The wide range of bacterial species found in ready-to-eat meat sold on the streets of Johannesburg indicates that consumers of this meat could be at risk of food poisoning.

This is according to the findings of a study conducted by Dr Mpinda Edoaurd Tshipamba, North-West University (NWU) master’s graduate in the subject group Animal Health.

The title of his study was “Evaluation of the effect of hygiene practices and attitudes on the microbial quality of street vended meats sold in Johannesburg, South Africa”.

The way in which Scripture is read and interpreted has a major effect on what people read in the Bible. This also determines their approach to concerning and topical issues with which the faithful struggle.

This is the focus of the research by Prof Marius Nel, research chair in Ecumenism: Pentecostalism and Neo-Pentecostalism, on the Pentecostalist movement. Prof Nel, a regular recipient of the award as the North-West University’s (NWU’s) most productive researcher, says he is fascinated by themes that function in the field of the Pentecostalist movement.

With a B2 rating from the National Research Foundation (NRF), Prof David Scott-Macnab is the highest rated researcher currently employed in the Faculty of Humanities at the North-West University (NWU).

To receive a B2 rating, an academic needs to have published a substantial body of research in top-tier, high-impact international journals, books and chapters in books.

Prof Scott-Macnab, who specialises in Middle English research, says he has received a B2 rating three times in a row since 2006, most recently at the beginning of 2021.

In a water-scarce country like South Africa with growing demands for grazing, cultivated perennial grasses could be the answer to protecting the veld and providing nutrition for animals.

“Droughts, scarcity of rain and overgrazing have caused a lot of degradation of the veld, and therefore veld restoration is a priority for farmers and the animals that depend on grass for survival,” says Ntokozo Msiza, a PhD candidate in animal science at the North-West University (NWU).

In a time of Covid-19 fatigue, citizens are now confronted with an even deadlier and highly transmissible Delta variant. This new virus mutation impacts on already overburdened and under-resourced health systems. More alarming is that on day 460 of the lockdown in South Africa, less than 1% of the population was fully immunised.

University students who have a mother tongue other than English should not be at a disadvantage compared to those who do speak English at home. This is why it is important to level the language playing field.

The North-West University (NWU) is one of four tertiary education institutions in South Africa to work with three European universities to facilitate and promote the use of indigenous African languages as mediums of instruction in tertiary education.

Livestock farmers in the North West Province are being urged to apply all possible security measures and avoid the introduction of new bulls without sanitary control.

This is necessary to prevent the spread of a bacterial infection that causes abortion, infertility and other reproductive ailments in cattle – and could potentially be passed into the human food chain.

It is with great sadness, shock and disbelief that the North-West University (NWU) community has learnt about the sudden passing away of Dr Johan van Zyl, Executive Chairperson of Toyota SA. Our deepest condolences go out to his wife Santie, family, friends and colleagues. He was indeed a remarkable man and leader.

The advent of social media has brought about the democratisation of communication. The public who has always been consumers of messages has now also become producers since social media is open to everyone who has a device, an account, and data or access to the internet.

The Faculty of Natural and Agricultural Sciences (FNAS) at the North-West University (NWU) hosted an online colloquium about its Mahikeng Astronomical Observatory (MAO) on 12 July 2021.