The farm is beautifully nestled among rolling hills in the KwaZulu-Natal province in South Africa near the village of Paulpietersberg. It comprises 200 hectares, 42 of which are planted with citrus and pumpkin. The farm started in 1937 as a timber farm, which was very common in the area.

When we took over the farm, we explored other crops, as it became increasingly difficult to sustain a family off of a small timber farm. We decided on a combination of citrus farming and cattle ranching. In addition, we also keep a small flock of chicken for sales on the local market. We run the operation as a family farm and provide employment to other families, who also live on the property.

The combination of cattle ranching and farming has turned out to be a good one as It provides an excellent basis for going organic. The fact that we have chosen a rare Brazilian Brahman breed makes us well known in the area. Brahman cattle are distinctly looking with a large hump on their backs and long drooping ears. Like other livestock, they provide plenty of manure, which is a vital ingredient in our compost.

In 2003 we invested in a new irrigation system to replace flood irrigation. In addition the property contains a storage and processing facility that has recently been expanded to allow packing of fruit into refrigerated containers for direct transport to the port of Durban. This significant investment will help maintain constant temperatures and reduce damage in handling and transit, thus ensuring top condition of the fruit when it arrives in Europe.

Interview

N&M: Why did you decide to change to organic farming?
Annemarie: I had been aware of the health risks of farm chemicals for quite some time, but could not imagine that farming without chemicals was possible, let alone financially viable. When I heard about an organic farmer in Durban, who claimed to sell organic fruit with some blemishes at a higher price than I could sell my perfectly looking oranges, I wanted to know more. On the one hand you could say that I was motivated by the higher price – that is true. But what ultimately convinced me to convert to organic farming was the health issue. Both on behalf of our workers and the consumers. Before I made the change I had read a lot about agricultural chemicals that can potentially accumulate in the human body and cause health problems.

N&M: Are you glad that you made the change to organic?
Annemarie: Yes, of course. But that does not mean that the change was easy. We have had plenty of doubts along the way, and even now, when we try a new crop such as pumpkin, we face new challenges. It is a continuous process. However, we are lucky. When it comes to the farm as an operation, we all work well together – our skills compliment each other well. And we also have some good workers, who see the benefits of organics.

N&M: Is there still room for improvement in your agricultural practices?
Annemarie: Always. If I said that we know it all, I would be lying.

N&M: So how do you increase your knowledge or improve your skills? Do you attend seminars or courses?
Annemarie: We would like to. But unfortunately there is little on offer here locally. However, last year my son Dominique went to Durban for training on making proper compost. When he came back, he was excited  to put his knowledge to work with a new way of making compost here on the farm. However, we are still in the process of finishing the new packing facility, so the compost project will have to wait until the end of the season.

N&M: It seems that you are always busy?

Annemarie: You know the old saying: “A woman’s work is never done“, well, that is true of a farmer’s work, too. We simply had to set priorities. One of our buyers in Europe would have liked us to start with the compost operation first, but we considered it more important to improve the quality of the product we ship, by building a better packing facility, which includes cold storage.

N&M: If you had to make the decision to farm organically with all the knowledge you have today, would you make the same decision today?

Annemarie: Yes, there is no other way to farm today. Since we have switched to organic production we have met so many wonderful people whom we would otherwise not have known. Our organic farming family in South Africa is growing by the day.
We have just ordered a compost turner, testing equipment, a compost tea machine and row covers for the compost.
One of our European customers has kindly assisted us to buy this equipment by providing us with the money in return for our crop. We intend to improve our orchards, until we have an 80 to 90% packout. This year we achieved 70%, which is 10% better than last season!