On 15 & 16 January, Members of the SA Institute of Valuers made their way to Heidelberg for an agricultural workshop with a bit of flair.
The two-day event blended perfectly the elements of a seminar and excursion where delegates learned not only through listening to presentations but also by visiting farms and looking at the different aspects that go into running farm operations. Delegates could also differentiate between various types of farming, including cattle farming, feedlots, and dairy farming.
On day one, delegates gained insights from renowned valuer and farmer, Wouter Nel, on established pastures. He was followed by Johan Olivier from Selected Seeds South Africa where he, amongst other points, spoke about how valuable planted pastures can be. A further point made was that soil quality and soil management are perhaps the key determining factors not only in the productive capacity of a farm, but also its value. The input costs of production or yields from both dryland production and grassland were compared much to the delegates’ amazement, leaving them with a different viewpoint on how valuable well managed planted pastures can be.
Delegates later made their way to Karan Beef farm where Phillip Jordaan spoke about the process of buying calves and the selling of mature cattle by way of well managed feedlots on a very large scale. Karan Beef, being the producers of a considerable amount of the beef that lands on the plates of South Africans, were well placed to demonstrate to the valuers what is necessary and how to view the process with regards to value.
The day ended with a braai and networking session.
Day two was spent at the 2025 Hooidag (Hay Day) which was hosted by the Balfour Farmers’ Association. It featured live demonstrations of cutting-edge agricultural equipment and innovations. Here, delegates could meander around and enjoy interacting with various exhibitors and farmers whilst absorbing generations of farm knowledge.
We would like to thank everyone involved who saw to the success of this event. A special thank you to Wouter Nel and the Balfour Farmers Association for hosting SAIV at this incredible event.
