Peter Hughes
Hughes received his BSc in Entomology and Chemistry from Rhodes University in South Africa. After a few years of selling pesticides he was appointed Technical Manager of Hall’s, at the time a highly diversified 25,000 hectare farming business in the SA Lowveld producing a wide range of crops including citrus, avocados, pecans, litchis, guavas, vegetables, tobacco, milk, beef, stud cattle and industrial and mining timber.
After completing his MBA at the University of Cape Town he moved into the commercial side of the business and finished his time with Halls as operations manager responsible for all production and marketing activities of company products.
In 1980, he was appointed General Manager of Swaziland Ranches, a sugar and citrus farming operation in the Swaziland Lowveld. He later became Managing Director of the group and Executive Director of Tongaat-Hulett Sugar when this company acquired the business. Under his leadership Swaziland Ranches grew to an operation farming 3,500 hectares of sugar cane and 550 hectares of citrus. Other crops included cotton, seed maize and dry beans. A subsidiary broiler business slaughtering 20,000 birds per day was established.
Swaziland Ranches is one of the leading companies in the world in employee and product safety. It has been a NOSA 5-Star company for more than ten consecutive years, and in 1997 became the first ISO 9002 certified farming business in the world.
In 2000, Hughes established his own business and is now actively consulting in agricultural and related fields. In addition, he serves on the boards of a number of companies.
Some of the positions he has filled during his career in agri-business are:
Chairman - S.A. Litchi Growers Association;
Chairman - S.A. Avocado Growers Association;
Director - S.A. Co-operative Citrus Exchange Ltd/Outspan International Ltd;
Director - Capespan Group Holdings Ltd; Chairman - Swaziland Cane Growers Association;
President - Swaziland Sugar Association-President;
Executive Member - World Association of Beet and Cane Growers;
Chairman - Swazi Chick Group