle against poverty. Among South African wom-en giving their all for a food secure country, is Ms Thandi Mokwena of White River in the province of the rising sun, Mpumalanga.

She re-established the DaG-ama and Legogote farms and registered her own business under the name Matsino Busi-ness Enterprise in 2001. The farm comprises more than 700 ha of which 350 ha is grazing land, on 300 ha there are gum trees and on 50 ha are sub-tropical fruits and vegetables. Mokwena said one of the chal-lenges on the farm is machinery for harvesting of the gum trees. The gum trees are sold to in-dustries where they are used for the production of pulp, mining timber and building and electric poles. Banana, spinach, and tomato produce are sold to lo-cal hawkers and major retailers including Woolworths, Pick n Pay and SPAR.

Mokwena connected with the industry while she was employed as a farm worker at Komatiland Forestry where she spent four years. An entrepreneur today, her farm has created employment for 40 workers, nine of whom are women. She also hires seasonal workers who assist with pruning and creat-ing fireguards.

As South Africa prepares to host the first XIV World Forestry Congress in Durban from 7 to 11 September this year, Mok-wena’s farm was paid a visit during the

build up to the congress by the Deputy Minister of the Department of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries (DAFF), General Bheki Cele. He was accompanied by the MEC for Agriculture in the province, Mr Andries Gamade.

General Cele commended Ms Mok-wena’s work considering the challenges she faces daily on the farm. “It is difficult for government to help individuals, therefore we encourage farmers to form cooperatives to receive government funding,” he said.

Mokwena has recently been in Beijing, the People’s Republic of China, on a

sponsored training on Bamboo and Rattan Standardisation for Developing Countries. “I am grateful for the opportunity to the training because I have gained knowledge and skills in bamboo growing. If our government could gather farm-ers together so we can share the knowledge and see how we can put it to practice going forward,” said Mokwena. She further added that bamboo and rattan do grow in South Africa and she has seen some locals cut them down because of lack of knowledge. She said she plans to meet with a few farmers to discuss how they can implement the growing of bamboo.

The 47 year old Mokwena juggles her business and family. She is a wife and a mother of four children, among them, a 17 year old daughter who is in grade 11, and has, according to her mom, shown interest in farming.

In 2013 Mokwena reined the overall winner of the DAFF

Female Entrepreneur Awards, she was rewarded R250 000 which she used to clear 40 ha of the farm. She further received R3 million in funding from the department through the recapitalisation programme which she used to buy the farm’s bakkie, tractor, a number of cattle and built houses for her farm workers. Mokwena also received 25 cattle and a bull from the then Mpumalanga Department of Agriculture, Rural Development and Land Administration.

She can achieve even more if is she has access to electricity, water and proper roads on the farm.

Women thriving in forestry

August 2015 DAFFnews No. 8 6

Small footprint, big impact indeed as poultry continues to be the most affordable source of protein for most South Africans and employing 14 471. This was revealed at the 111th AVI Africa 2015 conference which was held at Emperors Palace from 23 to 25 June 2015. The AVI Africa is an annual poultry con-ference which focusses on poultry industry trade matters, empower-ment of historically disadvantaged individuals and challenges faced by the industry.

During the opening address, the CEO of South African Poultry Association, Kevin Lovell said “2015 has started off quite well for broiler producers with re-gard to supply and demand being better balanced. Although the same cannot be said about egg producers where prices remain under pressure,” he added.

Keynote addressThe keynote address was delivered by

the Minister of Trade and Industry, Dr Rob Davies who said that the govern-ment has identified the Middle East as a potential market for exports of poultry and red meat. He said that the Middle Eastern region, especially Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates imports about 75% of their food requirements from elsewhere around the world. “The two countries have the largest economies of scale in the region and have a huge market compared to other countries in the region. South Africa could supply 2 250 tons of different poultry products worth $84 million to Saudi Arabia from next year”. He encouraged the local poultry companies to take part in the poultry exhibition which will take place in Saudi Arabia later this year.

He also acknowledged the critical role played by sanitary and phytosanitary (SPS) issues when it comes to market access. “It is not a matter of veterinary science anymore, it is a matter of de-termining market access”, he said. In

Sector

addressing challenges such as the inflow of imports Dr Davies said there has to be a balance by steady and material high volume exports of value added products in order to curb the displacing of local industries and exporting jobs.

