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The foundations have been laid
Well ... the name may not be entirely unfamiliar, but the 'corporate' colours and logo are brand new.
For practical reasons the organisation initially operated under the name Wijngaard Co-operative - a name that was readily available and already registered by KWV when the decision was taken last year to separate the activities of KWV Group and its co-operative members, each with its accompanying service functions.
At the time it was decided, following a series of special meetings with KWV members, that their new producer organisation should kick off with a clean slate, including a new name. The implication would clearly be a new role and a new era.
Meanwhile the message came through loud and clear - from discussions with management and the board, as well as members at a roadshow of nine district conferences - that the name VinPro, used when the organisation functioned as a service division of KWV, was already so established and so well-liked that it should be adopted again. The name is obviously derived from "wine" and "producers". It was decided that the "SA" suffix would be abandoned, and that a new logo with lots of impact had to be designed.
The result is the blue and green logo displayed alongside, with the obvious symbolism of a bunch of grapes with a subtle "V" and "P" in the stem.
The name change, one of several urgent matters that received attention at various board meetings, district conferences and a brainstorming session, had to be formalised at a series of special members' meetings in the nine districts in May.
The new identity goes hand in hand with a new vision, namely "A sustainable and participating wine producing community".
"The VinPro team is committed to assisting producers and growing together to a position of financial sustainability," said Jos le Roux, chief executive.
Earlier, at a two day brainstorming session of the board and management, the focus fell on factors that influence the future position of the producer and his community. The conclusion was reached that the wine industry rests on three cornerstones, namely the market, the economy and technology, the latter including research, development and the transfer of information.
Information about these cornerstones will therefore be transmitted to VinPro's more than 5 000 producer members on an ongoing basis by means of various communication channels and opportunities, which will enable them to apply such information in accordance with their requirements. All of this is geared towards the long term success of the wine producer in the light of rapid change on many terrains.
The provision of strategic information forms part of VinPro's role as supplier of sustainable services, by the most effective application of the co-operative's resources.
VinPro, as the representative body, also serves as the producers' voice. In fact, VinPro is represented by the five members of the "producer chamber" of the SA Wine and Brandy Company, which co-ordinates and plans the interests and actions of the total wine industry.
Via its directors, management and consultants, the organisation also assumes responsibility for handling the wine producers' representation in about 30 key organisations, inter alia organised agriculture, the government, education and research.
VinPro currently consists of the following divisions: VinPro Viticultural Consultation Services, Agricultural Economic Services, Finances, Information Services, Secretariat and Logistics and WineLand Publictions - with a staff complement of 23, based, for the time being, at KWV's head office in Paarl.
At the above-mentioned meetings the emphasis fell on plans of action to fulfil and expand the role played by VinPro, while being economically sustainable at the same time. The organisation's economic basis is currently founded on annual remuneration of R8 million per annum for a five year period by KWV for services rendered, as well as own income of more than R7 million from the Consultation Services and WineLand.
In addition to the potential income of a 10% interest in KWV, further sources of income are being investigated.
The VinPro board consists of nine directors, elected from the respective districts, as well as the chief executive and a co-opted specialist, chaired by Danie de Wet, with Johann Krige as vice-chairman.
Mr De Wet emphasised in an interview that "the wine farmer will remain competitive in the international markets only if he is able to match the technological prowess of his competitors. The consultants play a vital role in packaging the technology in a format that can be implemented in practice and in conveying this to producers. VinPro considers this an industry responsibility and a top priority.
"One of the biggest challenges will probably be to sort, evaluate and process the masses of information available in order to pass this on to the producers in a digestible format.
"The WineLand magazine, which is the producer's "showcase and news bearer" - with its annual Wine Industry Directory - plays a crucial role in this regard. The magazine, with its website, will continue to fulfil this role in close collaboration with the Information Centre, inter alia via the VinPro website."
- Cassie du Plessis
In agricultural circles, the voice of Sharon February has long been heard on behalf of emerging black farmers, but it is in her new role as director of Vin Pro where she believes she may make a difference.
"What people say at a meeting and what goes on in their hearts are two different things entirely. My job is to make sure the promises are kept.
"I cannot pretend. I find it exhausting," she answers my querying look. "People know where they stand with me, because I am truthful and straightforward." But the actual story is told by her long plait with the grey streaks and the face without makeup - a woman with her feet firmly on the ground, no fuss, no frills.
The invitation to serve on the VinPro board initially made Sharon suspicious. "The question at the back of my mind was why me? "Was I asked purely to colour in the board, was it a politically correct decision, because they get not only a woman, but also a coloured person?"
It was only after a visit to Lourens Jonker, chairman of KWV Group Limited, on his farm that the suspicion made way for an intense desire to be part of the transformation in the wine industry. "I have incredible respect for Lourens Jonker and I was impressed by the way in which he runs his farm and manages his people. And he is genuine in what he says and does."
Sharon has the gift of looking right into people's hearts. This is thanks to apartheid, she explains. "We (coloured and black people) have an innate ability to sense who is genuine and who is false." Sharon says although she is still getting to know the other directors, she has never felt ill at ease at a meeting.
"The first VinPro board meeting - then still Wijngaard - was like having a baby for the first time," recounts the mother of four. "You are excited, but you don't know what to expect. Will they look down on you or will they accept you?"
The board's brainstorming session at Jacobsbaai on the West Coast gave Sharon an overall view of the role played by VinPro and where it is headed. Now, more than ever before, she feels equipped for the task at hand and is positive about what remains to be done to restructure the wine industry.
As President of African Farmers Union for the past three years, Sharon has been playing a leading role in the establishment of a small group of new farmers on municipal land. She was also vice-president of Devco. Her directorship at Landbank opened several doors and she was elected to the National Agricultural Marketing Board. She is a director at the Elsenburg Agricultural College, just outside Stellenbosch and the project co-ordinator for a mussel farm in Saldanha.
All these positions mean nothing, however, if she cannot use them as a means to an end. "I am not inclined to boast about my positions, since I believe they should be used as vehicles to bring about change," she says.
Sharon believes new entrants to the industry should empower themselves first before making full use of the new opportunities. "We should learn skills and know how to run a business, we should know where to get money and how to manage it. Only then can transformation take place."
As far as Sharon is concerned, learning new skills is not limited to farm workers and labourers. "We must help farmers to accept new entrants with new ideas. Farmers should realise workers are their partners, not only on paper. Lots of water must flow under the bridges before change in agriculture will become a reality."
Farming is in Sharon's blood. As a child, she grew up on Victory Hill, the family farm, where Brackenfell is situated today. Due to apartheid the family lost their farm, but the seed to farm had already been sown. "At eight I drove a tractor and at 10 anything with wheels. That is where I got my love for the earth, the soil and the outdoors. I hate talking about history, it hurts too much. I want to look ahead and be positive."
Today Sharon and her husband farm with Brahman and Bonsmara cattle on their farm just outside Saldanha Bay, a stone's throw from the ocean. Previously they rented the 537 hectares. Today it is their property, but they had to fight for it all the way to the office of the Provincial Minister of Agriculture.
"I sympathise with the farmers who are concerned about land reform," says Sharon. "The old farmers will have to share. This is a given. But the new entrants will have to earn their place in the sun," says Sharon, bringing down her fists on the table with passion.
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