Traditional agriculture in Mzansi is not just a way of producing food, but a living link to culture, family, and community. On Heritage Day, millions of South Africans celebrate this event, while experts and community activists consider how traditional farming can contribute to food security.
Despite the fact that local knowledge remains an important part of many people's livelihoods, farmers face a number of obstacles, including drought, climate change, limited access to land, water, finance, and modern markets. Therefore, preserving traditional farming requires support for local farmers, recognition of indigenous knowledge, and combining traditional practices with appropriate agricultural technologies to strengthen food security and rural lifestyles.
Nonhlanhla Moroenyane, a cookbook author, food activist, and founder of Noni’s Home Dish, asserts that the most serious barrier is the disconnect that has stripped the land of its knowledge and wisdom. She stated: 'Commercial farming, the degenerated ways of interacting with ourselves and the land, make victory impossible. Traditional agriculture is certainly becoming less common because we are convinced that indigenous methods are outdated, when in fact it is the complete opposite. We become dependent instead of the other way around.'
Moroenyane explained that modernity has turned communities into people who are not inclined to reflect. 'It has distanced us from traditions and culture regarding land; modernity has literally turned us into consumers and takers, and those who give nothing in return.'
Ashraf Sirkot, project manager for urban greening and landscape management at Greenpop, noted that the preservation of traditional farming systems faces interconnected structural, economic, and environmental challenges. He emphasized that traditional agrarian knowledge is largely passed down orally and between generations. Rural-to-urban migration, the aging of the farming population, and the lack of formal documentation lead to the loss of knowledge about seed preservation, intercropping, natural pest management, soil conservation, and seasonal forecasting.
Sirkot also pointed out that agricultural policy, service expansion, research funding, and subsidies have historically been skewed towards industrial, monocultural, and export-oriented agriculture. He added that changing rainfall patterns, increased frequency of droughts and floods, and soil degradation directly threaten traditional systems that are finely tuned to local microclimates.
'Although traditional systems are often more resilient, their adaptive capacity is being overwhelmed, and traditional farming often depends on access to common resources outside the plot: communal pastures, forests for manure and mulch, water sources, and sacred groves,' Sirkot noted.
To further advance, Sirkot advised the government to develop niche markets, geographical indications (GI), and fair trade certification for traditional crops and products. He recommended redirecting agricultural subsidies to support agroecological and traditional practices, as well as supporting farmer cooperatives for processing, storage, and collective marketing to increase bargaining power.
Furthermore, he proposed creating community seed banks and livestock genetic banks to preserve traditional varieties and breeds. Sirkot strongly advised documenting traditional knowledge with the full participation and consent of communities, integrating it into official agricultural curricula. He specified that preserving traditional farming is not a romanticization of the past, but a strategic necessity for ensuring food security, climate resilience, and biodiversity conservation. This is only possible if farmers have secure land rights, their knowledge is valued, and their produce is economically viable.
Meanwhile, retired Deputy Director Elijah Ramaphoko, who spent decades training farmers for the Department of Agriculture, Land Reform, and Rural Development of the Northern Cape, stated that the preservation of traditional farming must be undertaken by both communities and the government. He stressed that it cannot be left solely to the government; as a society, they must return to their roots and do things based on fundamental principles.
Ramaphoko also called on young farmers for the older generation to teach them that traditional farming is possible even in the age of artificial intelligence and constantly changing mechanization. It is important, in his opinion, that colleges teach traditional agriculture; this does not mean rejecting progress, but remembering one's origins.
