Meet Ivan Stigland, Tractor Driver

Ivan Stigland (right) with his mum and a co-worker.

Ivan has been working for the Spier Wine Farm for 16 years. In this article, he shares his experience.

Ivan is a tractor driver on one of South Africa’s oldest and most popular wine farms in Stellenbosch, Western Cape. Ivan gave us a sneak peek of the day-to-day life of a tractor driver, so we could learn more about his career in wine farming.

Ivan has been working as a tractor driver for Spier Wine Farm for 16 years. Ivan together with his mum, who also works on the farm, have together spent over 36 years working in the Spier vineyards. “Working on the farm is a great feeling – everyone cares for each other,” he says. Most mornings the Spier farmers gather together for some team building exercises. “The meetings get the team spirit going,” Ivan explains.

Tractor drivers, also known as agricultural equipment operators, are responsible for driving and controlling farm equipment to till the soil and to plant, cultivate and harvest crops. From time-to-time, their duties may also include cropping bale and/or bucking hay, as well as performing maintenance and repair duties on of the machinery they operate.

spier wine farm

Ivan says he loves the experience that comes with working on the farm. Growing up, Ivan’s father instilled a culture of learning – a lesson that he’s carried out with him throughout his adult years.  “I’m learning a lot of things,” he says. “In addition to the vineyards, we now have chickens, sheep and pigs, and I love learning about how these animals are farmed,” Ivan says.

Ivan says his proudest moment is having had the opportunity to work on the farm. “I’ve learnt so many things on the farm, including the courses I’ve done such as the one where I learnt about pruning. My next goal is to pass my Code 14 truck driver’s licence exam.”

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