Farmer’s Weekly – 23 August 2019

(Kiana) #1

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14 farmer’sweekly 23 August 2019


Inanefforttotransformthe
agricultural auction industry in
North West, the MEC for Rural,
Environment and Agricultural
Development in the province,
Desbo Mohono, has announced plans
to train aspiring black auctioneers.
According to a statement by
the department, this undertaking
would be realised through a
mentor-mentee programme to be
launched by the department.
With this programme, the
department aimed to increase the
pool of previously disadvantaged
people, who owned, controlled
and managed existing and new
enterprises in the auction industry.
Tabling her 2019/2020 budget
and policy vote in the North West
Provincial Legislature recently,
Mohono stressed that deserving

youngpeopleaspiringtobecome
professional auctioneers needed
to be afforded the opportunity.
Aggrey Mahanjana, the group
managing director of the National
Emergent Red Meat Producers’
Organisation, said the initiative
was needed to build trust in black
auctioneers in the value chain,
while at the same time ensuring
transformation of the industry.
“Livestock auctions are mostly
held by established commercial
companies; there are a limited
number of black auctioneers.”
Athenkosi Denga, co-owner of
Lizwe Meat, a livestock production
farm and auctioneering business
based near Peddie in the Eastern
Cape, said as young farmers
who recently entered this sector,
the company was receiving

assistancefromGWK,theNational
Agricultural Marketing Council,
and Fort Cox Agriculture College.
“In order to enter this space
we’ve learnt that you need to
have a solid background in
livestock [production] and have
used various auction [entities].
“As an auctioneer, who sells
other people’s livestock or assets,
people need to be able trust you
to allow you to sell their assets.
“I support the initiative and
it should be [implemented]
nationally,” said Denga.
Dr Xolile Ngetu, the programme
manager of the National Red Meat
Development Programme at the
National Agricultural Marketing
Council, concurred, saying the
development of black auctioneers was
a necessary process. – Siyanda Sishuba

empoWerment

Development programme for aspiring black auctioneers


Severalformeremployeesof
livestockgeneticscompany
TaurusStockImprovement
Co-operative(Taurus),which
ceasedtradingaboutfive
yearsago,arestillwaitingto
receivetheirpensionbenefits.
ChristoBotha,a former
accountantattheco-op,
saidit hadbeennearly
fiveyearssinceheleft.
Hisdeparturecoincided
withthefinalroundofstaff
retrenchmentsatthebusiness,
justbeforeit ceasedoperations.
Hesaidatthatpoint,pension
beneficiarieshadbeeninformed
thatthefund,administered
byLiberty,wasinthered.
“Weweretoldthatthe
pensionfundhada negative
balanceofR28millionat
thetime,”saidBotha.
“Theboardofdirectors
saidtheywouldcloseTaurus
andgointoa partnership
[witha Europeanroleplayer]
toopena newcompany,


andthentheywouldselloff
assetsoftheco-operativeto
fundthepensionfund.”
Bothasaidthelatestupdate
hehadreceivedwasthatthe
pensionfundwasnowreflecting
a positivebalance,butthat
outstandingpensionpayments
couldnotyetbemade.Hesaid
theyhadbeeninformedthatthe
primaryasset,namelya farm
nearIrene,firsthadtobesold
beforepaymentscouldbemade.
Anotherbeneficiary,former
consultantJohanAckerman,
toldFarmer’sWeeklyhehad
workedforTaurusfrom 1988
to2012.Hesaidhispension
balancewasstandingatabout
R1,6millionin2008,butthatto
datehehadnotreceiveda cent.
“Wearehearingrumoursat
themomentthatwhenwefinally
dogetpaid,wewillbeluckyto
get20c[to]therand,”hesaid.
A formerdirectorofthe
company,HarryHepton,
confirmedthattherewerestill

Business


Former Taurus staff still awaiting pension payout


several employees awaiting
pension payouts. This was also
confirmed by Chrisjan van der
Vyfer, a former general manager
at Taurus, who was among those
still awaiting a pension payout.
“There are 27 people who
did not receive their pension,
or only received a small
portion, and they were the
last of the staff to leave or be
retrenched,” Van der Vyfer said.
Hepton said they were working
“very hard” to try and dispose of
the remaining company assets.
According to Van der Vyfer,
once the farm near Irene had
been sold, outstanding debts,
such as an overdraft and
municipal arears, would need
to be settled, and a liquidator
appointed to finalise the process.
Taurus Livestock Improvement
Co-operative ceased operations
in 2014 and was amalgamated
with a French livestock genetics
company to launch Taurus-
Evolution in 2015. – Sabrina Dean
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