Stories - 16-03-2020
Patensie Acht Boerdery
The business started 25 years ago by Herman and Mari Malan. Since then Herman and Mari's daughter, Hanna-Mari and her husband Christof moved back to the farm in 2009. The farm is situated in Patensie, Eastern Cape.
The Business
We mainly produce citrus and cucumbers on the farm. We have roughly 180 employees who work in the offices, pack house, fields and tunnels. We have our own pack house where we pack our own produce, also some of the pepper harvest in the area. We deliver to a wide range of chain stores in South Africa.
Problems and setbacks
The drought in the Eastern Cape is the worst is has been in 100 years. We do try to save water on the farm. We have a recycling system in some of our tunnels; we use the water that is recycled on other parts of the farm. We also struggles with diseases and pests on the plants, but together with partners, such as Rijk Zwaan, we work together to find the best solutions for the problems.
Growing
We will always be looking at an opportunity to grow our business. For now, we will be focussing on doing upgrades on the existing infrastructures, irrigation, and vents etcetera.