WINDHOEK – A consignment of 55 099 Agra House of Swakara pelts with an estimated value of N$40 million departed for auctioning last week from Hosea Kutako International Airport to Copenhagen in Denmark.
The auction will take place on September 8 at the most prestigious pelt auction on the European continent.
Agra serves Swakara producers by marketing their pelts internationally, as mandated by the Karakul (Swakara) Board of Namibia. Earlier this year, Swakara pelts stole the hearts of international buyers when the Namibian pelts fetched new record prices in Copenhagen.
A delegation consisting of representatives from Agra and the Swakara producers will attend the auction.
The producers are co-funded by the Young Farmers Development Programme under the Swakara Producers’ Fund (SPF), and include Johan Hartung, Eevoka de Jager, Andre de Jager and Lucas Apollus.
These producers will experience and witness how the auction is conducted as well as interact with international buyers of various types of furs.
The April pelt auction held in the Danish capital witnessed the highest average price in Namibian Dollars ever paid for Swakara pelts, locally known as Black Diamonds.
The average price in Namibian Dollars was N$696.68 per pelt, an increase of 6.54 percent from the September 2012 auction. The value of the 71 961 Swakara pelts at the time exceeded N$50 million.
At that auction, the top Namibian producer was once again Lovedale Farming CC from Keetmanshoop, which sold 444 pelts at an average price of N$ 1047.64 per pelt.
The top South African producer was Hannes Vlok, who achieved an average price of R916.42 per pelt.
Wessel Visser, Agra ProVision’s Manager of Social Business & Services confirmed: “For more than 30 years, Agra has supported and advocated Swakara pelt production as a viable alternative farming practice, presented training to producers to improve the quality and quantity of pelts, professionally sorted the pelts at the House of Swakara and represented Namibian producers at international platforms such as fur auctions, trade forums and fashion and design exhibitions.”
In Namibia, the auction can be followed via Internet live streaming at the House of Swakara on September 8 2013 at 08h00.
Agra established ProVision (formerly known as Professional Services Division – PSD) in 2009 with the main objective of providing a structured framework for rendering various specialised services to the Namibian agricultural sector.
By Deon Schlechter