South Africa’s farmers are doing an incredible job. Year after year, they produce food for the nation and keep exports growing, even when costs are high and challenges are many. They pay huge amounts of tax to the government, yet they often receive very little help in return. Broken roads, unreliable electricity, slow rail and port systems, and rising crime make every season harder than it should be.The government keeps a close eye on agriculture because the sector is performing well and showing real potential. But instead of supporting and protecting what already works, there is growing pressure to “transform” the industry through heavy BEE rules and quotas. While transformation and inclusion are important goals, they must not come at the cost of destroying efficiency, investment, and food security.The truth is simple: South Africa has massive agricultural growth potential in 2026.
But to unlock it fully, we must stop relying only on good weather, hard work, and new technology. We need a strong, clear, proactive government policy that delivers real, inclusive growth for everyone—big commercial farmers, agribusinesses, and new black and emerging farmers.
The government holds 2.5 million hectares of acquired land that is still sitting unused. This land should be released to deserving beneficiaries with proper title deeds, using the practical Land Reform Agency model that once had strong support from organised agriculture and the Land Bank. The lack of real progress in 2025 has frustrated many and wasted valuable goodwill.Exports are the lifeblood of the sector, making up roughly half of its value. South Africa must aggressively open new fast-growing markets in the Middle East and Asia, while protecting and strengthening existing access to Africa, the Americas, Europe, and the UK.The Southern African Customs Union (SACU) is holding us back.
Biosecurity must become a top national priority. Diseases like foot-and-mouth, African swine fever, avian influenza, and plant pests are hurting production and blocking exports. The Department of Agriculture must spend more, revive the Agricultural Research Council, partner openly with private labs for research and vaccines. Rural crime and stock theft cannot be ignored any longer.
Farmers face murders, theft, and huge livestock losses . Farm murders in South Africa must be treated as a national priority — no excuses, no delays, no downplaying.Every farmer — black, white, small-scale, commercial — deserves to work, live, and sleep without constant fear for their life, their family, or their livelihood. When a farmer is killed, it is not only a personal tragedy; it is an attack on food security, rural jobs, and the entire agricultural economy that feeds the nation.The government, law enforcement, organised agriculture, and agribusiness must openly acknowledge this is a huge, unacceptable problem. No more soft language. No more pretending it is just “crime in general.” Farm murders and violent rural crime are a specific, targeted threat that requires a specific, targeted national response.Farmers and farmworkers are not asking for special treatment — they are asking for the same basic protection every citizen should expect: visible policing, intelligence-driven operations, swift arrests, effective prosecutions, and the dismantling of organised syndicates that steal livestock and target rural homes.Right now, the message from many farmers is loud and clear:
“We feed the country, we pay taxes, we create jobs — yet we are left to defend ourselves while the system fails us.”That must change in 2026.The time for vague promises and endless meetings is over.
We need stronger intelligence-led policing, the dismantling of organised syndicates, and real cooperation between farmers, communities, and law enforcement.
Organised agriculture and agribusiness are ready to support real change but can only work together if all included and satisfy with the so called masterplan. The government’s job is to act decisively: prioritise implementation, remove barriers, and create a fair, enabling environment so every farmer—big or small, established or new—can thrive.South African agriculture is one of our greatest strengths.
Let 2026 be the year we stop talking and start building a future where all farmers succeed, food security is protected, and the nation prospers together. Farmers are the backbone of this country. They deserve support, not obstacles. It’s time to stand strong and demand better.
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