MacDay 2024
South Africa's Premier Macadamia Event
We’re celebrating International Nut Day this week!
I thought it only fitting to share a few updates… the first one being MacDay’24.
International Nut Day (October 22nd every year) was created back in 2015 to support small nut farmers around the world, to educate consumers about the many benefits of nuts, and to encourage healthier dietary choices. But more than awareness, it’s a day to celebrate the history and the impressive diversity of nuts, which some say have been a staple in the human diet for over 780,000 years!
The macadamia industry itself has its work cut out for it, simply because the macadamia is one of the new kids on the block when we look at the world of nuts.
The World Macadamia Organisation (WMO) does great work to deliver useful, relevant, and accurate macadamia nut resources (among other initiatives globally) to create a greater awareness and appreciation of the queen of nuts, the ultra tasty macadamia.
Marketing and awareness drives aside… there has been a steady push for research aimed at supporting macadamia farmers in producing higher quality yields, and increasingly resilient farming practices.
I’m big supporter of useful research in areas burgeoning with question marks, or where best practices are a bit grey.
Findings presented at local farmer meet-up’s, study groups, webinars, and events gets the word around nicely; helping any new-found knowledge to stick.
Moving knowledge from “presentation into practice” is easier said than done (of course) but vitally important.
Producers can really reap the rewards with successful implementation of advanced techniques; or simply with a bit of tweaking to their current practices.
One of the premier knowledge-sharing events is the annual “Mac Day” organised by the South African Macadamia Association (SAMAC) which usually takes place around one of the country’s major macadamia producing regions.
Last year (2023) the event took place in tandem with the International Macadamia Symposium (IMS) which was a great success. The event took place in KwaZulu Natal and saw attendees from all over the world.
I had the privilege of chatting to farmers from Australia, Vietnam, Guatemala, Brazil, Columbia, Zimbabwe, Malawi, Kenya, etc. And getting to chat to international attendees about their operations, with some of them very new to the world of Macadamia farming, was one of the highlights for me.
Although MacDay’24 was a smaller event (this time hosted in White River, Mpumalanga) it was nonetheless an informative research-based celebration of all things Macadamia.
There were industry vendors, stalls, displays, and all the usual things you’d expect from a symposium.
Connecting with industry leaders and service providers all in one space is always great and it was good to see some familiar faces.
Aerobotics exhibited along with our friends at Drone Solutions International (DSI) and FieldBUGS. And the main focus was on showcasing the SkyBugs solution.
SkyBugs is all about distributing beneficial insects over orchards with the aid of drones and some clever onboard distribution mechanisms.
Although we had a bit of inclement weather here and there (which was unfortunate for the outside displays and exhibits) I think the event was all-in-all a success. A good opportunity to liaise with attendees, and listen in on some enlightening presentations.
A little bit about DSI
DSI is one of our preferred drone service providers in South Africa and they do some fantastic surveying work. My free email course goes over the kinds of metrics Aerobotics is able to provide for farmers based on the data they capture from above - I cannot recommend them highly enough. Data integrity and turnaround times are perhaps the two most important factors when it comes to drone surveys and these guys get it right and always impress. » www.dsint.co.za
A little bit about FieldBUGS
FieldBUGS are the experts in beneficial insects for all major crops, and their big support for Macadamia farmers and their focus on some really big pain points (like Stinkbug!) is a big win in my books. They are the flagship provider of all the beneficial insects and mites SkyBugs makes use of, partnering with Aerobotics to make it all happen. » www.fieldbugs.co.za
And that’s it, just a quick snapshot of the event.
Planning to write about some of the key takeaways for me, so keep an eye out.
