GWK celebrates Icons in agriculture

GWK Icons salutes innovation in agriculture, acknowledging people who lead our industry into the future by refusing to accept the status quo, and boldly changing the way that they work to build better businesses, create more job opportunities, and most importantly, to grow the food that sustains South Africa’s people. The Icons are awarded in 27 categories, and an overall winner from select categories are chosen by a panel of judges.

The programme honoured four overall winners:

1. Hannes, Vickie and Gerhard Bruwer of Genade Boerdery were named Crop Producers of the Year, in recognition of their overall achievement in several crop categories. This shows their excellent management and skills with precision farming. The whole family is dedicated to the agriculture industry and the focus is on explicit farming.

Crop producer of the year presented by Louis Clark, Managing Director of Valley Irrigation and Pieter Spies, Managing Director GWK Group

2. Koos van der Ryst from the Koopmansfontein area was named Livestock Producer of the Year, in recognition of his excellent farming practices. He supplied more than 1,000 cattle for meat production

Livestock producer of the year presented by Pieter Spies, Managing Director GWK Group and Frank Lawrence, Chairman of GWK Board.

3. AgriSA was named Landbouweekblad Industry Role Player for 2016, in recognition of the unbelievable way they have assisted and handled the Draught Relieve Programme for farmers in South Africa.

Industry role player of the year, accepted by Nicol Jansen on behalf of AgriSA and presented by Chris Burgess, Editor of Landbouweekblad

4. Macsteel, a leading South African steel supplier and distributor, was named GWK’s Supplier of the Year, in recognition of their involvement in the agricultural business in the distribution of steel and fencing of superior quality.

Macsteel: Supplier of the year, accepted by Tony Shalovsky presented by Callei van der Merwe of Astra Travel and Pieter Spies, Managing Director GWK Group

We know that successful farming is all about collaboration and partnerships, whether with other farmers or with suppliers who share the vision for our future, which is why we also acknowledge partners like Macsteel for the meaningful role that they play in the success of the agriculture sector.

Icon winners are industry leaders who focus on producing world quality goods for the South African and global value chains because they’re passionate about the meaningful difference they can make in the lives of the country’s citizens – whether it’s by being ethical employers, sustainable farmers, or efficient producers.

"Current conditions are tough for our farmers, but between economic turbulence and the crippling drought we are all working through, the 2016 Icons winners have truly shown that they are ready to overcome the greatest of obstacles. “These are the people who excel at what they do, who set new standards and who play a key role in the food value chain. They are building the future and moving the boundaries of agriculture,” says Pieter Spies, MD of the GWK Group.

The event was made possible with sponsorship from several companies who are trusted partners of the GWK community, including Valley Irrigation, Beefmaster, John Deere, Standard Bank and Landbouweekblad.