On this episode of Farmer’s Inside Track, we converse with three dynamic agriculturalists about the complexities of running a farming business, creating new innovative markets, and why preserving our agricultural heritage is critical to success in this sector.
Andile Ngcobo, a KwaZulu-Natal farmer and agricultural consultant, Kagiso Tom of Tom Rakudu Poultry, and Thapelo Phiri, a fertiliser specialist focusing on regenerative agricultural practices, join us.
Creating an innovative environment
For Tom, farming was her way of life growing up. She says her grandmother was a cattle farmer and that was all she did.
She says that a farmer doesn’t have to sell their goods in retail stores to make a name for themselves. There is a market, and there is plenty of it locally.
“I think the future of farming in South Africa is very bright. Black South African youth are taking the baton and running with it. So, I am happy with that.”
Ngcobo says that farming isn’t something you do when everything else fails; it’s a way of life that can be modern if you want it to be.
“We are not very different from other businesses and other business owners of our age group. It is just that our challenges are going to be different.”
‘Agriculture is our heritage’
In this episode, Phiri also shares his insights on regenerative agriculture. According to Phiri, we need the indigenous knowledge and foodstuff that has become part of the elders’ heritage. He adds that amadumbe is one of the traditional foods in the KZN province, and that he would not have known if he hadn’t travelled to the elder farmers on that side who shared this information with him.
“Agriculture is part of our heritage, it’s not something new to us, it’s part of us. We just need to embrace it and take it further as a business and not just as a way of living.”
The podcast features conversations between innovators about the following topics:
- How innovators should put in more effort to create unique drives;
- The significance of indigenous food systems; and
- Macromarketing and its potent influence.
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