20 Nov Macadamia Fire Policy

With the launch of Safire Crop’s Macadamia Fire Policy, training of brokers, broker consultants and Safire management recently took place to familiarise people with growing processes, terminology and potential dangers faced by farmers. The education process started with a visit to a macadamia farm and cracking plant in the Paddock area, followed by a training session at Head Office with a number of brokers. Those who were unable to attend and showed an interest in the product are being visited individually to ensure that everyone is informed and ready to assist farmers with client-specific cover. Macadamia nuts are the fastest growing agricultural product in SA today, despite the establishment of these orchards requiring high input costs, often funded by banks. Loss of these orchards by fire could be devastating for the farmer. Fire risk is especially important for macadamia farmers in KZN, with many orchards being established in areas bordering sugar cane farms that are regularly exposed to fires. Safire’s Fire Policy provides cover for growing trees and the current year’s crop plus the subsequent two years’ crop which would have been lost as a result of the trees having been put out of production. Contact your broker or Ruth Bezuidenhout (083 631 1264) or Gareth Smallbones (083 384 4788) from Safire’s Crop Division for further information.