Allesbeste Boerdery (Dr André, Liezel, Edrean and Zander Ernst) walked away with the honour of National Farmer of the Year, whilst Eric Ntlaba was announced as the best New Entrant into Commercial Agriculture. Dr Theo de Jager was awarded the 2016 Agriculturist of the Year. Agricultural Writers SA has been honouring the best of the best in agriculture since 1977.
The candidates were:
New entrant into commercial agriculture
- Central region – Eric Ntlaba
- Northern region - Simon Teffo
- Western Cape region – Phirdy Motala
Agriculturist of the Year
- Eastern Cape – Dr Gerhard Verdoorn
- Free State – Dr Mias van der Westhuizen
- Gauteng – Jannie de Villiers
- Limpopo – Dr Theo de Jager
- Mpumalanga – Barry Christie
- Northern Cape – Hannes Hattingh
- North West – Prof. Flippie Cloete
- Western Cape – Andre Roux
Farmer of the Year
- Free State – Nick Serfontein
- Gauteng – Rina & Norman Belcher
- Limpopo – Allesbeste Boerdery André, Edrean & Zander Ernst
- Northern Cape – Vickie Bruwer
- North West – Jerry Basson
- Western Cape – Josias le Roux
“This year’s candidates in all three of the categories stood out to be noticed in their field of expertise and it was not easy to determine clear cut winners. We are, therefore, extremely proud of all the candidates and would like to congratulate the winners. One of the aims of these awards is to give prominence to the role that farmers and agriculturists play in the agricultural sector in South Africa. But it is also important to note that these award recipients also impact on the broader economy of the country as well as the southern African region,” says Magda du Toit, Chairperson Agricultural Writers SA.