Vusi’s Farm forms part of Canyon Coal’s holding company Menar’s agricultural portfolio and is located around 2 km from Khanye Colliery, in Bronkhorstspruit. The farm which overlooks the mine, spans over 1 100 hectares of land, of which around 300 hectares is currently being used by Khanye Colliery for mining activities.

Andre Groenewald, with over 40 years of experience in the agricultural industry, has been the manager at Vusi’s Farm since March 2018. He is supported in the running of the farm by his wife Anelise along with two other staff members. Anelise is currently training the staff to become supervisors of the farm which is particularly important once the next set of greenhouses are established.

On the farm there are old stables that have been renovated and refurbished and will soon be used as training rooms for new members of staff. Andre is currently developing the course material. The practical training will be facilitated by Anelise.

Canyon Coal Chairperson Vuslat Bayoglu explains that Vusi’s Farm lies on land that forms part of the Khanye Colliery licence area, however a decision was taken when establishing the mine to use part of the land for agricultural purposes. “The aim of this farm is to showcase how mining and farming can and do coexist, and in fact flourish side by side - when done in a responsible fashion. Vusi’s Farm will create new economic and business opportunities for the local economy by creating jobs and strengthening the agricultural activities and skills development.”

The farm is still in its infancy; comprising a single 40-m-long by 27-m-wide greenhouse tunnel to grow the strawberries and currently occupies 0.1 hectares of the 700 hectares that have been set aside for Vusi’s Farm.

Andre notes that the farm started producing the first fruit in 2019 with the first full crop anticipated to be harvested in August 2021.

Recently 50 strawberry plants were taken to an Agricultural Laboratory in Riversdale, in the Western Cape, where they will produce 45 000 strawberry plants using the tissue culture technique. These new plants will be sent to the farm in May this year for planting and are anticipated to start bearing the first fruit from October. “Once in full production we anticipate a yield in excess of 30 tons per annum,” says Andre.

Expanding Operations

Work has already started to increase the size of the operation by setting up five additional greenhouses. “A major focus of Vusi’s Farm is ensuring it operates in an environmentally sustainable manner. This is already evident from the fact that the farm produces zero effluent into local water sources as all water is recirculated,” Andre points out.

The new greenhouses will make use of drip irrigation technology, which is one of the most efficient water and nutrient delivery system for crop irrigation. This technology allows each plant to receive exactly what it needs, when it needs it for optimal growth. “Drip irrigation ensures that farmers can produce higher yields while saving water, fertiliser, energy and also reduce the need for crop protection products,” Andre highlights.

The strawberries in the new greenhouses will be grown in coir, which is a 50:50 mixture of peat and coconut fibre. Andre explains that this totally inert autoclaved material accommodates the roots of the strawberry plants, which eliminates soil borne diseases. “There are only 15 hectares of this type of strawberry farming in use in South Africa. All these illustrate the leading edge and environment-friendly technologies that the farm is utilising.”

Another innovative technology is the use of hydroponic gutters. This technique ensures that the strawberries are grown high above the soil surface and is not in contact with the soil. This has the benefit that strawberries are handled only once during harvest and put directly into punnets – the second handler being the consumer of the strawberries. “This increases the shelf life of the strawberries and limits the exposure to any forms of touch contamination.

Vision

Vuslat says he would like to potentially duplicate this type of farm near to other mines in the Menar Group and get the community involved in agricultural activities. Local community members would be brought to Vusi’s Farm to receive the required training in order to establish and run their own farming operations, he explains.

“The aim is to have each tunnel produce 10 tons of strawberries per annum. This will create additional job opportunities for local community members at the farm and ensure optimal use of the land. Food security and job creation is very important to the country and Menar as a responsible corporate entity continues to do its part to support government in achieving both these goals,” Vuslat states.