Madam Chairperson, not far from here on the Cape Flats is a very successful farming community, the vegetable farmers of Philippi. My contribution today, which is also my maiden speech, will be about them and the role they play in contributing to our food security.
The Philippi farming area covers some five square kilometres in the middle of the Cape metropolitan area. The northern boundary is Lansdowne Road, next to Hanover Park; the western boundary is Strandfontein Road, next to Ottery and Grassy Park; the southern boundary is the proposed False Bay freeway, next to Strandfontein Village; and the eastern boundary is Vanguard Drive, next to Samora Machel and Mitchells Plain.
Most of the 30-odd farmers in the area today are fourth- and fifth- generation descendants of German immigrations of the late 19th century. These immigrants were given land in an area which the then colonial government regarded as wasteland, but through hard work and dedication they and their descendants transformed their small farms into the extremely productive units which they are today. Today, they cultivate some 1 100 hectares and the area is often referred to as the "larder of Cape Town", and for good reason. It is estimated that the value of annual production exceeds R200 million.
In 1990, approximately 54% of all vegetables sold at the Cape Town Fresh Produce Market came from Philippi, and some 54 different kinds of vegetable were produced in the area. Today, the area produces substantially larger volumes and, apart from still supplying the Cape Town Fresh Produce Market, increasing volumes go directly to private distribution centres and enter the cold chain to ensure a longer shelf life.
Supermarkets, such as Pick 'n Pay, Fruit and Veg City, Spar, Checkers and Woolworths in the Cape Town area, are bulk buyers of Philippi products. Substantial volumes are also exported to Namibia and other African states. Some products, for example carrots, are also exported to European retailers including Tesco.
Various secondary industries have also been established over the years, including nurseries, packaging facilities, organic fertiliser processing, a co-operative, a racehorse training and breeding centre, and mechanical and implements manufacturing and repair facilities. These industries provide an additional 400 to 500 employment opportunities.
Ongeveer 2 000 arbeiders werk aktief op die plase. Ongeveer 70% van hulle is ongeskoolde inwoners vanaf naburige nedersettings en baie van hulle is vroue. Die gebied is dus 'n betekenisvolle werkverskaffer op die Kaapse Vlakte.
Die gebied het uitstekende grond- en klimaatsomstandighede vir groenteverbouing en geniet daarby ook die voordeel van voldoende grondwater. In baie gevalle, deur wisselbou toe te pas, word tussen drie en vyf oeste per hektaar per jaar verbou, wat meebring dat werkers vir die grootste deel van die jaar van werk verseker is.
Van die vernaamste produkte wat geproduseer word is kopkool, blomkool, kropslaai, tien ander verskillende soorte sogenaamde "fancy" slaai, wortels, beet, spinasie, seldery, pietersielie, raap, murgpampoentjies, preie, uie, aartappels, soetrissies, gewone rissies, botterskorsies, pampoen, skorsies en verskillende soorte kruie.
Daar word ook intensief snyblomme gekweek, onder meer in plastiese tonnels, met varke geboer en melkerye bedryf.
Vrugteventers en plaaslike verspreiders koop in baie gevalle ook produkte regstreeks op die plase aan en verkoop dit in die omliggende woongebiede en verder. (Translation of Afrikaans paragraphs follows.)
[Approximately 2 000 labourers actively work on the farms. About 70% of them are unskilled inhabitants of nearby settlements and many of them are women. This area is, therefore, a significant provider of labour on the Cape Flats.
This area has excellent soil and climate conditions for the cultivation of vegetables and has the advantage of sufficient groundwater. In many cases, by means of rotational cropping, between three and five harvests per hectare per year are cultivated, which result in labourers being assured of work for the greater part of the year.
Some of the most important products produced are cabbage, cauliflower, lettuce, ten other types of so-called fancy lettuce, carrots, beetroot, spinach, celery, parsley, turnip, baby marrows, leeks, onions, potatoes, green peppers, ordinary chilli, butternuts, pumpkin, squash and various kinds of herbs.
Cut flowers are also cultivated intensively for instance in plastic tunnels, they farm with pigs and operate dairies. In many cases fruit- sellers and local distributors also buy products directly from the farms and sell them in the surrounding settlements and farther field.]
I am told that these farmers have never ever in their existence of 130 years requested any aid from the government, even in hard times. There can be no doubt that this is an extremely valuable and indispensable farming area in the Western Cape which should be nurtured at all cost.
Owing to its location and proximity to residential areas, the area is likely to increasingly come under threat from developers who are prepared to pay exorbitant prices for land. Unfortunately, the first signs are already there. We should not allow that to happen.
Selling off one piece of farming land, even on the fringes, will set a process in motion which will be difficult to stop and which could jeopardise the agricultural contribution of the area and threaten food security in our city and province. Should this be allowed, the big loser will not only be Philippi, but Cape Town, the Western Cape and South Africa and the tens and thousands of consumers who eat Philippi products every day without even realising where they come from. Consistency of food supply - food security - is needed and this area plays a critical part in the greater Cape Town area and even beyond to ensure that.
Allow me to end on a more personal note. Almost to the day, 35 years ago, I started work as a young Hansard reporter on the gallery of this very Chamber, and in later years sat as a secretary at the Table. It is, therefore, with nostalgia and also a real sense of appreciation of the responsibility of my role that I stand here today. In my time here I saw many a good and many, shall I say, not-so-good politician operate in this Chamber.
In closing, I wish to pay tribute to just four of them from these benches of yesteryear who helped shape the democratic South Africa that we all enjoy today. Together with others, they fought consistently for many years, against overwhelming odds, for the principles of the rule of law, of equality, of human rights and of opportunity - those same principles that my party today proudly espouses. I refer to Helen Suzman, Colin Eglin, Alex Boraine and Frederik van Zyl Slabbert. I am privileged to be able to honour their legacy here today. I thank you. [Applause.]