Family Sweep
11 May 2023
Farming is entrepreneurship. Father Gilbert and son Dries are entrepreneurs at heart. The farm has been around since 1750 and was taken over by the Sweep family in 1922. It started off with 6 cows and 10 hectares of land and has grown to approx. 100 cows and 64 hectares of land.
Nowadays, it is son Dries who focuses on the dairy cattle and his parents Gilbert and Loes who mainly run the wine and asparagus farm. When you hear the name Sweep, you immediately think of the Santspuy, now a household name in West Brabant. The fresh high-quality products are for sale in our own farm store, but can also be regularly found in the (regional) hospitality sector.
Family business
You needn’t doubt that farming has been something that Dries has understood from an early age. He is responsible for the dairy cattle at the company. Dries takes care of about 100 cows. “Working with our cattle every day is the best thing there is,” according to Dries. He started farming at the age of 14 and joined the partnership after graduating from his studies. Having so much responsibility within the company at such a young age does show that he is a true entrepreneur. Work 90 hours, 7 days a week? No problem at all!
Dries is currently busy making the company more sustainable. Stimulating milk production as sustainably as possible is what has preoccupied him for years. With the Biga Topliner feed mixer truck as a good example. Purchased after 15 years of working with a single-auger Biga 10m³ from the Peeters Group (without any problems).
The Topliner is the latest concept from Peecon
“This truck mixes really well,” says Dries. “Our cows are very picky. A homogeneous mixture result is therefore extremely important. The Topliner is perfect for this! The truck is towed effortlessly along and uses relatively less fuel. I also save half of my time because I can mix everything in one go! Our milk production has also increased by 10% from 9,000 litres to 10,000 litres.”
A satisfied client, an entrepreneur with an eye on the future, that is the Sweep Partnership!
