Bertie Coetzee @bioboertjie

1. Bertie Coetzee
Lowerland farm, Prieska, Northern Cape, South Africa
LBW Regenerative Ag Conference 2018
Organic farming: Managing complexity
@bioboertie

3. “We live in a time where artists (farmers) are being led
from one bad deal to another worst deal. No one asks
the artists (farmers). We are told to get good at
marketing, but I have to say that I didn’t start playing
music (farming) to start a career in marketing.
And, as we are being told that, our work is being
commoditized – the price of music (farm products) is
being driven down to zero”
- T-Bone Burnett (famous American producer and folk artist)

4. Content
1. Overview
2. Our Products
2. Our practises
3. Our challenges

5. Lowerland overview
• Biological (conservation agriculture)
– “No passion in poison”
– Bonsmara cattle stud and need for viable legumes
– Wheat in maize stubble
• Switch to organic
– Permaculture (broadscale)
– Ownership of product – health, nutrition
– Move away from price taker/commodity farming
– Better not bigger
• Perennial vs annual
– Move away from grain and short rotations
– Take foot of the gas – time to think

6. Lowerland overview
• Value add
– Work back from markets
– Master your own product
• The Plan
– Phase 1: Production, product and patience
– Phase 2: Rhythm and retail
– Phase 3: Synergy and stacking
• Philosophy
– Broad scale permaculture
– Resilience through diversity (below ground, above ground and on the
shelves)
– Kick the door down
– Better not bigger (bigger plans, smaller tractors)
– Future Farmers

7. Lowerland overview
• ORGANIC CROPS (120ha)
– Grains – maize, wheat
– Pecans
– Wine grapes
– Pumpkins
– Diverse pastures – cattle, sheep, pigs

9. 2. Lowerland overview
•Our products
•Our practices
•Our challenges

10. Lowerland – Our organic products
• PRODUCTS
– Maize flour (polenta, corn flour, familiemeel)
– Teff
– Wheat flour
– Malt
– Wine (MCC)
– Pecans
– Pumpkins
– Organic meat

13. Lowerland – Our farming practices
PRACTICES
Organic
No-till + Green planting
Diversity
Mob grazing
Closed loop
PRODUCTION
Minimum intervention
Natural ferments, whole grains
Taste and nutrition

15. Lowerland – Our farming practices
PRACTISES
Organic
No-till + Green planting
Diversity
Mob grazing
Closed-loop
Future Farmers
PRODUCTION
Minimum intervention
Natural ferments, whole grains
Taste and nutrition

21. Organic maize 2018

22. Mob grazing / Cover crops 2017/18

23. Winter grains (intercropped)

24. Lowerland - Our Challenges
• Managing complexity
• Shifting everything at same time
• Securing multiple markets and distribution
• Partnerships and logistics
• Financial sustainability in conversion phase
• Paperwork
• Specialized equipment
• Educating the consumer

25. “The price of doing the same thing is
far higher than the price of change”

27. “Nature includes us, we are in it and a part of it… If it does not
thrive, we can not thrive” – Wendell Berry

28. Thank you!
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