OVERVIEW Agriculture
OVERVIEW Agriculture Newly merged group records R608-million profit. KLK is a wholesale distributor of BP fuel and runs 11 forecourts. Mergers continue to create powerful new companies within the agricultural sector. The small co-operatives of a century ago live on only in the letter K embedded in the names of the groups that now span several provinces and have a sectoral spread covering horticulture, animal rearing and processing, not to mention financial services, building materials outlets and automotive services. The integration process of VKB and GWK, formerly Griqualand West Cooperative and one of the Northern Cape’s biggest entities, is proceeding well. The new VKB Group recorded a normalised profit before tax of R608-million in its 2024 financial year (ending 31 March 2024). Investment in solar energy at some of the company’s facilities is planned. The inclusion of GWK gives the group an extensive presence in the three Cape provinces while the NTK brand covers Limpopo and the northern parts of Mpumalanga. The historical home of VKB, namely the eastern Free State, is still a strong region for the company whose headquarters are located in Reitz, and the VKB brand covers the balance of the provinces. GWK continues to trade as a separate entity and the headquarters are in the Northern Cape town of Douglas, which is on the Vaal River and very close to the confluence with the Orange River. GWK Pecans owns three processing facilities. The Upington facility was the first cracking facility in South Africa, and it has a cracking capacity of 200 metric tons and processing capacity of 480 metric tons per month. Douglas and Magogong, which is in the Vaalharts area, are the other sites of pecan-processing plants. The Vaalharts SECTOR INSIGHT Cannabis is to be commercialised. Irrigation Scheme ensures that the area is the country’s premier region for producing pecans. The other recent significant merger was the purchase of a majority shareholding in KLK by Senwes, a giant company most closely associated with grain and grain-handling. A co-operative of karakul-sheep farmers called SAKK was formed in 1941. It underwent a series of mergers, including with BKB, when it became KLK in 1985. KLK has a significant presence in the province with an auction division, abattoirs in Carnarvon and Upington, the Build-it franchise and several petrol stations. KLK Petworld operates in Kathu. This reach was further enhanced when KLK acquired 100% of the shares of Carpe Diem Raisins in 2023. KLK has its headquarters in Upington whereas the Senwes HQ is just over the provincial border in North West, at Klerksdorp. OVK controls the large Gariep abattoir at Strydenburg, which has a daily capacity of 1 300 sheep, 100 cattle and either 250 ostriches or 750 small game animals. OVK also has trade branches, vehicle dealerships, a finance division and manufacturing facilities for maize meal and wheat meal. Kaap Agri, a Western Cape company, has a presence in the Northern Cape and Namibia. The Northern Cape Provincial Government is promoting a Hemp Production Project as part of a national plan to commercialise the cannabis sector. The Northern NORTHERN CAPE BUSINESS 2025/26 26 PHOTO: KLK
OVERVIEW Pecan nuts are processed and packed in Douglas. Cape has budgeted R12.8-million to establish a Hemp nursery and Coning Centre, establishing and supporting 159 farmers on 318 hectares. In 2024/25, the province spent R256-million on 26 projects designed to support emerging black farmers, part of R924-million spent on that goal over the last five years. In October 2023 Karoo lamb was officially registered as a South African Geographical Indication (GI) in law. Agricultural assets Occupying 36-million hectares, the Northern Cape is the largest province in the country, almost a third of South Africa’s total land area. Although the province is a predominantly semi-arid region, agriculture is a major component of the regional economy and the province’s farmers contribute 6.8% to South African agriculture. In 2024, the sector contributed R11-billion (7%) to provincial GDP. The agricultural sector also plays a vital role in the broader economy of the Northern Cape, employing about 45 000 people. This represents about 16% of employment, a much higher figure than the national figure of 5.5%. Agricultural development takes place along defined corridors within the province. In the Orange River Valley, especially at Upington, ONLINE RESOURCES Agricultural Research Council: www.arc.agric.za Department of Agriculture, Environmental Affairs, Rural Development and Land Reform: www.daerl.ncpg.gov.za South African Rooibos Council: www.sarooibos.co.za Kakamas and Keimoes, grapes and fruit are cultivated intensively. High-value horticultural products such as table grapes, sultanas and wine grapes, dates, nuts, cotton, fodder and cereal crops are grown along the Orange River. Wheat, fruit, groundnuts, maize and cotton are grown in the Vaalharts Irrigation Scheme in the vicinity of Hartswater and Jan Kempdorp. The Vaalharts Irrigation Scheme is one of the biggest systems of its kind in the world. Ranging over more than 30 000ha, it has transformed a semi-desert zone into a productive area that sustains cotton, wheat, maize, lucerne, citrus, peanuts, fruit, grapes, olives and pecan nuts. Vegetables and cereal crops are farmed at the confluence of the Vaal River and the Orange River in the vicinity of Douglas. Of the nearly 40-million 10kg bags of onions produced in South Africa (outside of linked production chains set up by supermarkets), about 10-million 10kg bags come from the Northern Cape. Wool, mohair, karakul, Karoo lamb, venison, ostrich meat and leather are farmed throughout most of the province. The province is second only to the Eastern Cape in terms of the number of sheep farmed and it is the fourth-largest woolproducing province based on annual sale of producer lots. The Beefmaster abattoir in Kimberley is one of three abattoirs in South Africa to export frozen beef to China. ■ PHOTO: GWK
