The Estina dairy farm scandal is one of the clearest examples of how the Gupta state capture network operated at provincial level, with the Free State under Premier Ace Magashule serving as a testing ground for the industrial-scale looting that would follow nationally.
THE SCHEME. In 2012-2013, the Free State Department of Agriculture, under MEC Mosebenzi Zwane, entered into an agreement with Estina (Pty) Ltd for a dairy farm project in Vrede, Free State. The project was presented as a partnership between the provincial government and Paras Dairy, an Indian company, to establish a state-of-the-art dairy farm that would benefit local emerging black farmers — a compelling narrative of transformation and agricultural development.
The reality was starkly different. Estina was a shell company with a share capital of just R100 — it had no dairy farming expertise, no assets, and no operational capacity. It was linked to the Gupta family through associate Ashok Narayan. The company was simply a conduit for transferring public money to the Gupta network.
THE MONEY FLOWS. Of the R220 million paid by the Free State government to Estina, approximately R84 million was wired to bank accounts in the United Arab Emirates linked to Gupta-controlled entities, including accounts at the Bank of Baroda. These funds were partly used to finance the Gupta family's extravagant 2013 wedding at Sun City — the same event that involved the notorious landing of a chartered aircraft at Waterkloof Air Force Base in April 2013, a separate scandal that demonstrated the Guptas' ability to commandeer state resources for private purposes.
THE DAIRY FARM. The farm itself was a catastrophic failure — because it was never intended to succeed. Minimal farming activity occurred, equipment that was purchased was left to deteriorate, and the intended black beneficiaries — the emerging farmers who were supposed to benefit from this "transformation" project — received nothing. Their names and aspirations were used to justify the looting while they got nothing in return.
THE ENABLERS. MEC Mosebenzi Zwane was the key provincial enabler, championing the partnership with the Gupta-linked entity and ensuring departmental cooperation. His reward came later: in 2015, President Zuma appointed him as Minister of Mineral Resources, where he attempted to facilitate the Gupta purchase of Optimum Coal Mine from Glencore — connecting the Free State provincial corruption directly to the national state capture network.
Premier Ace Magashule, as head of the Free State Provincial Government for nearly a decade (2009-2018), presided over a province that became synonymous with corruption. Beyond the Estina dairy farm, the Free State Department of Human Settlements awarded a R255 million contract for an asbestos roof audit that was never meaningfully conducted — the work was not done, yet the full amount was paid.
THE ZONDO COMMISSION. The Zondo Commission (Part 4) dealt extensively with the Estina dairy farm, finding it was a corrupt scheme designed to loot public funds for the benefit of the Gupta network. The Commission traced the financial flows from the Free State Treasury through Estina to Gupta-controlled accounts in the UAE, establishing the money trail with forensic precision.