In 2016-17, the impact factor of the South African Journal of Animal Science (SAJAS) reached an all-time high of 0.678. We attribute this improvement to the high quality of submissions that we receive from authors and the commendable efforts of our reviewers and the editorial team to maximise the efficiency of the review process. The average turnaround period from manuscript submission to consolidation of a decision to accept, reject or request revisions on the manuscript has been reduced from 119 days in 2016 to 38 days in 2017. Contributing factors to this marked improvement include upgrades on the Electronic Submission System, which flag submissions that have overlapped the maximum time recommended for each stage of the review process and enable authors to directly send reminders to sub-editors and the Editor-in-Chief. We are committed to ensuring that your publications in the SAJAS comply with internationally adhered to standards and are able to achieve maximum impact in the respective fields of specialisation.