De Zalze Golf Course in South Africa, managed by the Spier Group and co-owned by Spier (75%) and Kleine Zalze (25%), has been awarded Fair Trade in Tourism South Africa (FTTSA) certification. The certification follows that of…
De Zalze Golf Course in South Africa, managed by the Spier Group and co-owned by Spier (75%) and Kleine Zalze (25%), has been awarded Fair Trade in Tourism South Africa (FTTSA) certification. The certification follows that of the Spier Hotel which was the first luxury hotel in South Africa to be awarded FTTSA accreditation in 2004.
Jennifer Seif, executive director of FTTSA, said that while De Zalze is the first golf course to qualify for FTTSA certification, she is confident that this achievement would spark others in the golf sector to improve their operations across the triple bottom line of social, economic and environmental performance.
Seif added: It is often said that golf is elitist, bad for the environment, and a provider of poor quality casual jobs. De Zalze challenges these and other norms in the golf sector, through progressive human resource and supply chain development practices and through careful management of environmental resources on site.
The course is not an exclusive enclave, but is open to the public and acts as a drawcard for local as well as international tourists. Golf tourists are a significant source of business for guest houses, hotels, restaurants, museums and retail outlets throughout the Stellenbosch Winelands region, she said.
Tanner Methvin, director of sustainable development at Spier, said all of the Spier Group`s businesses – including De Zalze, Spier Wines, the Spier Hotel & Conference Centre and the leisure estate – are committed to embedding the ethos of sustainable development into business practice.
The Spier Group has built innovative models for how business and development can succeed in harmony with our ecology and society. We are building Spier into a profitable, internationally recognised brand that fosters cutting edge, sustainable ways of living, learning and being, said Methvin.
The De Zalze golf course was designed by Peter Matkovitch, well known for his `listen to the land` approach to designing environmentally-friendly golf courses. De Zalze has over the past four years consistently improved its position in the Golf Digest rankings, from 44th in 2002 to 23rd in 2006.
Dave Hansen, managing director of De Zalze Golf, is ecstatic that the course has achieved a first in terms of responsible tourism guidelines.
That we have received third party recognition for our efforts is an honour for De Zalze. We have always worked within the construct of social equity and environmental conservation in our approach to business, Hansen said.
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