In 2016 Tiger Brands celebrates 120 years of existence. The origins of the company are revealed in a highly significant yet neglected brick and stone complex of multi-storey industrial buildings in Moorreesburg in the Western Cape. In August 1998, Laura Robinson, then working for the old National Monuments Council (NMC), wrote the following:
The National Monuments Council is most interested in the building complex as a whole, both the corrugated iron structure, as well as the permanent brick and stone building, and the chimney across the road. In our opinion the complex is as significant as some of the (few) remaining industrial buildings in Cape Town, and I refer particularly to the Old Castle Brewery in Woodstock and the historical buildings in the Breweries Complex in Newlands, which has been successfully restored by the well know architect, G Fagan, and is now a historical monument. Buildings of this type are becoming increasingly rare in this country and a fine example such as this is worthy of preservation. In many European countries as well as the United Kingdom and America, industrial buildings are highly valued and are re-used in a number of creative and exciting ways; these have proved to be an extremely valuable asset to local tourism.
The NMC would certainly not be prepared to consider approving the demolition of the Old Tiger Oats buildings in Moorreesburg and would suggest that the potential for creative re-use and restoration/renovation of the complex be explored.
Unfortunately, since that period, the complex has gone through a marked deterioration, with...
