Ready to have a positive impact on the agricultural industry

Crop farmer and small business owner Owen van Rooi is currently pursuing an honours degree in agribusiness after obtaining his degree in horticulture at the Namibian University of Science and Technology (NUST) this year. He officially started his business, ‘Platsand Produce', after he completed his studies and supplies local vendors with fresh produce such as tomatoes, cabbage and spinach, just to name a few.

Van Rooi’s job as owner and operational manager of Platsand Produce involves diverse tasks, with his responsibilities varying from marketing, crop scheduling, employee relations and various administration tasks.

At first he thought that the agricultural side of farming, such as cattle farming, was where his interests lay, but as he grew up, he realised he had green fingers and loved spending time putting them to use.

For this crop farmer, there was no denying his love for crop farming, as he grew up loving the farm and everything that had to do with it.

Tools at hand

According to Van Rooi, farming doesn't necessarily require a tertiary degree to be successful, but having one does help minimise learning through trial and error.

Van Rooi says he would advise anyone aspiring to make a living from farming to take a training course or get a degree or diploma in the field to avoid making so many mistakes along the way as these mistakes are very costly.

“Having that educational background on things like pest control can save you so much money,” he said.

He also added that to be a crop farmer, certain skills and character traits are helpful.

One such character trait is perseverance, because being a crop farmer means making mistakes and learning from them. You need to learn not to give up when things don't go according to plan the first time around.

He added that it is important that, as a crop farmer, you should have problem-solving skills because things almost never go according to plan and you will have to think on your feet.

Another crucial skill to have is time management and organisational skills.

“Be very organised because everything in crop farming works with a time limit,” Van Rooi advised.

He said farming is often associated with being an option for retirement, but he believes that this should be debunked because the opportunities that lie within the farming industry are endless.

Van Rooi said he hopes to help young people realise that farming and agriculture are the future and that it is an industry that should be invested in.