Celebrating a Century of Agricultural Economics at Stellenbosch University

This year the Department of Agricultural Economics celebrated 100 years of academic excellence through impactful research and training the next generation of agricultural economists. On 12 September 2025, under the theme “The Past, Present and Future of Agricultural Economics” we gathered current students, esteemed alumni, industry partners, and Stellenbosch University colleagues for a day filled with reflection, knowledge sharing, and celebration.

The day was formally opened by Dr. Melissa van der Merwe, who welcomed the diverse group gathered in the lecture hall, from the oldest alumnus in the room, who graduated in 1963, to the youngest alumnus, who graduated in March of 2025. In her words, standing before so many generations of agricultural economists was a profoundly emotional moment. “I realised not only the great honour,” she shared, “but also the great responsibility of leading this department into its next 100 years.”

The day began with a keynote presentation by well-known agricultural economist and extraordinary professor at SU, Prof. Ferdi Meyer, titled “A Century of Growth Agricultural Insights from the Past to PresentAgriEcon100”. The tagline to his presentation “Give agriculture half a chance, and it will grow” showcased how South African agriculture has consistently outperformed its perceived constraints over the last couple of decades.He reflected on the sector’s remarkable growth in exports, productivity, and income, while highlighting success stories in sectors like soybeans, horticulture, and beef. Prof Meyer also emphasised the need for secure land tenure, improved infrastructure, and trade facilitationto unlock the sector’s full potential. His address was an accolade to past achievements and a call to action for the next generation of agricultural economists in the room.

Another highlight was the student poster session, where our postgraduate students had the opportunity to showcase their applied research. Their topics reflected the diversity of current agri-food challenges:

• Jessica Barton’s researched focused on food waste in South African retail.
• Christien Langenhoven analysed the volatility dynamics between global and South African maize and wheat markets by using a price transmission model.
• Lourens Matthysen did an analysis to determine the impact of disruptions at the port of Cape Town on the profitability of fruit exports.
• Matthew Guest used a time series analysis to determine the impact of Namibia’s community-based natural resource management strategy on elephant conservation.
• Sameera Ebrahim evaluated the financial impacts of compliance and market diversion on the South African grapefruit industry in response to South Korea’s non-tariff measures
• Kumirai Takawira, one of our PhD students, presented preliminary results on the development of a total sustainability management framework for the African wild meat value chain.
• Ziyanda Hadebe, another one of our PhD students, presented her multidisciplinary study to investigate the processing, characterisation, consumer acceptance and commercial viability of canola proteins for human consumption in South Africa.
• And lastly, one of our recent PhD graduates, Dr Heinrich Jantjies presented on the competitive performance of the South African deciduous fruit canning industry.

The enthusiasm, analytical depth, and creativity displayed by these students sparked lively discussions and industry engagement. Many alumni and guests were impressed by the professionalism of the presentations, and several connections between students and potential future collaborators and employees were sparked.

One of the most heartfelt moments of the day was the presence of the late Mr. Deon Joubert, whose passion and dedication for the industry willbe remembered by many. His support for young agricultural economists and the way he listened and showed interest in our students research on the daywas remarkable. He left a lasting legacy that we will continue to build on.

Later in the afternoon, tradition came alive with a departmental braai in the quad, a cherished space that holds many memories for generations of students and staff. Those that are in the know are aware of our annual staff and student photographs dating back to 1961 that hangs in our departmental corridors and it was round these photographs on the way to the quad that attendees reconnected and shared stories of their time in the department.

The celebrations concluded with a gala dinner, where emeritus Professor Nick Vink, the longest standing chair of the department of Agricultural Economics, offered a tribute to the many great minds who helped shape the discipline of Agricultural Economics and in particular the role that the Stellenbosch University department played. His speech celebrated the legacy of our department and the promising future being built by our current students and faculty. Guests toasted to a century of impactand the many decades yet to come.

As Dr Melissa van der Merwe said in her welcoming speech, the centenary event was not only a celebration of the past, but a powerful reminder of the responsibility that the next generation of academics have in graduating agricultural leaders that are ready to shape the future of agriculture in South Africa and beyond.