To curb this, the government has opened new markets such as the Gulf countries and Russia as a possibility to triple the export influx and strengthen the farming industry. It will further be strengthened by the designation of poultry for government procurement which will enable the industry to in-crease demand for local production, he enthused.

Developing Poultry Farmers Association

The Developing Poultry Farmers Asso-ciation (DPFO) which has 89 members with approximately 300 farmers reported that amid challenges such as slow trans-formation in the industry, lack of funding and high feed prices they managed to establish a transformation committee within SAPA and identified opportunities within the Africa Opportunity Growth Act (AGOA) for previously marginalised im-porters, sourcing a new breed of chicken to give developing farmers more options because it doesn’t require environmen-tally controlled rooms and resurrecting the Lebowakgomo intergrated poultry project. They have also pioneered the establishment of poultry Academy within the Department of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries (DAFF) and establishing a poultry cooperative bank.

New SAPAThis year the conference takes place

under the new SAPA, which has been undergoing radical transformation. Justice Zotwa, Chairman of the SAPA Transformation Committee of SAPA, says the process began in 2003 with the

Poultry continues to be the most affordable source of protein

to p 7

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establishment of the Developing Poultry Farmers Association (DPFO) as one of the organisations that make up the 111-year-old poultry association.

“The Management Committee, SAPA’s current highest decision-making body, has four members drawn from groups designated as historically dis-advantaged, whereas in the past, it had only one,” he says. “SAPA’s new constitution proposes a board consisting of eight directors, of which four direc-tors will be historically disadvantaged individuals while the remaining four will

Poultry continues to be the most affordable source of protein

By Rony Moremi

from p 6 be drawn from the traditional bigger industry players.

SAPA will also ensure that one of its executives focuses on transformation as a key area of the organisation and its future.”

ExhibitionsWith over 100 exhibitors showing their

wares, the AVI Africa has over the years become a platform to showcase the lat-est technology and equipment related to the poultry industry. It is also a platform where poultry farmers meet and network to share knowledge.

VisionTo create a viable and sustainable industry contributing to economic growth

and development, employment and food security, based on successful producers adhering to environmental and ethical production norms and generating sustain-able profits.

MissionTo create an enabling environment to achieve sustainable producer profits in

the domestic and global village market. As a representative association, the South African Poultry Association (SAPA) serves the interests of the poultry industry in a number of ways. SAPA acts as a medium and catalyst for any matter the industry wishes to collectively address. It acts as the face of the industry, addressing and maintaining a presence in society without which opposing groups could play havoc with the industry’s interests - without opposition.

Over the years, the poultry industry evolved from what was essentially a back-yard industry with thousands of people keeping small flocks and only a few large producers, to the mature, efficient and highly productive commercial operations we see today.

As the industry changed, so too has SAPA adapted to meet the industry’s chang-ing needs. The association is involved in a continuous process of identifying issues affecting the industry and taking positive steps to deal with these, including the often contentious matters of area representation, management decentralisation and dispute resolution among producers.

South African Poultry Association

August 2015 DAFFnews No. 8 8

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In a surrounding of indigenous forest itself, the Nelson Mandela Metro-politan University’s (NMMU), George campus played host to foresters for the three day 2015 Forestry Indaba, co-hosted by the Department of Agri-culture, Forestry and Fisheries.

Taking place every two years, the event mirrored the XIV World Forestry Congress with the theme, “Forests and People: In-vesting in a Sustainable Future”, which will be held in Durban in September.

Academics, students, the private sec-tor, government and communities living in forest and forestry areas represented South Africa’s preparations to engage in the agenda of the XIV World Forestry Con-gress. They worked in a series of parallel sessions which mirrored the subthemes planned for the XIV World Forestry Con-gress. Additional sessions were devoted to the progress of Transformation in South African Forestry, as well as the Role of Youth in Forestry Development.

“Global warming is part of us. Mess up

with the world and I can assure you the world is not going to pardon us. Mess up with the world and the world will mess up with you. Our sustainable future depends on our forests. That’s what the 14th World Forestry Congress will be looking at. What do we do as humankind?’’ warned Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries Deputy Minister, General Bheki Cele.

He further added that it is important to preserve forests for future generations.

Additional sessions were devoted to the progress of Transformation in South Afri-can Forestry, as well as the Role of Youth in Forestry Development.

The university’s Andrew Leich said more young people are choosing to study natu-ral resource management at university.

