Sheep farmer creates her own work and success

Emily Kok, a Karoo sheep farmer and winner of several carcass competitions, spoke to Wouter Kriel about the challenges of communal farming on government-owned land, and how she is overcoming them.

- Wouter Kriel

FAST FACTS

When Emily Kok returned to her hometown of Williston in 2012, she decided to start a sheep farm.

She was granted access to a land reform farm, which she shares with 10 other beneficiaries.

Kok had no farming experience to begin with, but attended training courses and consulted with other farmers in the area for advice.

Emily Kok, who is originally from Williston in the Karoo, returned to live there in 2012 after working in Cape Town for 30 years. “There aren’t many job opportunities in Williston, so I decided to become a sheep farmer. I joined the Amandelboom Small Farmers’ Group and bought six ewes to start with. But in Williston, you need at least 10 animals to qualify for land on the commonage, so I bought another eight ewes.”

Kok also applied for land on Verjaarsfontein, a government farm 35km from Williston. Her timing was fortunate. Not long after she started out on the commonage, six of her lambs were stolen, but this was followed by the good news that her application had been successful. She lost no time in relocating to Verjaarsfontein, where she was allocated a 174ha camp and permitted to keep 60 animals.