Farming with friends: Marman's companion planting philosophy

Angelo Marman is a farmer with big dreams for himself and his community. He knows, however, that these dreams will only bear fruit with the help of the right companions, both in his vegetable beds and in his business ventures.

- Glenneis Kriel reports.

As a child, Angelo Marman loved tending to his family’s vegetable garden, enriching the soil with compost made from donkey manure. After matriculating, he pursued a diploma in agriculture at the Cape Peninsula University of Technology and later joined the Perishable Products Export Control Board.

While he enjoys his role at the board, he longed for the hands-on application of what he had studied. That desire led him to farm tilapia and vegetables on a small, rented plot in Abbotsdale near Malmesbury in the Swartland.

He named the venture Vyf Vissies en ‘n Blaartjie – Afrikaans for ‘five fish and a leaf’ -a nod to the biblical story of the multiplication of loaves and fish. The offspring from his original five tilapia brought in R25 000, which funded further expansion. Before long, Marman was using his setup to train aspiring farmers in aquaponics and vegetable production.

FROM FIVE FISH TO A THRIVING BUSINESS

Just over a year ago, Marman achieved a major milestone: purchasing his own 8ha farm near Chatsworth, about 20km away.

He has secured several markets for his produce, supplying companies such as Metro Organics, Real Fresh, and an organic dog food brand.

To meet demand, he has partnered with other small-scale and commercial producers in the region, coordinating logistics for their collective supply. To reduce the cost of third-party organic certification, Marman belongs to the Swartland Participatory Guarantee System (PGS), where different organic producers from the region check up on one another.