Climate change is real and it is here. These sentiments are shared by Mzansi farmers as climate conditions continue changing and becoming more unpredictable.
Adaptation and venturing into smart farming are the only solutions available for farmers in order for them to survive in the demanding agricultural industry.
North West cattle farmer Ipeleng Kwadi-Seboni believes both livestock and crop farmers have been affected by climate change. She was speaking at the cattle development team roundtable hosted by the Agricultural Research Council (ARC).
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Technology can help
The discussions were centred around climate-smart beef production systems to mitigate global warming. Kwadi-Seboni said through research, farmers can combat the effects of climate change and ensure efficient and sustainable beef production.
“One of the major challenges is the effect of heat resistance on the reproduction performance of cattle, the fertility of bulls from different genotypes, and immune systems that obviously will not function as usual.
“The overall health of cattle can be affected which will have a negative impact on the production, ” she said.
One mitigation strategy, she added, is to introduce an indigenous bull because it is important to adapt to climate change survival methods.
“It is important for youth in agriculture to make use of technology in expanding their production but also use every opportunity like research papers that are done by our agriculture scientists as a learning curve for the future and for sustainability,” she said.
Understanding climate change
President of Mzansi Climate Smart Agriculture, Rosah Ramaipadi, said the impact and effects of climate change cannot be divorced from agriculture.
“There is no rain, and when it comes it destroys. The heat we are experiencing is also extremely hot, crops cannot cope and livestock also under such harsh conditions.
“It is high time that farmers understand climate change and farm with what is suitable for their surroundings, like choosing the right and good variety of crops and livestock,” she said.
She advised farmers to change the way they are farming: like going organic and practising agroecology.
“Agriculture is one of the causes of climate change: the harsh synthetic fertilisers and pesticides that are being used and the emissions from livestock also [adds to it]. The way we are farming now has resulted in a war with nature with rapidly declining biodiversity pollution and destruction of soil, a variety of negative health impacts from toxic chemicals in farming,” she said.
Learn to adapt
Willies Manganyi, the coordinator of climate change and cleaner production from the Bojanala Platinum District Municipality in the North West, has cautioned farmers against taking the effects of climate change lightly. He said the province is not immune from climate change, as things like veld fires, droughts, and heavy rains have hit the platinum province badly in recent weeks.
Manganyi said the changes in climatic conditions are becoming more unpredictable and rural farmers need to be exposed to the information regarding climate change. “When the weather temperature increases, some animals fail to survive. These are mostly genetically modified animals and cross-bred animals that are bred for certain purposes that do not survive.
“We have been experiencing more cold fronts than before, but now they are normal. On the other hand, temperatures are soaring and some animals can’t cope. Even crops – some grow well in warm conditions and cannot survive in cold conditions,” he said.
Manganyi said farmers must learn to adapt and mitigate. “The modified animals cannot cope in those conditions, whereas indigenous animals survive in high temperatures.
“For crop farmers, they need to implement crop rotation. If you specialise in wheat, consider farming with maize because it’s more resilient. A smart farmer learns the market and mixes their crops with those that survive in warmer and colder conditions,” he said.
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