Grabouw's Stephan Beukes named Western Cape Farmer of the Year
Stephan Beukes of Dennegeur Farms in Grabouw has been named 2026 Western Cape Farmer of the Year, recognised for growing export performance and rebuilding quickly after the 2023 floods while investing in people and sustainability.
Photo Caption: Stephan Beukes (right) receives the Farmer of the Year award from Nedbank's Daneel Rossouw
Stephan Beukes of Dennegeur Farms in Grabouw has been named the 2026 Western Cape Farmer of the Year by Agricultural Writers SA's Xhariep region, in recognition of an operation that has grown production, strengthened export performance and invested in people, infrastructure and environmental sustainability despite major setbacks.
The award was announced at a Nedbank-sponsored function held on Friday evening at Durbanville Hills. In his keynote address, Agri Western Cape CEO Jannie Strydom described the Western Cape's agricultural sector as a powerful economic engine for the province, driving exports, creating jobs and sustaining livelihoods from farm gates to global markets.
Beukes, a third-generation farmer, has led Dennegeur since becoming CEO in 2019, expanding the business through the acquisition of Vredenhof and Applethwaite. The enterprise now farms 455.65ha of orchards, backed by investment in storage, packing, energy resilience and leadership capacity.
Resilience has been treated as a management discipline at Dennegeur. After the devastating 2023 flood, Beukes restored crop-protection spray coverage within 72 hours and irrigation across the orchards within two months, supported by careful irrigation planning, energy monitoring, market diversification and regular financial reviews. Orchard practices on the farm include groundcover management, recycled biomass use, alien vegetation clearing and rehabilitation with indigenous species.
The Dennegeur Foundation supports childcare, education, health, counselling and retirement initiatives for workers, with peak employment on the farm reaching 1 067 people.
"Each of this year's winners is building something bigger than their own farm," said Marike Brits, chairperson of Agricultural Writers SA's Xhariep region. "Stephan Beukes has shown what disciplined leadership and resilience look like after a disaster, while keeping more than a thousand people employed at peak season."
Agricultural Writers SA, established in 1977, runs the annual Farmer of the Year competition to recognise outstanding farmers and their contribution to South African agriculture.