Being responsible is the only sustainable way forward.

sustainable thinking

Our sustainability objectives are based on the following three pillars: social, environmental and human sustainability.
We’ve chosen to be part of the solution.

We’re a female-run company in agriculture and agri-processing, and it’s very close to our hearts to promote women in all sectors of our business. We’ve chosen to be part of the solution concerning transformation in agriculture and agri-processing and we hope to address the low number of business women participating in this industry.

Social sustainability

Women in agriculture

We train and empower women, and we strive to make agriculture and agri-processing an attractive field to work in. It is also our aim to assist more women to enter agriculture and help them develop the tools that will enable them to become self-sufficient cattle farmers.

Addressing stumbling blocks

We’ve identified a route to market as a stumbling block for emerging and subsistence farmers who would like to sell their cattle into the market. To facilitate this process, we have made certain concessions to these farmers when they supply cattle to us.

The way forward

We are exploring a project to assist emerging female farmers in our Marquard community with capital and access to our expertise and the expertise of many of our own suppliers. We intend to enable them to become fully-fledged cow calf farmers.

Sparta is committed to the well-being of the environment in which we operate. We take special care to tread lightly.

Environmental sustainability

Sparta’s cattle feeding operation

A full environmental impact study of our cattle feeding operation was commissioned, completed and approved by the Department of Environmental Affairs in 2007.

Land/water conservation

Our large tracts of grazing are strategically monitored to allow for rotation for our pasture-raised and grain-finished cattle. Where soil erosion could or has taken place, we’ve implemented water stream rehabilitation. Our ground water is tested regularly by the Institute of Groundwater Studies at the University of the Free State. Effluent dams collect feedlot run-off, which provides essential water for irrigation. Sparta makes use of manure on its fields, which is more eco-friendly and increases soil fertility, water retention and the absorption rate of the soil.

Our beef processing facility

Since 2008, Sparta has been modernising its plant and effluent waste, implementing various measures and upgrading systems, where necessary, to ensure we operate in a sustainable way. We strive to be compliant in terms of the National Environmental Management Act, 1998. 

Waste management

We strive to limit our carbon footprint and we have outsourced our general waste sorting to a SABS certified organisation. Annually this enables us to recycle more than 2000 cubic meters of paper and plastic waste and save almost 1 million litres of water and over 600 trees.

Giving back is at the core of the Sparta culture and value system. We invest heavily in several worthy causes in our communities, including schools and centres for the elderly and disabled.

Human Sustainability

We believe in investing in the lives of future generations by giving funds to a local agricultural college and providing bursaries for qualifying students.

Mama Sophia’s School

Mama Sophia’s Pathways School is a non-profit organisation situated in Marquard, Free State. The school was established by Sparta in April 2015, to provide a sanctuary for children and young adults living with a range of disabilities with the objective of empowering each of them with a sense of purpose, and to help them attain as much independence as possible, regardless of their challenges.

The school currently consists of four classrooms in order to cater for the variety of disabilities that the enrolled learners are faced with. The program is designed in such a way that each learner’s individual needs are met, and that maximum growth and development is possible for each learner. Mama Sophia’s caters for learners with a variety of physical and learning disabilities, which include cerebral palsy, partial blindness, hearing disabilities, Down syndrome and autism. As part of the school’s sustainability program, Mama Sophia’s started a recycling project that produces unique handmade seasonal and non-seasonal products from recycled items. The school also provides a shredding service for the local Marquard businesses. While this creates a small income for the school, the aim is to stimulate and develop an entrepreneurial spirit amongst the learners to help them possibly integrate into the workforce at a later stage.

Since 2015, Mama Sophia’s has grown by leaps and bounds and continues to make remarkable progress. What started as a daycare facility is now a school, and what was originally just a house is now a home to these youngsters.

NOTHING TASTES AS GOOD AS GIVING BACK.
Sparta supports 19 schools and crèches in the Marquard and Welkom area and 6 non-governmental organisations caring for children, the elderly and the disabled. Support is delivered in many forms – from weekly and monthly donations of beef products and financial assistance to the sharing of expertise.
Annually, Sparta provides members of the community in which they operate, as well as staff members, with almost 1 million meals.
INVESTED IN OUR PEOPLE

CARE PROGRAM

Education

This initiative has ensured a better life for several families in our communities and has delivered some top-achieving students, who have become experts in their fields. We regularly afford students from the Glen Agricultural College in Mangaung the opportunity to fulfil their internship requirements on our farms, where they gain invaluable practical experience.
By accommodating a large number of young adults in our internship and learnership programs every year, we are able to appoint a number of these students in our own business after the programs have been completed, and strive to give these young adults a better chance of being absorbed into positions in other organisations.
We are a proud sponsor of the annual Stockman School, where we are able to provide lectures, financial assistance as well as educational tours of our facilities to educate students and young farmers about the agricultural sector and red meat industry. Investing in our staff forms a very important part of our education initiatives. Sparta trains approximately 1000 staff members each year.