PRODUCER FOCUS
Martin Janse van Rensburg
A go-getter who farms near Derby
If you ’ ve ever seen a go-getter farmer , then Martin Janse van Rensburg definitely fits the bill . Senwes Scenario visited him on his farm .
� By Aubrey Kruger Senwes Scenario Editor
Two things are at stake here . Farming and Derby . Firstly , where is Derby ? Blink your eyes and you will definitely miss it . Derby is situated on the R509 between Magaliesburg and Swartruggens and on the R30 between Ventersdorp and Rustenburg in the Northwest .
The town is approximately 16 km from Koster and had its origin as a settlement for destitute people on the farms Rietfontein and Vlakfontein and was named after the British Secretary of Colonies , Lord Derby .
Senwes Scenario went to visit one of these farms , Rietfontein , where young producer Martin Janse van Rensburg farms , a few kilometres out of town .
Martin started farming with maize and sugarbeans a mere 11 years ago . Different to the average producer , he farms in different directions than his predecessors . His grandfather Tiens ( also MJ ), was a tobacco producer and his father Dana , a citrus producer at Marikana .
Martin can do anything and his wife , Liza , can confirm this . He worked as a building contractor after school , built hostel rooms and also tried his hand at palisades and bricks . When they met , he also planted kikuyu grass . He has a partner and friend , Charlie van Schalwyk , with whom he has tackled many a business venture .
He bought the farm in 2007 with the help of his father . A small beginning when he planted just more than 100 hectares of white maize during the first season and he started with 21 cows , which he bought from the previous farm owner , Frik Harmse . It was the beginning of another adventure .
And his business grew . Now , in 2018 , Martin is planting 450 hectares - 300 hectares of white maize and 150 hecta res of sugarbeans and his herd of cows increased from 21 to 150 .
HIS ADVICE TO OTHER PRODUCERS “ Don ’ t ever buy in haste . Look out for opportunities , do good research and look at what works and what doesn ’ t .” As far as his cattle branch is concerned , he believes in buying good bulls and retaining good genetics . He expands his herd by holding back calves and heifers .
SENWES He is full of praise for Senwes . “ If it wasn ’ t for Senwes , it would not have been where I am today ,” Martin said . Senwes was the only organisation which was willing to help him immediately . They saw him at 09:00 in the morning and a week later he planted on his own - “ That is how fast it was .” He has a lot of praise for key account manager Johan Olivier and business development manager , Johan Meiring and others .
“ Senwes is not one of the largest agri-companies for no reason . They maintain excellent relationships with their customers and the way in which they work with each individual is very special .” The relationship enabled him to buy the land from his father within only three years .
He had a windfall in 2012 / 2013 , when he won R500 000 in the million rand competition , which helped a lot .
MECHANISATION AND THE FUTURE He remembers when he bought his first 4-row planter . “ Every time you buy a better product , you wonder how you ever managed without it ,” he said after he bought a 12-row planted in 2017 . “ With mechanisation you just do better and with precision units you can increase your yield by one and a half tons per hectare .” But this does not necessarily lead to fewer labourers . He diversified to sugarbeans , which is labour intensive because labourers have to harvest it by hand .
RELATIONSHIPS AND BALANCE Relationships are one of the most important elements of farming - together with balance . These two aspects are the driving power behind good and honest business . Relationships are the crux of any negotiations . According to him : “ A farmer is not only a farmer , a farmer is an on-theball businessman .”
INVOLVEMENT Involvement is very important to him .
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SENWES SCENARIO | SPRING 2018