Secretary General of the XIV World For-estry Congress, Mr Trevor Abrahams gave an overview of South Africa’s preparations in partnership with the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO). South Africa will proudly host the first

Forestry Indaba opens gateway to South Africa

By Jamela Nkanyane

World Forestry Congress on African soil since its inception in 1926.

One of the issues to be discussed in Durban in September is the global signifi-cance of forests including climate change. On the agenda of the congress are the subthemes in the context of issues around socio-economic development, monitoring, building resilience, integration, improving governance and encouraging production in the sector.

The Director-General of the Department of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries, Edith Vries highlighted the importance of the congress to South Africa’s future sustain-able development.

The conclusions of the 2015 Forestry In-daba will inform the participation of many South African delegates in the XIV World Forestry Congress. It is expected that some 5 000 delegates from all over the world will converge at the Inkosi Albert Luthuli Durban International Convention Centre from 7 to 11 September 2015.

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The Department of Agriculture, For-estry and Fisheries (DAFF) held the Annual Deciduous Fruit Coordinating Meeting at ARC Infruitec, Stellen-bosch.

The meeting was attended by deciduous fruit producers, exporters and stakeholders for export of deciduous fruit to different special markets including China, Israel, Japan, Taiwan, Mexico and the US. The objective of the meeting was to discuss the overview of the past deciduous fruit export season (2014/2015), challenges for dif-ferent export programmes encountered during the season, as well as solutions and way forward for the next export season (2015/2016). This is mainly to ensure that all role players comply with the phytosani-tary requirements as stipulated by different importing countries. Discussion were held on technical issues related to market ac-cess of South African products to other countries.

All role players were encouraged to fol-low all the phytosanitary requirements as stipulated by different importing countries to ensure compliance with those require-ments. This was supported by previous reports on statistics, volumes and inter-ceptions of quarantine pests from different export programmes during the 2014/2015 export season.

An overview report regarding phytosani-tary registration and registration procedure for 2015/16 season was also presented. Challenges that were encountered during the past season related to phytosanitary registration were also highlighted. It was indicated that application forms and databases of registered facilities can be accessed on DAFF’s website. Producers were informed that online registration for phytosanitary registration will go live in December 2015.

Producers were also updated on the

status of Bactrocera dorsalis (Bd) syn. Bactrocera invadens, Oriental Fruit Fly (OFF), which is one of the major pests of economic concern in the fruit industry and how it is affecting produce export. The pest has a broad host range including, among other fruits, table grapes and litchi. Mr Jan Hendrik Venter, Manager of Plant Health Early Warning Systems informed delegates that OFF was responsible for 73% of EU interceptions.

He further elaborated that OFF spreads through natural vegetation, informal trade and it also flies over short distances. DAFF takes the Bactrocera dorsalis pandemic very seriously as it forms part of the department’s strategic plan. As a result, over 1400 traps have been set up in affected areas.

The deciduous fruit industry was encour-aged to submit surveillance data for Bd

Annual Deciduous Fruit Producers Coordinating Meeting

By Rony Moremi

with registration documents as part of the 2015 season registration requirement for special markets.

Objective of International Standard for Phytosanitary Measure number 15 (ISPM 15) was also indicated as reducing the risk of introduction and spread of quarantine pests associated with Wood Packaging Material (WPM).

Ms Salamina Maelane, Deputy Director, Directorate Inspection Services (DIS) and chairperson of the meeting, pleaded with the industry and producers to cooperate with the department in effectively using the limited resources of the department.

The industry representatives indicated that they were encouraged by the efforts done by DAFF to have such meetings to explain the processes to be followed when exporting.

Role players were encouraged to follow all the phytosanitary requirements.

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What a month for our women in con-servation. The Endangered Wildlife Trust (EWT) consistently receives recog-nition for its outstanding conservation of species and ecosystems in southern Africa, through the research it conducts and the projects it implements to ad-dress threats to our most vulnerable species. This would not be possible without our women in conservation.

This National Women’s Month, the EWT is celebrating its ladies for being conserva-tion champions of distinction.

“There is no better time than now to celebrate women who are making a differ-ence in protecting our wildlife and natural resources for the present and future gen-erations. This is an important opportunity to profile these amazing women who are passionate about the environment and who work tirelessly to actively conserve the environment,” said Yolan Friedmann EWT CEO.

Many people are not aware of the many-faceted roles that women play in the conservation sector. This Women’s Month the EWT is highlighting the varied roles of women in nature conservation and dem-onstrating the importance of conservation as seen through the eyes of women. The EWT ladies will engage with South Afri-cans through social media and broadcast channels to empower them to care for nature, save species and protect impor-tant habitats. These women have done exceptional conservation groundwork to save threatened and endangered species in South Africa for the benefit of all.

