OUR HERITAGE
Lamara forms part of Two Rivers, a historic farmland in the Dwars River Valley gateway into Franschhoek.
Two Rivers, referring to the Bergriver and Wemmershoek River both running through the land, has its origins in portions of historic landholdings as part of the first farms granted to the settlers in the 1850s. It sits at the foot of the Drakenstein and Simonsberg mountains and traces its history back to the early days of farming.
When the wine industry boomed in the 1800s, the land became home to some of the earliest vineyards. However, when the estate fell prey to a phylloxera outbreak in the late 1800s, Cecil John Rhodes oversaw the conversion of the wine lands to fruit farming, resulting in the famous Rhodes Fruit farms in 1902. The estate, famous for its fruit culture, was owned first by the Beers and subsequently by Anglo-American farmers. Today, Two Rivers, named after the two rivers running through the estate, is divided into 15 portions, all under separate titles.
MEET OUR TEAM
MARLENE LOUBSER
General Manager
Marlene Loubser, an industry professional who was involved from the very beginning of the Lamara Project, is a Horticulturist, Plant breeder and Plant pathologist graduated from Stellenbosch University.
Apart from a passionate farmer she is also a Gold Savantes Associate of the Register of Extra Virgin Olive Oil and one of the judges of SA OLIVE’s tasting panel, which judges and selects the top SA Olives Oils submitted to the SA Olive Awards.
JUSTIN CILLIERS
Farm Manager
Justin Cilliers, with his good leadership skills maximize and develop each individuals potential to accomplish excellence.
THE TEAM
A farm such as Lamara can only produce quality when there is a good team present.
Lamara has a crew of 12 permanent workers.
During harvest, up to 40 extra workers and subcontractors are taken on to meet the deadlines.
AWARDS & CERTIFICATIONS
As it is important for us to reach high quality standards, we stress the importance of certifications and we proud ourselves for our awards. Lamara is member of SA OLIVE and is GLOBAL GAP and SIZA certified. We have also been awarded a Gold certification from the Olive Oil Institute and a Gold Medal from Olio Nuovo Liwa.
