The Netafim and De Rustica Story – the best drip for the best olive oil.

A journey to world-class olive oil - from dripper to bottle.

Dawie Durand, General Manager of De Rustica Olive Estate, says their journey with Netafim started in 2005. They planted their first olive orchards and knew they had to put in the right irrigation equipment from the start. Netafim Ram drippers, the current UniRam™ dripper’s predecessor, were installed and still work in these orchards to this day.

“Drip irrigation is simply the most efficient method of irrigation for our region and conditions. Evaporation is much lower compared to other methods and it requires much less labour,” says Dawie. “We have no doubt that drip is king.”

According to Kallie Frey, Olive Production Manager at De Rustica Olive Estate, drip does not only allow them to have total control over water and nutrient delivery for optimal production, but the money it saves them in labour costs is so significant that it pays off the cost of the drip irrigation equipment.

“In the Klein Karoo and in olive production, we can’t mess around with our irrigation regime, we must ensure that every tree gets enough water, especially from September to middle November during fruit set. Even if we have limited water, we try to manage the available water in such a manner that we can give enough water without stopping irrigation before the winter rains start.”

Kallie says that they evaluate soil moisture weekly by feel and appearance. “We rank the soil on a scale from one to five, where one is extremely dry and five is mud. Our goal is to keep the soil between three and four throughout the season. The control made possible by drip irrigation allows us to adapt our irrigation according to what we see in the orchard and to refrain from over or under irrigating.”

Optimal olive production, says Chris Malan, Agronomist at Netafim SA, is about ensuring that the right nutrition and the right amount of water is delivered to the tree at the right time. “A large part of olive tree production success lies in proper irrigation and nutrition management. I believe that the De Rustica team has got this down. Their irrigation and nutrition management has been refined over years and has its roots in sound agronomic and irrigation principles. This is a massive part of the success they are now seeing.”

A working relationship

Chris says that the Netafim team and Irrikor, the relevant Netafim dealer, have been very closely involved in ensuring success in these orchards. “Since day one we have been involved in doing soil analysis, looking at planting processes, designing the irrigation system and, after planting, looking at important factors such as root development, probe interpretations and the scheduling regime.”

One of the highlights in the nearly 20 years of the Netafim and De Rustica journey, was a tour to Israel and Italy where the De Rustica team had the opportunity to experience olive oil production in these regions. This was a one-of-kind opportunity for Netafim to enable De Rustica with access to expertise from around the world.

According to Kallie, the value of working with Netafim goes beyond their quality driplines. “It has been a privilege to build a relationship with the Netafim team. We know the team well, and team members such as the agronomist, Chris Malan, has played a pivotal role in our success with drip irrigation. We also worked with Chris to do a subsurface drip irrigation trial on the farm and the results from this trial once again proved to us that drip is the most efficient method.” Further, he says, there is value in the fact that Netafim can supply quality irrigation equipment beyond driplines. “We have had Netafim filters installed since 2006, and they are still doing a splendid job.”

A well-oiled team

When asked about the high-ranking achievements, Dawie says it is all about teamwork. “We are a team, we work together, understand each other, and believe in each other. Awards like the EVOOLEUM World's TOP 100 is a wonderful reminder of how well-oiled our team truly is.” Kallie agrees and says that even the best irrigation system and production plan can only have a true impact if it is well-managed and the team in charge works with a passion for what they do.”

Dawie reminds that it is often about finding a solution to any challenge. “Both in the agricultural and the South African contexts, challenges are abundant. The challenges we face can however never be used as an excuse. That is why it is so important for us to function so well as a team. If we put our heads together, we will find a solution.”

Chris concludes that it is an honour for Netafim South Africa to have such a long-standing relationship with De Rustica, a world-class olive oil producer. “It is inspiring to see the impact that knowledge and quality products can have in the field if it is applied with discernment by a team that strives for excellence.”