The South Africa Wine Enterprise Development division attended the third instalment of the Mzansi Young Farmer Indaba from 4 to 6 April, hosted in Pretoria North with a selection of exciting black-owned brands, Natasha Williams Signature Wines, HER wines, LucMo Wines, Brunia Wines, Zoetendal Vineyards, Francis Wines, Three Quarters, and Thokozani.
The Indaba featured a John Deere showcase, livestock demos, drone innovations, hands-on farm sessions, and wine tasting for patrons. Opened by Agriculture, Land Reform, and Rural Development Minister Thoko Didiza, the event offered a range of opportunities to young producers.
Guests visiting the South Africa Wine stand at the Mzansi Young Farmer Indaba.
Trade and media visiting the South Africa Wine stand at the Mzansi Young Farmer Indaba.
Hosted together on the impressive South Africa Wine stand, the brands received much attention from local visitors and international media alike. International media delegates from Nigeria, Lesotho, Namibia, Zambia, America, and China flocked to the stand to learn more about these brands.
The event proved to be an invaluable platform for especially the young wine entrepreneurs to broaden their horizons:
- Burton Francis of Francis Wines appreciated the exposure to a broader audience, networking with stakeholders, and exploring new innovative ideas to drive growth in the wine sector.
- Denzel Swartz of Zoetendal Vineyards emphasised the indaba’s role in showcasing diversity within the agricultural sector and fostering collaboration among developing brands facing similar challenges.
- Mahalia Kotjana of Three Quarters Wines found inspiration in seeing the wine industry integrated with other agricultural sectors at the Indaba.
- Natasha Williams of Lelie van Saron stressed the importance of learning more about brand awareness and the opportunity to educate individuals about the wine industry at the Indaba.
- Ruth Faro of Her Wines attended the Young Farmers Indaba for the first time. “It was amazing to see how agriculture is recognised on such a level,” she said. “Particularly for us as the youth, it is encouraging to know that there is a sustainable structure in place for our voices and talents to be heard and seen and to celebrate this opportunity.”
- Wade Sander of Brunia Wines valued the opportunity to present his wines to a wide range of people and to keep pushing for increased acknowledgement of inclusive wines’ role in the market.
On Friday, 5 April, the brands met with Forti, owner of the highly popular Vee & Forti Wine Bar and Liquor Emporium, which boasts a selection of 1 100 wines from across the globe. He was genuinely impressed with these young change-makers and allocated shelving space for a few black-owned brands. The South Africa Wine team and black-owned brands were treated to a tour of their wine boutique, and all are excited at this new, unexpected, but most welcomed opportunity.
Pretoria restaurateur and wine boutique owner Forti Mazonne of Vee & Forti Wine Bar created a memorable ‘wow’ moment for these young wine entrepreneurs who left ‘wine-spired’ and ‘wine-memorised’. Each of these brands was offered shelf space at the Wine Bar.
