Stephan & Seun, near Piketberg in the Western Cape, showcases modern agriculture in difficult times. They leverage technology, particularly Agrico’s irrigation solutions, for business success. The company was founded in the 1960s, when the Stephan family planted their first potatoes in the Piketberg sand. Mainly Mondial, as well as Lanorma and Siffra potatoes are cultivated on this land.
“We produce potatoes 12 months of the year. This means that at any given month, every production phase will take place, from harvesting to planting to packing and marketing. There is always something going on,” says Stephan.
The farm’s water is pumped from boreholes into dams and then onto 32 Agrico centre pivots. Once here, a new challenge awaits. The notoriously corrosive water of the Sandveld can be extremely damaging to an irrigation system. Therefore, they placed PVC pipes on top of the galvanised pipes of the centre pivots. That way the water does not run through the structure itself, and the system is protected. All the centre pivots and pumps on their farms are equipped with Agrico Web Control and VSDs (variable speed drives). The system varies the pressure according to the exact need at any given time and leads to great power savings, especially where there are height differences in the topography.
Source: foodformzansi.co.za