SA Canegrowers’ representatives attending an annual agribenchmarking conference in Europe say domestic farming methodologies in the sugarcane growing sector match and, in some instances, surpass their international counterparts.
Biological controls and plant nutrition products using natural ingredients out of Brazil were the showstopper at this year’s Agribenchmark Network Cash Crop Conference in Valladolid, Spain.
From June 9-15, SA Canegrowers’ board members, Dieter Lütge, Suresh Naidoo and Economic Research Manager, Richard Nicholson joined representatives from the world’s agriculture value chain to look at the comparable economics of global farming systems which included sugarcane, wheat, sugar beet, maize, soya and other cereal production.
Lütge said the conference was an absolutely “amazing experience”. “It was great to see that our farming methods match or are even better than our European counterparts in many instances. They have huge problems that they must deal with. I am forever grateful that I live and farm in Africa,” he said.
In a report presented to the SA Canegrowers Congress earlier this month, Nicholson said one of the “most impressive” presentations during the sugarcane workshop was delivered by Brazil’s Danilo Menegatti on bio-inputs.
“The use of these natural products has taken off in that country as growers turn to more environmentally sustainable and cost-effective methods to protect and feed their sugarcane crop,” he said.
Bio-inputs are agro-industrial products developed from enzymes, plant extracts, micro-organisms, macro-organisms (invertebrates), secondary metabolites and pheromones aimed at more sustainable biological control and plant nutrition in sugarcane fields according to Menegatti’s presentation.
The range of products include:
- Bio-nematicides
- Bio-insecticides
- Fungicides
- Inoculants (nutrition fixation in the soil)
- Bio-stimulants (stress reducer or growth promoters)
Nicholson said while bio-inputs did not necessarily replace all conventional chemical applications yet, they played a significant role in guaranteeing these applications were more effective. “Bio-inputs can significantly cut conventional chemical applications. For example, using soil bacteria to boost nutrient absorption has shown improved yields which then lead to better returns per hectare,” he said.
Nicholson said it was estimated that 90% of the area under sugarcane in Brazil was under some form of biological pest control while there was a significant increase in micro-organism adoption in sugarcane production. “If we could trial the products in South Africa, I believe we could assist our growers to achieve better yields by progressively working with nature. This would also advance the industry’s agreed sustainability goals,” he added.
In the 2022/23 season the Brazilian bio-pesticides market was pegged at $98 million (R1.8 billion) with 94% of the products used in integrated pest management controls such as bio-fungicides and bio-insecticides. Bionematicides took up 5% of the market.
India and South African production
In a presentation aimed at depicting a typical South African dryland sugarcane operation, KwaZulu-Natal North Coast commercial farmer, Dieter Lütge highlighted some of the challenges linked to the domestic sector which included, growing tonnages of cheap imports, a government-imposed sugar tax, political and industry uncertainty and an irregular supply of electricity and ever-increasing input costs.
Dilip Kajale described a typical sugarcane production unit in India.
“Their production system is very different from both South Africa and Brazil,” Nicholson said. “However, like South Africa manual harvesting is still prevalent but a lack of research and development into pest management means growers generally have just two or three ratoons in India,” he added.
While the challenges faced by Indian growers differed significantly from their counterparts in South Africa, the impact of extreme weather events linked to the climate crisis were an issue they shared.
Regenerative agriculture and the costs and benefits of carbon farming measures linked to an economic study on 150 farms in Germany were also a key discussion on the conference programme.
Once the event concluded, delegates were treated to a post-conference tour at family-run soya bean processing operation east of Vallodolid in Zaragoza in the Arragon region of Spain. Also on the programme was a tour of a rainfed cereal and legume production farm where the hosts showed examples of how they had introduced practices aimed at conserving and improving soil quality such as zero-tillage. This was followed by a visit to a commercial irrigation farm where cereals and oilseed are produced.
Nicholson said the event provided invaluable networking opportunities. “The SA Canegrowers’ delegation had the opportunity to meet and interact with experts from all over the world. The topics under discussion at the conference provided us with an invaluable learning experience. We are doing many things right in South Africa when it comes to sugarcane production. But the current challenges facing crop production worldwide, such as climate change and political instability coupled with our unique domestic challenges means we must innovate.”
SA Canegrowers became a member of the Agribenchmark Network in 2017. Nicholson said the membership was assisting the organisation to benchmark the economics of sugarcane production in the country against international network partner countries , which, he added, was crucial for the longevity and viability of the sector into the future.