Try GOLD - Free
Eastern Cape women farmers get shearing shed
Farmer's Weekly
|July 18-25, 2025
In a major boost for women-led agriculture, MEC for the Eastern Cape Department of Agriculture, Nonceba Kontsiwe, officially handed over a fully equipped shearing shed to the Upper Thuthukani Wool Growers' Association, a women-majority cooperative in Ngcobo.
The association, established in 2015, is a 28-member enterprise dominated by women, with 20 female and eight male members. Last year, the group sheared 2 800 sheep and produced 19 bales of wool, generating an income of R154 324.
“This is a great honour to stand before you today as we mark the handover of this shearing shed, a project that began in 2015 with little more than determination and a shared dream. This year marks 10 years since you decided to start farming in wool,” said Kontsiwe.
This story is from the July 18-25, 2025 edition of Farmer's Weekly.
Subscribe to Magzter GOLD to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 10,000+ magazines and newspapers.
Already a subscriber? Sign In
MORE STORIES FROM Farmer's Weekly
Farmer's Weekly
Christmas books to charm and delight
During the holiday season, one usually takes a well-earned break from the daily rutt, and there is no better time to catch up on some reading. Patricia McCracken has selected a wide spectrum of titles to tuck into.
4 mins
December 19-26, 2025
Farmer's Weekly
From chance to choice: a women's rise to farming success
Many raisin producers assume that retiring without a son to take over the farm means the end of the family business. Alcois Blaauw, this year's winner of the Raisins SA Female Producer Award, proves that assumption to be wrong. Glenneis Kriel reports.
4 mins
December 19-26, 2025
Farmer's Weekly
Grandparents below, and kids upstairs!
Dear Jonno,My wife and I want to escape to the countryside.
1 min
December 19-26, 2025
Farmer's Weekly
The Unseen Protector
The belief in the Unseen Protector or Unseen Shepherd endured for around 600 years, from the 13th century up until the 19th century. The farmer or his wife would provide a bowl of fresh cream and gruel to appease a spirit, whose blessing was imperative for a good summer harvest and animal health and fertility.
2 mins
December 19-26, 2025
Farmer's Weekly
THE HITCHING POST
I am a 67-year-old farmer residing on a farm near Harding in KwaZulu-Natal.
1 mins
December 19-26, 2025
Farmer's Weekly
Pet-friendly family accommodation in the Waterberg
With travel time of only a little over three hours from Johannesburg and 30 minutes from Vaalwater, guests will find Waterberg Cottages in Limpopo. Guests can plan a family-friendly holiday or weekend with plenty of activities to keep everyone occupied on this peaceful 2 500ha private game reserve.
4 mins
December 19-26, 2025
Farmer's Weekly
The Shuman legacy continues under the watchful eye of a fifth-generation farmer
Ken Shuman, co-owner of Hilson Shuman Farming, is committed to carrying on his father's towering legacy through innovation and adaptation.
9 mins
December 19-26, 2025
Farmer's Weekly
History's most famous musket
The Brown Bess musket was the standard issue firearm for British forces from 1722 to 1838. As Mike Burgess writes, this much-loved weapon contributed significantly to the consolidation of the British Empire that by 1922 was in control of a quarter of the earth's surface.
4 mins
December 19-26, 2025
Farmer's Weekly
Muddy soil can cause lameness due to footrot
It is important to clean legs and hooves and check for lameness in horses on a daily basis, especially when there is heavy rain
2 mins
December 19-26, 2025
Farmer's Weekly
The role of family farmers in sub- Saharan Africa
As part of the United Nations' recognition of family farming as a vital component of the global agricultural landscape, the decade between 2019 to 1928 was declared the Decade for Family Farming globally. Annelie Coleman compiled this report.
6 mins
December 19-26, 2025
Listen
Translate
Change font size