Irrigation is the gateway to unlocking Africa’s agricultural potential. The Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO) published an article many years ago (1997) that estimated Africa to have the ability to increase agricultural production by 50% simply by investing in irrigation systems.

Reinke has answered Africa’s need for irrigation by investing in the continent. The Reinke Depot situated in the South African port city of Durban keeps enough stock to supply the continent with superb centre pivot irrigation systems.

Their expert staff members travel wherever they are needed, and even during the COVID-19 travel restrictions, were able to assist technicians in various African countries remotely. Rennie de Wet owns the farm Kwalata in the Tuli Block of Botswana where he produces lucerne pastures for the game on his farm. Rennie installed the first Reinke pivots in Botswana on his farm in 2017. He erected three 30-hectare pivots.

“We decided to buy Reinke pivots after comparing price, quality, parts availability, and agents in our area. Reinke was by far the better choice and I liked the sturdy structural design,” says Rennie. He uses the ReinCloud™ Management system and his pivots are powered by 45 kW motors equipped with variable speed drives.

Rennie believes that four components on his pivots should be checked regularly: “If your tires are in good condition, the electrical components are sealed watertight, the gearboxes are oiled, and the bearings are greased, there is no reason why something should break on the pivot. Your investment will last for decades to come, and pay itself many times over.”

Rennie uses water from the Limpopo river to irrigate his crops. “Because the river water contains high quantities of debris, we filter it before it is pumped through the pivot. I clean filters and check for blockages on the sprinklers on a regular basis,” Rennie explains.

Lawrence van der Westhuizen is the irrigation expert at Pula Dynamic, the Reinke agent for Botswana. Lawrence says that Reinke South Africa provides excellent support to their agents in

other countries. “Our technician went to the Reinke depot in Durban for training on how to properly erect a Reinke pivot. Apart from this we have an exby cellent relationship with Patrick, Jaco, and Paul, and they are always available to help us if we have a problem or a question,” says Lawrence.

Rennie de Wet uses his Reinke
5-tower pivots to irrigate pastures
on his game farm.

Pula Dynamic started their relationship with Reinke in 2017. Lawrence explains why they wanted to be an agent solely for Reinke: “The technology that Reinke uses, from their structural materials and design to the electronic management systems, is simply in a class of its own,” says Lawrence.

Lawrence and Rennie are both very satisfied with the after sales service that the team from Reinke in South Africa provides. “I can contact them directly, and Jaco Scheepers, the Reinke engineer in Durban, is always available to talk me through any process over the phone,” says Rennie.

Centre pivots are a relatively new sight in Botswana. Rennie and Lawrence are doing their part to introduce irrigation systems to the farmers of Botswana. “Many people visited the farm to look at the pivots and to find out how they work,” says Rennie.

“People are often sceptical due to the initial capital investment, but once they see the difference that a Reinke pivot makes to a farm’s production, they are convinced,” Lawrence added.

Reinke Irrigation provides a unique solution to suit the needs of every farmer. They can provide any size pivot from a single tower, engine-driven mini pivot ideal for remote locations with unreliable electricity supply, to multi towered models for vast fields. Contact Patrick Ellis, Director of Reinke South Africa, on +27(0)31-350-4525 for any further enquiries, or send an e-mail to patrickellis@reinke.com.