Kiepersol Battles an Industry-Wide Skills Shortage

Online, August 17, 2010 (Newswire.com) - (Norwich, UK)-In an exclusive interview with Food & Drink Digital, Rynders Marais, Managing Director of Kiepersol Poultry (Pty) Ltd explains how his company is combating the skill-shortage and increasing the company's efficiency.

Kiepersol has been run by three generations of family, building itself a solid reputation in the industry. What started off as a small family farm has seen vast growth, with Kiepersol currently enjoying a production capacity of 360,000 commercial laying hens, and 60,000 free range laying hens.

However, as the company grows it needs a skilled staff to keep it turning over- something that's in short supply. Marais explains: "The lack of education in our industry is due to the level of education of most of the employees. The majority of employees are illiterate and most of the courses are presented in English, and you have to be able to read and write."

Kiepersol has done everything it can to combat the skill shortage. "We implement in-house job specific training based on our standard operating procedures and validate the efficiency through verbal questionnaires," Marais says. "We have recently started to implement this system and make use of translators where necessary."

It's an effective system appreciated by the staff. Kiepersol boasts a low staff turnover which Marais credits to the company's excellent human relations and mutual loyalty between staff and company.

Read the full report here: http://www.foodanddrinkdigital.com/company-reports/kiepersol-poultry-farm-pty-ltd

About Kiepersol Poultry (Pty) Ltd
The Kiepersol Group places high emphasis on Family values and Hard work. It prides itself on business ethics and Kiepersol was an early signatory to the South African Poultry Association code of conduct for poultry and egg production.