Bon Esperance is situated in the Stelllenbosch district of the Cape Winelands. The Cape Winelands receives about 650mm of rainfall per annum; enjoys a Mediterranean climate of cold wet winters, alternated with long hot, dry summers, and both farms are ideally suited for the production of stone fruit.

Petru du Plessis is the leading force of Bon Esperance. While family owned, he personally manages the farm, ably assisted by a strong team of equally motivated production managers. Petru, who has a Masters degree in Horticulture, strongly believes in balancing respect for nature with the profitability of orchards.

Petru and his team focus and are passionate on the production of stone fruit, especially plums. The Vision of Paardezicht and Bon Esperance regarding the production of fruit is as follows:

• interference with nature should be kept to a minimum, but we are well equipped to step in where necessary to ensure top quality fruit to our customers

• to produce top quality stone fruit varieties which are well adapted to our local climate

• producing large sized fruit, resulting in above average cartons per hectare

• to produce fruit with a superior taste and excellent storability.

• operating with a team of above average people, who share our vision and passion

• paying above average remuneration and adhering to ethical employment practices. We are proud members of Sedex, GlobalGAP and BRC at pack house level.

• aiming to raise the bar regarding orchard efficiency, productivity and eating experience.

With the minimum interference and biological approach, we see grysbok, duikers, porcupine, blue crane birds, the famous African Fish Eagle, guinea fowls and lots of other indigenous wild animals on the farms. Using environmentally friendly production methods, soil erosion is prevented, chemical interference is limited and irrigation is managed efficiently by using computerized irrigation control. All employees live on the farms, using solar geysers to be more energy efficient. Petru travels to source new and exciting varieties from all over the world. He tests, evaluates and commercially plants some of the best genetics available.

In short: we are a cutting-edge, modern-day agricultural business, using best practices, genetics and people to produce world class fruit. We are constantly learning new techniques, are passionate of what we do and pay a lot of attention to detail.