How to start a farming business in South Africa

How to start a farming business in South Africa

Agriculture is constantly evolving; it consists of any type of farming. Agriculture is the farming, management, production and marketing of agricultural commodities such as livestock and crops. Farmers play a very vital role in our economy; they produce all the food we eat. This is a guide on how to start a farming business in South Africa.

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What can you farm?

Crops:

Crop farming can be very profitable, South Africa is known for producing maize, wheat, vegetables, sugar cane, citrus, fruits and sunflower seeds.

Livestock:

Farming livestock can be very profitable and fulfilling. Some of the most common animals to farm are cattle, sheep, pigs and goats.

In this article we are going to focus more on crop farming in South Africa. South Africa is unique and presents unique challenges to entrepreneurs, in recent years the subject of farming has been gaining popularity. We are going to focus on how you can setup a small agricultural farm.

1. Evaluate the demand

The first thing you have to do is evaluate the demand/market for the types of crops that you will be planting. A lot of people tend to start by farming, assuming that selling the harvest will not be hard. Just like any business; it’s important to do your market research before starting out.

You are likely going to sell your crops at the nearest town, you can’t be farming in Eastern Cape and expect to sell your products at Johannesburg. Your market research should focus on checking which types of veg/fruits people in your town like to buy. You can do this by going to your nearest Fruit and Veg market/grocery store and simply ask them which crops are bought the most.

You should also avoid planting what you like, a lot of people tend to plant what they like. Try to plant what will sell, example, don’t plant a radish or an eggplant if you are running a small farm from a rural area. Those types of vegetables just don’t have a lot of demand in small towns like Matatiele. This will make it easier to sell your veggies/fruits after harvest.

2. Design your farm

You have to design your farm if you want a farm that is well organized and optimized for efficiency, practicality and profitability. Your design should take into account your existing structures like trees, houses, and also things like wind, sun angles for different times of the year and the elevation of your land.

You can make this design by using pencil and paper or using design software. It’s important to take into account wind direction, frost buckets, average temperature, potential flooding areas. You might plant your crops only to find that your land has flooding problems, knowing this beforehand; you can install water drainage systems. You might also notice that there is too much wind blowing from a certain direction, you might use wind breaks if this wind will damage your crops.

This also includes for planning of the structures, when putting a greenhouse, you have to ask yourself on whether it’s for winter production or summer production. Then place your greenhouse from east to west (winter) or north to south (summer), depending on what you decide. You should also decide where your beds will be, take into consideration the water-flow of your property. Don’t place your beds in areas where there are swells or where the water gets contained.

3. Crop production plan

People tend to have different crop production plans; how much do you want to produce? Some people just start with farming without taking the financial aspects into consideration. It’s best to think about your financial goals first, think about how much money you want to make. Then make calculations of how much crops you will need to produce to get there. It’s important to think of the demand and the time it takes before the crops can be harvested.

Your calculations will not be accurate, especially if you are a first timer, but you will get a picture of how much you need to produce to meet your financial goals.

4. Prepare your land for production

You will need to prepare your land for production. Your land is likely to be full of weeds, and other pests. Preparing your land includes cutting off all the grass, you can cultivate the land by tilling it with a tractor or walk-behind tractor. You can also just lay a soil of compost, making your beds after cutting the grass. Each of these options have pros and cons, try to find what works for you.

A lot of small-time farmers in South Africa prefer to just till (plough) the soil, this makes the soil fresh and ripe for planting. However, you also have to make sure that you take care of weeds, weeds can be a real pain when farming. There are lot of weed management techniques, try to do extensive research on how to deal with weeds.

5. Grow your crops

There a lot of plant growing techniques, it’s preferable to grow your seedlings in the nursery and put them in the soil once they have grown a bit. You can use simple nursery trays for this process, they come in different sizes and dimensions. You can get a nursery tray for as little as R7 in South Africa. It’s important to make sure that your plants are irrigated and kept moist.

You will also be required to do a lot of weed management, weeds will grow, they can cause real problems for you. You have to make sure that your beds are free of weeds. This is also the stage where you use pesticides, if you are not going with the organic route. Insects can do a lot of damage to your plants, it’s best to use pesticides and other measures to keep them out of your farm.

6. Sell your crops

You can sell your crops at a farmer’s market or grocery store. Stores like SPAR are known to sell crops from individual small-scale farmers. This part should not be difficult if you have done your market research. It’s important to know exactly where you will sell your crops after harvesting them. If not then you might find yourself sitting with crops until they’re no longer fresh.

7. Funding

The South African government loves people who are starting an agricultural business. You shouldn’t have difficulties with getting funding for your farm, especially if you can show that it will hire a reasonable amount of people. However, I advise that you start from scratch and do everything by yourself until you get enough experience on how to properly run a small farm.

You don’t need a huge land to start your own small-scale farming, you need land that is just a bit bigger than your garden. You can get a huge piece of land for less than R1 000 in rural areas. These lands are usually 50 x 50 meters. Big enough for you to start a serious commercial farm, however, you should use them to gain the necessary experience. This will make it easier for the government to entrust you with money. You will get funding a lot easier when you have experience.

A lot of people tend to treat farming as a hobby and not as a business. You should approach your farm as a business; therefore, it is necessary to document everything, keep track of even the tiniest expenses.

8. Knowledge

Arming yourself with knowledge will prevent you from making otherwise would be avoidable mistakes. It’s important to research and read books on how the agricultural industry works. There is a mountain of information available on the internet on how to start an agricultural business in South Africa.

You will also learn more about the type of equipment you will need for your farm. This article doesn’t focus on equipment and resources like water, it is more focused on the business aspect of farming.

Conclusion

A farming business is not easy to setup, a lot of people don’t get into farming because they think they need a lot of money to start. This not really true, humans have been planting crops since the dawn of mankind; you don’t need fancy equipment to make it work. All you need is a reasonable size of land in order to start small and you are good to go.

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