Introduction
Snacking is becoming more and more popular in the last 30 years. A recent study has shown that 90% of men and 91% of women eat at least one snack daily.

The ongoing disputes in the South China Sea are usually portrayed as being centered on China’s brazen attempts to claim artificial islands and the waters surrounding them as extensions of its sovereign territory; rights to the 11 billion estimated barrels of oil beneath the sea; or access to the $5.3 trillion trade that passes through it.

In this season of festive eating -- and festive provisioning -- we often have a tricky time planning meals, juggling all the things in our fridge and making sure everyone has a good time and enjoys the food we cook. I know that even in my house, all the date labels on food can cause confusion.

The harvest of South African Evita or Great Parisian figs, called ‘baby figs’ because of their size, will start by weeks 3 or 4. Yukon, a South African grower-exporter of niche vegetable products, will be offering these figs to overseas retail and wholesale clients until the end of May.

outh African new-vehicle sales yet again retreated into negative territory in 2018, declining by 1%, to 552 190 units, down from the 557 703 units sold in 2017.

Africa has seen the highest growth among businesses run by women in recent years. This would appear to be good news: entrepreneurship is arguably crucial for job creation and economic growth.

Hilux sales top 40 000 units, Suzuki, Bentley fly, Merc takes a knock- South Africa 

A great many people live for keeping score. Football league tables. Rugby scores. Cricket statistics. But there's only one collection of numbers that really matter when you are a South African and interested in automobiles: Which is the best-selling bakkie of all?

According to a specialist in the sector, “the first two weeks of the campaign went really well, with the highest volumes sold for Christmas. Both packages sold well, the lychees from Madagascar in 4.4 lbs and 12 lbs.”

The year 2019 will be a challenging one for South African beef cattle farmers. One challenge that became apparent by the end of 2018 was environmental related, as grain and oilseed producing areas of the country experienced dryness which led to delays in plantings, and thus leading to an increase in agricultural commodity prices, particularly maize.

The weather’s cool and there’s even been some welcome and, in places, heavy rain in the southwestern Cape, just as the pear harvest is picking up steam.

After the reports on record harvests last summer, peace has once again returned to the European apple market. The market situation is determined by the fact that the storage facilities are full.

Precision Agriculture Company Aerobotics and major farming co-operative based in Humansdorp, The Co-op (also known as “Die Koöperasie”), have formed a partnership that will make Aerobotics’ leading tree crop analytics technology and software available to 1,300 farms in the Eastern Cape. This partnership is the first of its kind in South Africa and is set to serve as a template for others like it in the future.

South Africa is the most popular hunting destination on the continent. The wealth of species on offer, the wide range of hunting experiences, overall affordability and fantastic infrastructure all contribute to a world-class African hunting destination.

The bakkie market continues to expand in South Africa, with both the Ford Ranger and Toyota Hilux continuing to top the best sellers list.

South African onion producers get interest from South America and Asia, as Dutch onion shortages are felt worldwide Cape onion harvest starts amid unique marketing season worldwide Dutch onion traders have been visiting South Africa, some of whom haven’t imported South African onions for many years.

China’s 2018 economic growth fell to a three-decade low, 6.4% year-on-year in the fourth quarter, from 6.5% in the previous quarter, according to official data released earlier this week.

A South African citrus producer not only managed to bump up its production by 40% through new acquisitions this year, but also bolstered its successful black workers’ economic empowerment programme in the process. 

The situation in the European table grape market has been quite challenging. Because of the large volumes supplied by Peru, German, Dutch and French traders have at times had to deal with extremely low prices, especially at the beginning of the season.

2018 was an ‘on year’ for the avocado. The UK and Europe alone consumed over 650 million kilos of avocados and the European avocado market remains one of the fastest growing markets worldwide.