Anger over failure of community-owned farm

A government-funded macadamia nut farm in Ncera, Eastern Cape, has failed to get off the ground after two decades, despite hundreds of millions of rands in public funds invested in the project.

- GroundUp

Its owners, however, say the project can be turned around. Employees of the Ncera Macadamia Farm have not been paid since June 2024.

The farm was once seen as a success story, celebrated by politicians from both incumbent and opposition political parties in the Eastern Cape. Its business model has been replicated elsewhere. But the farm has not broken even, let alone declared dividends.

At one point the farm had more than 150 employees, but now it has only 73.