International interest in local macadamias for research purposes

Students and academics from the University of Göttingen in Germany visited the Levubu area in February to discuss a new research project, the South African Limpopo Landscapes Network, which will conduct research into the socio-economic and biological impacts of climate change in agricultural landscapes in Limpopo.

The research will have a strong focus on the macadamia industry and the project builds on a previous successful research project that demonstrated the significant contribution to macadamia farmers of ecosystem services provided by natural pollinators and predators of crop pests, such as birds and bats.

The group was hosted in Levubu by local scientists and students from the University of Venda’s Chair on Biodiversity Value and Change, the Zoology Department and the School of Agriculture and they met with local macadamia farmers. At a well-attended meeting of the Macadamia Study Group on 21 February, Profs Reimund Roetter and Jan-Henning Feil from the University of Göttingen outlined the project and enlisted the enthusiastic support of local macadamia farmers to conduct a farm survey in the region to better understand risks to the industry from climate change and other causes.

News in brief - Date: 18 March 2019

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