“The EWT ladies will introduce their varied roles in conservation, share the exciting and fun part of conservation and will talk about the important role conser-vation plays in our everyday lives,” added Friedmann.

Whether it’s fresh water, marine, urban, species conservation, or general nature conservation there are women champi-oning the cause throughout the sector. Women in this sector implement conser-

vation activities, formulate conservation strategies and take part in fieldwork. They also conduct research, write scientific pa-pers, including general articles and have to be able to present their work to varied audiences. Some of the ladies actively work with law enforcement officials and law enforcement authorities to combat the poaching of wildlife. They work hard to secure private land for conservation and they empower communities, individuals and organisations to implement conserva-tion activities. An important aspect of their work includes reaching out to members of the public and schools to promote environ-mental education and awareness.

The rediscovery of the Critically Endan-gered Amathole toad in 2011 was made by the EWT’s Dr Jeanne Tarrant—some 13 years after it was last seen. Jeanne

was also instrumental in introducing an annual national awareness campaign— Leap day for Frogs—to raise the public profile of frogs.

The first woman ever to receive a PhD on African Wild Dogs is Dr Harriet Davis-Mostert, the EWT’s Head of Conservation. Karen Allen, who manages the EWT’s Source to Sea Programme Dugong Project, is the only woman to have been awarded the Global 2015 Future for Nature Award for the work on the critically endangered Indian Ocean dugong.

Kerryn Morrison, the EWT’s African Cranes Conservation Programme Manag-er has lobbied for much tighter legislation around the international trade in cranes in the USA, China and Europe. Due to her efforts the trade in Grey Crowned Cranes was suspended in Rwanda, Tanzania and Uganda. Trade in Black Crowned Cranes was also suspended in South Sudan, Guinea and Nigeria.

The EWT has been successful in expand-ing the habitat for two of South Africa’s most threatened carnivores, cheetahs and wild Dogs through its Carnivore Conserva-tion Programme and has pioneered the first initiative in Africa to encourage busi-nesses to mainstream biodiversity into their operations through the National Business and Biodiversity Network.

Over 60% of the EWT staff are women. They are seasoned experts from conserva-tion scientists to programme managers, field managers, field officers and volun-teers. The EWT also cares about the devel-opment of future women conservationists and empowers young women through the training and mentoring of interns.

The EWT embraces each and every role that all women play in conservation from field officers doing on the ground conservation work, to housekeeping staff who ensure that the EWT offices are well maintained and to the staff whose job it is to raise funds so that the EWT can continue to do critical conservation work.

Women in conservation campaign

No. 8 DAFFnews August 2015 11

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In a ground-breaking de-cision, and for the first time on record in the Eastern Cape and possibly in South Africa at large, an En-cephalartos cy-cad poacher has been sentenced to ten years direct imprisonment by the Jansenville regional court.

The Endangered Wildlife Trust (the EWT) would like to commend the National Prosecut-ing Authority, Ad-vocate Coetzee, and the members of the South Afri-can Police Service who arrested the aforementioned poacher and three others. This is a truly outstanding conclusion to this case and will hopefully send a strong message to would-be perpetrators that it is not worth removing these endangered plants from the wild.

The case involved four poachers, ar-rested in 2014 for attempting to smug-gle twelve Encephalartos lehmannii, the Karoo Cycad, to Johannesburg. The E. lehmannii is listed as a protected spe-cies in the national list of threatened or protected Species, published on 23 February 2007. The matter, prosecuted by Advocate Coetzee in the Jansenville regional court, concluded on 24 June

Cycad poacher sentenced to 10 years in prison

2015, where the presiding officer, Mag-istrate Rene Esterhuize, sentenced three of the poachers (Shadrack Matambo, Desmond Manodawafa and Alex Khoza) to five years effective imprisonment and sentenced the fourth poacher (Sibusiso Khumalo) to ten years effective impris-onment for the same offences. Sibusiso Khumalo was sentenced to a lengthier jail term due to his previous two convictions for cycad poaching. The vehicle used in the commission of the offences was also seized and forfeited to the State.

The EWT is active in awareness rais-ing activities and enforcement training programmes specific to cycads, host-

ing various train-ing interventions with law enforce-ment officials from mixed enforcement agencies including the South African Police Service.

