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UFS partners with ZZ2 and launches NovaLogix

22 January 2024 | Story Leonie Bolleurs | Photo Born2shoot

Dr Tommie van Zyl, Prof Philippe Burger and Prof Francis Petersen — At the launch of NovaLogix, a company co-owned by the UFS and ZZ2, were, from the left, Dr Tommie van Zyl, CEO of the ZZ2 Group, and Prof Philippe Burger, Dean of the Faculty of Economic and Management Sciences, and Prof Francis Petersen, Vice-Chancellor and Principal.

The University of the Free State (UFS) recently (17 January 2024) launched NovaLogix in collaboration with ZZ2, a well-known South African fresh produce company.

This new company, co-owned by the university and ZZ2, aims to develop and produce a probiotic used in the production of fresh produce to enhance plant health and growth. Projects include a focus on improved production techniques, product registration, commercialisation, and improved recipes.

Members of the university’s management structures were present at the formal launch of NovaLogix – which took place on the UFS Bloemfontein Campus – including the Vice-Chancellor and Principal, Prof Francis Petersen; the Deputy Vice-Chancellor: Research and Internationalisation, Prof Vasu Reddy; and the Senior Director of the Directorate Research Development, Dr Glen Taylor. The deans of the two faculties that will be mainly involved in this partnership were also present, namely Prof Paul Oberholster, the Dean of the Faculty of Natural and Agricultural Sciences, and Prof Philippe Burger, the Dean of the Faculty of Economic and Management Sciences.

Among the attendees representing ZZ2 were Dr Tommie van Zyl, the Chief Executive Officer of the ZZ2 Group, Piet Prinsloo, Executive Manager at ZZ2, as well as Wiam Haddad, the new CEO of NovaLogix.

Co-creation and more sustainable outcomes

In his welcoming remarks, Prof Petersen stated that this event marks the culmination of a five-year journey that began in 2019 when he, Prof Burger, and Prof Danie Vermeulen, former Dean of the Faculty of Natural and Agricultural Sciences, first visited ZZ2 to initiate closer collaboration and cooperation.

He is of the opinion that the relationship with ZZ2 is ideally suited to assist the university in realising the core values of Vision 130, the university’s strategic intent to reposition the institution as one of the leading universities in South Africa by 2034.

The knowledge, experience, and expertise that ZZ2 brings to the partnership, complement the exciting and impactful research done by the university’s academics across a range of disciplines. - Prof Francis Petersen

Prof Petersen said that the UFS values partnerships with the private sector, and he considers ZZ2 to be a knowledge partner with co-creation as a key component in this collaboration.

“Working together on a challenge makes the solution more sustainable. I believe that innovation and this co-creation approach will generate outcomes that transform the agricultural sector and impart knowledge to the next generation,” he stated.

“The knowledge, experience, and expertise that ZZ2 brings to the partnership complement the exciting and impactful research conducted by the university’s academics across a range of disciplines. I am looking forward to a partnership that will grow from strength to strength,” concluded Prof Petersen.

Breakthrough developments in the pipeline

According to Dr Van Zyl, ZZ2 would like to continue building a future with the university based on a symbiotic relationship. “We want to ensure that our strengths as an organisation are put to good use,” he said, expressing a strong conviction that there will be breakthrough developments with this initiative.

This work will align with ZZ2’s ‘Work with nature’ journey that began more than two decades ago, steering away from conventional, industrial agriculture towards a system that aims to farm in harmony with nature. “It is important that we nurture nature while using her resources,” he said.

He is excited to work with the university, exploring improved techniques and technologies to find more effective ways towards a sustainable future. “Knowledge partners are important in this journey,” he stated.

Building on existing collaborations

In September 2022, the university entered into a collaboration agreement with ZZ2. The partnership between the two entities included the establishment of FreeFarm Innovation, a company that in turn has a holding in NovaLogix and is designed to leverage the strengths, capabilities, skills, and resources of both parties. Part of the operations of FreeFarm Innovation included opportunities for research, commercialisation, and the enhancement of agricultural products. This has come into effect in projects on, for example, business operations, agricultural sustainability, and innovative approaches to growing fruit and vegetables, to name but a few.

News Archive

University publishes its Integrated Report

2013-08-23

23 August 2013

The university is proud to have published an integrated report in line with the King III requirements on corporate governance. The university is one of the first universities – if not the first – in South Africa to do so. The UFS sees integrated reporting as a public process through which we report to all our stakeholders, using evidence-based data, on the achievements and challenges of a public university.

Our first Integrated Report reviews the overall performance, non-financial and financial, of the UFS for the 2012 academic year. It is the first report of its kind delivered to stakeholders and guided by the King III framework which recommends integrated, sustainable performance that is reported in a way that enables stakeholders to make an informed assessment of an institution.

The Integrated Report notes that the conditions under which higher education institutions operate have become more demanding in the last two decades and there is a growing need for universities to be more explicit and transparent about the manner in which their core functions (teaching, research and public duty), as well as its administrative operations, are defined by and support good governance, sustainability and corporate citizenship.

The university welcomes this opportunity to present in public an integrated account of itself. In particular, the UFS sees this report as an opportunity to align more strongly its financial and non-financial reporting in pursuit of organisational sustainability and social transformation in South Africa.

Prof Jonathan Jansen, Vice-Chancellor and Rector, notes in the report that in the past four years the university has made significant progress in respect of its two foundational commitments, the Academic Project and the Human Project.

There are now more students entering the university who satisfy the higher requirements set for admission. “This will improve the throughput and graduation rates of incoming students, ensuring their personal success and satisfaction with higher education.” The establishment of a state-of-the-art Postgraduate School, for example, is expected to increase the number, quality and success rates of postgraduate students.

The research output has increased steadily and the contribution of the new Senior Professors project, as well as the five research clusters, have helped to improve the quality of research and the spread of postgraduate recruitment beyond South Africa.

On transformation, the Vice-Chancellor observes that “We have made significant progress in building inclusive, democratic and embracing campus cultures which affirm the value and dignity of all students and staff. With the steady increase of black students in a majority black campus, our goal remains to retain our diversity in a university that serves as an experiment in teaching students to live and learn and love together.”

Financial sustainability is a major commitment and the UFS has not only maintained its record of unqualified audits, but has steadily built a culture of risk management and performance evaluation throughout the system. Internal auditing is a strong instrument in our arsenal to secure financial and operational compliance in every department of the university.

“What integrates the systems and functions of the university is the alignment of everything we do with our two pillars, the Academic and Human Projects, built on a solid foundation of professional support services as described in the Strategic Plan adopted in 2012. In the process of preparing the Integrated Report we discovered how much still needs to be done to align the still disparate and independent activities of the three campuses, seven faculties and more than 100 departments of this large university,” according to the Vice-Chancellor.

The report is available at: http://www.ufs.ac.za/content.aspx?id=184.

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