The government’s prioritization of the sub-tropical fruit and nut sectors and the promotion of small-scale farmer integration in HVC markets raise concerns for sustainability and require investigation into whether farmers can sustain these HVC systems over time. There is a need for farmers to invest in various land use and management aspects that will affect the long-term sustainability of the farming systems .The study examines the land resource used under different commodities i.e. ,HVCs in the Vhembe district of Limpopo and how the land characteristics are driving the sustainable production of these commodities under different landownership and management systems. In order to achieve the overarching goal of sustainability that will ensure long term food security in the country there is need to explore what land characteristics will support production. The two farming systems in the study i.e. , small-scale and large-scale are recognised as systems due to the multi-variable nature of the processes within the farms and the non-linear interconnectedness that exists between them.
The four drivers of production i.e. , land, labour,capital and enterprise drive the two farming systems and the pathway of agricultural enterprise i.e. , production, management, marketing and value adding for each of the systems which have the potential to produce the same outcome indifferent ways. Future scenarios for sustainable agriculture within the different commodities must consider how production can be sustained under the two main farming systems.The land resource and its use are arguably one of the most important drivers of sustainable agriculture as they highlight numerous environmental interactions that can either be detrimental or beneficial to the sustainability of farming systems .Land is a highly politicized issue in the South African context due to historical allocation of land based on race by the previous government prior to democracy in 1994. There is a need for an emphasis on scale in the analysis of these two main South African farming systems in order to accurately investigate what land variables will drive sustainable agriculture in the country. Land characteristics namely,vertical farming racks farm size and ownership, topography, soil type and fertility, threats and hazards, water sources and irrigation, and the impact of climatic and its variability on the farming systems have been selected and are analysed between the two farm sizes and within three different commodities.
These land characteristics are further analysed alongside two production characteristics, i.e., income and yield in order to determine to what extent they can drive sustainability. The study took place in the Vhembe district which is the northern most district municipality of the Limpopo Province in South Africa . It shares borders with Zimbabwe and Botswana in the north-east and Mozambique in the south-east through the Kruger National Park . The Vhembe district is one of five district municipalities in the Limpopo Province. It has an area of 2,140,708hectares of which 247,757 hectares is arable land. The Vhembe district is comprised of four local municipalities: Thulamela, Mutale , Musina and Makhado. The South African governance structure regards the composition of local municipalities as towns and their surrounding rural areas . The main towns within the district are Thohoyandou, Malamulele,Musina and Makhado respectively for the four municipalities Thulamela,Mutale , Musina and Makhado.The district covers a geographical location that is largely rural . According to agriculture is the key contributor to employment and livelihoods in the district. Seventy percent of the farming activities in the district are attributed to smallholder agriculture and the remaining 30% is commercial agriculture . According to the Vhembe District Municipality’s Local Economic Development Strategy in 2019the district produces 4.4% of South Africa’s total agricultural output, 8.4% of the country’s sub-tropical fruits and 6.3% of its citrus. The district is situated in a semi-arid area, is frequently affected by dry spells that often develop into drought with severe water shortages from May to August .c