In South Africa the greatest threat facing cycads is the poaching of plants from wild populat ions to supply both do-mestic and inter-national markets. Current statistics reflect the follow-ing in respect of the Encephalartos cycad species in South Africa: three are extinct in the wild; twelve are critically endan-gered (meaning the species faces an extremely high

risk of extinction in the wild); four are Endangered (meaning these cycads face a high risk of extinction in the wild); nine are vulnerable (meaning these cycads face a high risk of endangerment in the wild); and seven are near threatened (meaning these cycads are likely to be-come endangered in the near future and the Encephalartos lehmannii falls within this category).

The EWT wholeheartedly supports the work of all parties involved in bringing these poachers to justice and looks for-ward to seeing more cases concluded like this one in the future.

Encephalartos lehmannii is a low-growing palm-like cycad in the family Zamiaceae. It is commonly known as the Karoo cycad and is endemic to South Africa. The species name lehmannii commemorates Prof JGC Lehmann, a German botanist who studied the cycads and published a book on them in 1834. This cycad is listed as near threatened on the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species.

August 2015 DAFFnews No. 8 12

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In terms of section 6 of the Animal Dis-eases Act, 1984 (Act No. 35 of 1984), no animal product (including samples) may be imported into or moved in transit through the Republic of South Africa without the importer obtaining a veterinary import permit from the Directorate: Food Import and Export Standards.

Importers are encouraged to apply in advance because the permit is valid for six months. In order to apply for a veterinary import permit, the relevant application form must be completed. The forms can be obtained from the permit office or the website (http:/www.daff.gov.za/Services/imports/veterinary import permits/applica-tion forms).

The completed application form can be e-mailed or faxed to the permit office. Proof of payment must accompany the ap-plication form. A veterinary import permit

Going huntingProcedure to apply for import permit

is usually issued within 5 to 10 working days once the permit has been approved by the state veterinarian. Please state on the application form whether the permit will be collected, couriered or must be posted to you. Please confirm that the permits are ready for collection, before making arrangements for the collection. The following must be presented to the South African State Veterinarian or his/her representative or agricultural import official at the Port of Entry:

Original Veterinary Import Permit•

Original Veterinary Health Certifi-•cateCosts and payments option•A payment of R 150,00 is required •per permit

Who to contactE-mail address:VetPermits@daff.gov.zaTel: +27 12 319 7514/7632/7633/7406/7500/7461/7476Fax: +27 12 319 7644Address: Room G52, Delpen Building, Corner of Annie Botha Ave.& Union Street.

Macadamia famers have been the envy of the agricultural industry during the last few years as demand for the product sent prices soaring. However increasing issues surrounding crop quality could see farmers without a market for their nuts.

Speaking at the Valley Macadamias study group, chairman Alan Sutton warned that farmers whose sound kernel recovery (SKR), owning to high unsound kernel lev-els, dipped below prescribed levels could struggle to find buyers for their crop.

Sutton said that the last twelve year’s records show that the past two years have shown the worst quality across all mac-adamia varieties.

The South African crop is expected the reach 74 000t by 2017/2018, up from 47 000t this year. The market is split nearly evenly between kernel exports and nut in

shell (NIS), with the latter market requiring a higher quality nut with a lower USKR percentage.

“South Africa has a very limited capac-ity for cracking the nuts and exporting the kernel. I don’t foresee any new processing facilities going up in the near future due to the high cost of entry and the lack of power from Eskom. This means we need to look after the NIS market to ensure that we have a market for our product. Since NIS requires a higher quality nut to meet requirements, farmers have to up their game.”

The decrease in crop quality is largely to blame on an increase in stinkbug preva-lence. “When one considers the cause of the marked change in quality over the last two years then the removal of endosulfan from the list of crop protection chemicals

available to farmers is the likely culprit. This has left farmers with only pyrethroid based chemicals, which has led to a resist-ance build up in stink bugs.”

Sutton said that orchards required in-tensive management in order to maintain high quality levels. “Scouting for stinkbugs has become fundamental as we can no longer simply spray according to a cal-endar programme. Joint approaches are also becoming important and farmers need to look at combining aerial sprays with soil drench applications. Calibration of tractors is pivotal as spraying becomes redundant if the chemical isn’t reaching every branch of the tree.”

Sutton concluded that macadamias were still a very lucrative crop but farmers must be mindful about where the industry is go-ing in terms of quality requirements.

Quality of macadamias under the loop