NEWS
Tours reshape perspectives
on the Agri-Industry
By Senwes Scenario Team
High School visits the largest silo in
the Southern Hemisphere
The agricultural sector has, in the past,
been shunned and categorized as one of
the least important careers to pursue. But
that’s about to change!
The Curro Klerksdorp High School
grade 10 and 11 consumer studies
group recently took a tour to the Senwes
Grainlink Wesselsbron Silo, which is “the
largest silo in the Southern Hemisphere”.
Project manager at the silo, Lodrick
Barnard, started with an astonishing fact:
“This silo can take up to 280 000 tons of
grain”. He shared with them the ins and
outs, from the cleaning to the loading of
grain, of which “up to 7 000 tons are taken
in daily. The grading process, insects that
affect the grain and pesticides to destroy
them.
The group also visited the Greenpak
processing facility where carrots are
cleaned, graded and packaged before
being supplied to Woolworths Food
branches. This facility, situated about
30 kilometres from the Greenpak farm in
Bothaville, is owned by Senwes director
Nico Liebenberg, and all 600 hectares
of land are utilised to cultivate carrots,
butternuts and pumpkins. Consumer
studies HOD at the school, Karen Kade
said, “It is important to encourage young
learners to be interested in farming
because it is middle point of where we get
our sustenance from”. Factory manager,
Elize du Preez, pointed out that Greenpak
is the sole supplier of carrots to all
Woolworths branches in South Africa. This
showed them that the agricultural sector
is much more than just farming, it is also
about growing the economy, feeding the
world and preserving the soil in which our
food grows.
Even the perspectives of businessmen
are changed
The Wesselsbron silo and the Hinterland
branch in town played host for a
delegation from Nedbank. Senior silo
manager Lodrick Barnard took the
delegation on an interesting tour through
the silo complex and was assisted by
silo manager Johan Rheeder. One visitor,
Salim Kadoo, was amazed at what
happens behind the scenes as far as
grain handling is concerned. “It was my
first visit to a silo. From the outside you
only see bins and city dwellers like me
know nothing about the infrastructure
inside the bins.” Barnard mentioned that
visitors, and particularly people from
abroad, are usually very impressed with
the silo complex. Rheeder confirmed that
the aim of visits such as this one is to
convey interesting information to visitors
and to show them how things work -
information such as the fact that the first
part of the Wesselsbron silo was opened
53 years ago, in 1966. Hinterland branch
manager Johnny Bezuidenhout informed
the group about the branch and agri-
business in town. This tour formed part of
visits by businessmen, schools and other
organisations.
The Curro Klerksdorp High School
grade 10 and 11 consumer studies
group took a tour to the Senwes
Grainlink Wesselsbron Silo.
Here is the delegation during their visit
to the silo complex: Lodrick Barnard
(Senior Silo Manager at Senwes
Grainlink silo in Wesselsbron), Wikus
Grobler (Senwes: Group Manager -
Finance and Treasury), Corné Kruger
(Senwes: Group Chief Financial
Officer), John Hudson (Nedbank:
National Head - Agriculture), Salim
Kadoo (Nedbank: Provincial General
Manager), Tabitha Strydom (Senwes:
Group Treasury) and Herman de Kock
(Nedbank: Executive Manager - Sales
and Distribution).
SENWES SCENARIO | AUTUMN 2019
59