Greetings to all our readers in the new year 2026.

This year sugarcane growing areas have experienced the continuation of the rainfall under the La Niña climatic conditions. Although it bodes well for the crop, such conditions have, in some instances, hampered harvesting, which in turn disrupted operational efficiency at the mills. To improve crop forecasting and provide better scientific services to the sugarcane industry, SASRI monitors the weather. Weather monitoring is achieved by collecting and processing meteorological data using SASRI’s network of automatic weather stations and manual rain gauges distributed within and beyond the sugarcane growing regions of South Africa. Data on rainfall, temperature, relative humidity, solar radiation and wind speed are utilised to derive weather-based variables such as evapotranspiration, discomfort index and fire danger index. The information is made available through the SASRI Weather Web (www.sasri.org.za/weatherweb) to enable decision making and planning.

In the medium-term, climate forecasts indicate slightly above-normal late summer rainfall. However, climatic yield potential for 2026 is predicted to be below that of 2025 and the 5-year mean. Climate variability remains an important factor affecting sugarcane production in South Africa, as it has implications for yields.

The sugarcane industry needs to ensure efficient management of natural resources, particularly water. Managing water availability through storage and irrigation are some of the mechanisms to ensure good yields under variable climatic conditions. The regulation of water-contents and fluxes is critical to sugarcane’s physiological and biochemical growth and agronomic yield of crops. As a plant species, sugarcane is unique in its ability to accumulate sucrose at fairly high concentrations in the stalk. Accordingly, water use efficiency becomes a key factor in developing sugarcane varieties that produce more crop per drop of water.

Climate change has been identified as a key factor impacting on agricultural production, sugarcane included. One of the factors that exacerbate climate change is the emission of greenhouse gases. As South Africa produces sugarcane on an area of approximately 350 000 hectares, it is important to understand the impact of greenhouse gas emissions. Accordingly, SASRI plans to initiate a study on greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions in sugarcane farming, focusing on the residue management practices of mulching versus burning. Hopefully, the project will quantify GHG emissions and soil organic carbon (SOC) sequestration, analysing how fertiliser use, soil moisture, and microbial biomass carbon affect GHG dynamics. If successful, the research will address a knowledge gap in South African agriculture and support climate-smart practices to reduce CO₂, CH₄, and N₂O emissions. Findings will inform the implementation of sustainable, low-GHG-emission sugarcane systems aligned with productivity and climate goals.

Agricultural production depends on natural resource biodiversity. Such biodiversity provides an appropriate ecosystem for soil health, plant growth, pollination and flowering. One of the ingredients essential for pollination and biological control is insect biodiversity. It is imperative to ensure sustainable sugarcane production in South Africa. Accordingly, SASRI has developed and implemented SUSFARMS^®, a sustainable sugarcane farm management system designed to encourage sustainable, responsible sugarcane production through the implementation of better management practices (BMPs). These BMPs are designed to reduce negative impacts on the environment, comply with legislation, maintain a high level of social responsibility and assist with financial sustainability. Principles embodied in SUSFARMS^® are Prosperity, People and Planet.

The Link is a short newsletter that provides advice on key aspects for sustainable sugarcane production and productivity. We hope you will gain insights from these articles, gather additional information, especially from the experts at SASRI, and apply such knowledge in your farming practices. We hope you enjoy reading the articles.