Noluthando Mbilase, who farms near Fort Beaufort, recently won the Department of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries’ Top Entrepreneur Export Markets title in its annual Female Entrepreneur Awards. The award is testimony to her determination, as well as her willingness to learn, since starting in the citrus industry as a field officer many years ago. Mike Burgess reports.
Noluthando Mbilase (55) has taken many years to attain recognition for her citrus farming venture, but this has made her achievement even more remarkable, and victory taste even sweeter.
Mbilase has won R420 000 in prize money this year in regional, provincial and national competitions run by the Department of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries. And, in her typically disciplined way, she intends using her windfall to continue developing her farm.
Mbilase produces export citrus (oranges, lemons and soft citrus) on 17,5ha of her 62ha farm, Greenwood, in the upper Kat River Valley near Fort Beaufort in the Eastern Cape. She has another 15,5ha due to come into production in the near future, and will use her prize money to establish another 10ha of orchards. This will bring the total area under citrus to 43ha.
HUMBLE BEGINNINGS
Greenwood may not represent a very large citrus production unit, but it symbolises an immense achievement for Mbilase, who was born in a communal area near King William’s Town. Her mother, Nonyameko, worked as a domestic helper in the town while her father, Bovana, was a migrant labourer in Cape Town.
Despite working in King William’s Town, Nonyameko managed to run several projects in the communal area to make extra money; these included producing and selling vegetables and soap, as well as farming chickens and cattle.
Attending to agricultural chores before school, and her siblings after school, became a way of life for Mbilase.
“Every day I’d wake up and milk the cows and irrigate the garden,” she recalls. “When I came back from school, I’d have to cook and look after my sister and brother.”
Bu hikaye Farmer's Weekly dergisinin November 16, 2018 sayısından alınmıştır.
Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 9,000+ magazines and newspapers.
Already a subscriber ? Giriş Yap
Bu hikaye Farmer's Weekly dergisinin November 16, 2018 sayısından alınmıştır.
Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 9,000+ magazines and newspapers.
Already a subscriber? Giriş Yap
Syngenta Seedcare celebrates a decade of innovation
Syngenta's ambition is to enable their customers' investments to grow in healthy soil from treated seeds to young plants through innovation and collaboration, writes Magda du Toit.
Agri workers shine at Western Cape awards
Lindie-Alet van Staden, a garden and olive orchard manager at L’Ormarins Wine Estate in Franschhoek, was crowned as the Western Cape Prestige Agri-Worker of 2024 at a gala event recently held near Paarl.
Small and large farmers recognised at grain awards
The annual Grain SA/Syngenta awards ceremony bears testimony to the quality of farmers in the grain industry.
Growing partnerships: Fedgroup's flexible and innovative approach
Janine Ryan spoke to Warren Winchester, general manager of impact investing at Fedgroup, about why the company became involved in agriculture, and what it offers farmers and their immediate communities.
Why fish farms fail, and how to avoid becoming a statistic
The popularity of launching fish farms is not matched by their success. Leslie Ter Morshuizen, owner of Aquaculture Solutions, explores the factors that cause most of these businesses to go under.
Where history and modernity meet in a luxurious setting
Brian Berkman kept his eyes peeled for ghosts in the oldest continuously run hotel in South Africa, but all he found was a fabulous two-night stay.
THE HITCHING POST
I'm a stylish elderly lady with a radiant glow and a good sense of humour that keeps me young at heart.
Cutworms: check the weeds on your fields!
Zunel van Eeden explains why understanding the ecological interplay between cutworms and weeds is crucial for effective pest management. Producers should disrupt the life cycle of cutworms to minimise crop damage.
Does high-density grazing mimic grazing patterns of game?
In their paper on high-density grazing in Southern Africa, professors Angelinus Franke and Elmarie Kotzé from the Department of Soil, Crop and Climate Sciences at the University of the Free State say high-density grazing systems may not accurately reflect natural ecosystems. Roelof Bezuidenhout reports.
Global grain outlook: 2024/25 marketing season
In its latest summer crops report, the Crop Estimates Committee says South African farmers intend to plant 4,47 million hectares of summer grains and oilseeds in the 2024/25 season, up 1% from the previous season. As South Africa exports maize and soya bean, Annelie Coleman reports on the latest trends in the international grain and oilseed markets, amid fluctuations in weather conditions and ongoing armed conflicts.
