Photo: Supplied
Pierre Cilliers, owner of Affi-Plaas Premium Lamb, sold a 20kg Dorper-cross lamb carcass to the Kalahari Group for a world record price of R72 000. The sale smashed the previous record of R63 000 set at the Royal Show in Pietermaritzburg.
Speaking to Farmer’s Weekly, Cilliers said the achievement came as a huge surprise.
“My and my suppliers’ meat is special, but never in my wildest dreams would I have imagined it fetching such a price. I think it was more a case of our buyers, Babylonstoren and Kalahari Group, flexing their muscle to show appreciation for the exceptional quality with which we supply them,” he said.
Asked what makes Affi-Plaas’s lamb unique, Cilliers compared it to a well-blended wine: “Philippolis [in the Free State], where the animals are raised, offers a mix of Karoo bush and grassland – producing meat that reflects both Karoo bush and sweet- and sourveld. After slaughter, the carcasses are also hung and matured for seven days, as our fathers used to do, enhancing meat tenderness and flavour.”
Dr Theo de Jager, executive director of the Southern African Agri Initiative, said in a statement that the achievement was still far from the amounts people were willing to pay for premium wines, but it underscored the growing recognition of lamb as a premium product and the power of Lamb Champs to elevate it.
The day was just as memorable for the Botha family from Cradock in the Eastern Cape. Louis Botha clinched the Lamb Champs Boland title with a Meatmaster lamb, earning R40 000 in prize money and a unique trophy sculpted by Nic van Rensburg. Louis’ younger brother, Reuben, secured fourth place with a Merino entry.
Louis’ new wife, Monya, also entered with one of her Landrace sheep. The couple, engaged since March, decided on arrival in the Western Cape to marry at the magistrate’s court the day before Lamb Champs.
“I feel really blessed. This has turned into a truly unforgettable week,” Louis said.
He explained that the Karoo bushes gave their meat a unique quality and flavour but stressed that the main ingredient was their love for the land, their sheep, and each other.
“Our passion for what we do means we spend a lot of time with the flock and carefully manage the animals and the veld.”
The family practices high-density grazing to make the best use of natural grazing. Large numbers of sheep are placed in a camp of about 250ha for three to four days, depending on veld conditions.
“We try to graze as intensively as possible before moving the flock to the next camp,” he said.
Their father, Hendrik, said he was extremely proud of his sons and emphasised that their participation was also about raising awareness of their Organic Karoo Lamb brand.
Second place went to Nollie Stofberg of Fraserburg, Northern Cape, with a Meatmaster, while Loffie and Michael Smuts of Moorreesburg, Western Cape, claimed third with a Dormer.
This was the first-ever Lamb Champs hosted in the Western Cape, with the event attracting over 4 000 visitors and tickets selling out the day before the event.
The Boland champions will now go head-to-head with other regional winners at the Lamb Champs national final, set to take place at Nampo Alfa in Bothaville on 17 October 2025.
