Jeanne Groenewald

Jeanne Groenewald is the CEO of Elgin Free Range Chickens. Established in 1997, Jeanne grew the Elgin Free Range Chickens into the thriving business it is today. 

Born and raised on a farm, Jeanne has always been passionate about animal welfare and free-range farming practices. Having started with only 100 chicks for home consumption, she has grown the business into a thriving enterprise that produces 150 000 chicks a week. Jeanne has a wealth of experience in developing small businesses and is eager to put her knowledge and expertise into practice at the GDA. 

Jeanne presently sits on the board of EFRC Holdings RRY LTD and Caledon Hatchery PTY LTD. Her experience will be an asset to the Grabouw Development Agency. 

What makes Elgin Free Range Chickens stand out from other large scale chicken producers in the market, is how they have managed to maintain a small business feel. The core morals, ethics, and farming practices of the company were not lost as they have expanded. The company is committed to giving their birds a good quality of life, and thus have become South-Africa’s most trusted free rand chicken producer for over twenty years. On top of this the Chickens are raised on a high quality, maize-based diet that is free from routine antibiotics. 

Maintaining the feel of a small business whilst promoting growth into a larger business is a major goal of Jeanne’s and something she feels is important in the development of the Grabow region.  

Having grown up in the area, Jeanne is passionate about the natural beauty of Grabouw. However, due to the large population and low employment rates, Jeanne feels there is a need to diversify the local economy. Whilst the agriculture sector is flourishing, tourism and other similar industries have fallen behind other regions in the Western Cape in these sectors. Jeanne believes that highlighting the areas natural beauty that she cherishes and appreciates could help develop the tourism sector for Grabouw.

“There is so much the area has to offer and it would be wonderful to see this town turned around into a beautiful little gem between Somerset West and Hermanus” – Jeanne Groenewald

Jeanne loves being outdoors, and especially enjoys mountain biking and playing squash. As an intrepid explorer, she enjoys adventures and travels in her Land Rover or on Her BMW 800 GS.