On 31 January 2022, at 04h00 it was an exited group that boarded 2 mini busses to the Western Cape in South Africa.
After Covid 19 prohibited travelling for Block Competition winners from 2020, the Block Competition planners decided to give back in the form of a Western Cape Tour for Junior Production employees of the NGGA members.
Block Competition sponsors diligently supported the NGGA in the Covid 19 pandemic and an Information Day was held in 2020 and 2021.Surplus funds was thus used for the tour.
All NGGA members was invited to nominate employees for the tour. Due to logistic reasons, 20 tour members could be accommodated.
The tour consisted of 5 days in total. The Monday was a long drive to Piketberg, where the team was met by the tour leaders. Kobus Bothma (Vise Chairman of NGGA) and Mr. Ben du Toit (Block Competition planner). They set off for the last stretch to Paarl, where they stayed at The Nuwerus Lodge.
Tuesday, they visited the V & A Waterfront and had a boat tour to look at the harbor and where the table grapes start their journey to the overseas market. After this it was time to visit West Falia and the largest Woolworths in the Western Cape which is also one of our importers.
Wednesday started with a visit to Voorgroenberg Nurseries, followed by a visit to Atlantic. A lovely lunch was sponsored by Mr. PW Botha. New Era Packaging was up next to show the team the full process of manufacturing packaging.
Thursday came much to soon and it was the last day for visits. Bergrivier Irrigation took our team through their distribution Centre and workshop where they build filter banks and galvanized fittings. OKE Water Solutions showed the team their factory where they produce poly pipes, followed by Nexus, which also sponsored the team’s scrumptious lunch.
After lunch, it was time for some fun and a totally different avenue of grapes, a cellar tour at the KWV in Paarl. The team had the opportunity to taste 10, 12, 15 year and Imoya Brandy, which was paired with Belgian chocolate. The lovely KWV tour guide gave the team information on the history and origin of Brandy.
Friday Morning it was time to go home after a long week full of first-hand experiences!
As an entity representing our members, the NGGA was proud of our tour members, they showed good character during the tour and we are looking forward to see growth in them as the next leaders in our industry!
The NGGA would like to thank all our wonderful Block Competition sponsors, without you, this growth opportunity for our Junior Production employees could not happen!
A Big thank you also to all the companies that was part of our visits, a special thanks to Mr. PW Botha and Nexus for the sponsored lunches
Last, but certainly not least, thanks to our knowledgeable Tour leaders, Mr. Bothma and Mr. du Toit!