Annual Protea Festival Goes Big with BIG Boxes
Big Box Containers sponsors refrigerated shipping containers to store over 30 000 flowers on show at the biggest ever, annual Protea Cullifest, on the weekend of 27 to 29 April.
Big Box Containers, a South African company that specialises in the sale and rental of shipping containers, is partnering with the event organisers of the annual Protea Cullifest to bring South Africans the biggest ever local Protea festival yet.
The annual festival is a landmark event in the community of Cullinan, just outside Pretoria. All profits are donated to charity. “This is the core focus of the Cullifest,” says event organiser, Jaco Meintjes.
The Cullifest makes for a great, family-oriented day out, at just R70 per ticket for adults. Along with gorgeous Proteas, attractions include plenty of food, a wine and beer tent, fairground rides for the kids, theatre performances and live music. Event-goers can look forward to big SA acts like Bobby van Jaarsveld, Steve Hofmeyr, Dewald Gouws, Jak de Priester, Elizma Theron, Fatman (of The Voice South Africa fame) and Josh Ansley.
This year’s festival will showcase more Protea species than any previous festival in the event’s 18-year history. “More than 30 000 Proteas will be on exhibition, as well as variants not found anywhere else in South Africa,” says Japie van Staden, owner of Doornkraal Proteas, the company donating all the flowers at the event.
“This year’s Cullifest will be huge, adds Meintjes. “Last year we had 12 500 people attending over the three days and this year we are expecting between 15 000 and 20 000.”
One of the logistical challenges facing event organisers is keeping 30 000 Proteas fresh and ready to be put on show. This is where local company, Big Box Containers, has stepped in.
“Reefers – which are refrigerated containers – are generally associated with the storage of frozen [or chilled] products. For the event, we’re donating several reefers to store the Proteas overnight at +16 Celsius,” says Willie Mouton, a director of Big Box Containers.
He adds that the Cullifest is a great way to showcase an interesting use of shipping containers. “Containers are mostly associated with construction, but this event shows how they can be used in other industries like agriculture,” says Mouton.
Although this is Big Box Containers’ first year as a sponsor of the Cullifest, the company is a regular sponsor of other events, such as the recently completed AfricanX Trailrun, and of a range of community-oriented projects.
It’s excellent to see a company like Big Box Containers involving itself in community and cultural initiatives, says Meintjes.
Proceeds from the event will be split between The HelpNet fund, which provides abused children with safe houses; and NG Kerk Premiermyn in Cullinan, which uses the money to support feeding programmes in the community.
Don’t miss this year’s Cullifest, which promises to be one of the best yet, on 27 to 29 April. The festival will be held at the NG Premiermyn, 12 Zonderwater Road, Cullinan. Gates open at 9h00 and close at 19h00.