Bien Donné Farm - Agri Promo

Making the economic
drivers of change work
for agriculture
Nico Loock,
Provincial Agricultural
Manager:
Standard Bank
Western Cape
www.agrimega.co.za
T
his year’s Bien Donné Agri Cape Week’s theme
of ‘Change for Sustainability’ is seminal to the
future of agriculture in South Africa.
Sustainability is about ensuring business continuity,
and to achieve it, a business needs to be flexible. This
may mean interrupting continuity; doing things differently
to achieve better and lasting results.
Standard Bank Provincial Agricultural Manager in the
Western Cape, Nico Loock says: “Standard Bank has
prospered for 150 years precisely because it has always
adapted its products and services to new and
changing circumstances.”
“Supporting agricultural players looking for new markets
and wanting to diversify their operations, is as important
to us now as it was when we first started providing
loans to sheep farmers in the Eastern Cape 150
years ago.” Mr Loock says that the Western Cape’s
wine industry, in particular, could benefit by diversifying
from traditional markets.
“The Euro crisis and the recent economic downturn
have made American and European wine drinkers
look for more affordable wine options, putting pressure
on the South African wine industry to develop
new marketing strategies and reconfigure logistics to
expand beyond traditional markets.
“Because of Standard Bank’s strong presence in 17
African countries, we know that Africa represents a
vast new market for specialised products, such as
wine and fruit. Minister in the Presidency, Trevor Manuel,
also identified the tilt in the economic centre of
gravity from West to East in the global economy as
one of the six major drivers of change for South Africa.
BIEN DONNÉ AGRI CAPE WEEK 2012
It makes sense then for our wine and fruit industries to
also look to exploring markets in the east.”
In fact, the Bien Donné Agri Cape Week’s ‘Change for
Sustainability’ theme is extremely apt in light of Minister
Manuel’s six drivers of change: the tilt in the economic
centre of gravity from West to East, interconnectivity,
globalisation, technology, the rise of Africa, and climate
change.
“Agricultural sustainability will rest on its ability to turn
these drivers to its advantage. As a significant player
in the value chain, we see it as our responsibility to
make such change work for agri businesses,” says
Mr Loock.
“Standard Bank’s Agriculture division provides advice
through dedicated agricultural economists, and practical
assistance through specialised products and
services that are tailor-made for the industry at large,
as well as for individual farmers and agricultural businesses.
We are ideally positioned to make change
work because we are fully aligned with the six drivers
of change.”
Standard Bank anticipated the West to East shift several
years in advance, obtaining the Industrial and
Commercial Bank of China (ICBC) as a majority partner
in 2005, thereby enabling it to facilitate market linkages
for its customers at the time and moving into
the future.
It has a strong presence in Africa as well as offices
on each of the other continents. It has been an early
adopter of technologies that provide customers with
online, 24/7 self-service facilities. Today, it leads the
field in remote and rural banking facilities, as well as
mobile and inclusive banking.
“Sponsoring Bien Donné
Agri Cape Week is our
way of reminding South
African agriculture that
we know how to harvest
change and process it
into sustainability.”
The bank also extends the concept of technology
beyond computing and connectivity to concepts and
practices such as precision farming, satellite technologies
in tractors, and whatever else is needed to
make commercial farming sustainably more productive.
Its products are designed to encourage the purpose-driven
use of technology.
“The Bien Donné Agri Cape Week plays a vital role
here in acting as a bridge between research, technology
transfer, and practical agriculture,” Mr Loock
says.
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