A strong commitment for Forest Fruits in Zambia

[chapeau] Despite the health situation and the temporary suspension of field trips, SIDI is continuing its activities and, at the end of the year, opened a new partnership in Zambia with a company that processes and markets honey products. For SIDI, this is both an opening to a new country of intervention, and a major first in terms of support for the beekeeping sector.[/chapeau]

Since 1998, Forest Fruits has been collecting, processing and marketing beekeeping products for local and international markets. It buys raw honey produced by certified organic (Ecocert) Zambian beekeepers at a remunerative price, and processes it at its Mwinilunga factory. The social enterprise then transports the production to its packaging plant in Lusaka, where the finished product is exported to the sub-region (Zambia, Botswana and South Africa) and abroad. In addition to marketing forest honey for direct consumption, Forest Fruits is developing several types of processed honey-based products (beeswax flakes, candles, honey mustard, etc.). In recent years, thanks to technical support from FEFISOL[1], the company has developed the production of honey vinegar by fermenting lower-quality honey.

Most of the company’s business and its supplier beekeepers are located around the Mwinilunga district. In this isolated region with little economic dynamism, beekeeping is traditionally practiced and represents a considerable source of income for families. Thanks to Forest Fruits, producers benefit from higher remuneration and training to improve the quality of their honey and diversify their agricultural production (trials underway for tea tree production, for example). To develop the region, the company, which currently employs 63 people, also favors local recruitment, and training to enable its employees to upgrade their skills.

Forest Fruits’ business is directly linked to the bees’ honey production periods. Harvesting is spread over two periods of the year, depending on the flowering cycle of the Zambian forests in which the honey is harvested. In such periods, the company needs working capital to enable it to pay producers in cash. FEFISOL has been funding Forest Fruits campaigns since 2014, but this year the fund, which is in transition, was unable to commit to funding for 2021. SIDI has therefore decided to step in and support the next honey campaign by granting a line of credit of $750,000 over 12 months. This loan, backed by several regional and international buyers, will enable the company to purchase 600 tonnes of raw honey at a remunerative price for beekeepers as soon as the harvest is complete.

Despite the current context, SIDI continues to innovate by opening this partnership with Forest Fruits, to contribute to the economic, social and environmental development of a remote region of Zambia.

To find out more about the Forest Fruits social enterprise: https: //www.zambezigold.com/

[1 ] European Solidarity Fund for Africa, managed by SIDI.

NUTRI’ZAZA: a company committed to fighting malnutrition

[chapeau]In a country where child malnutrition still affects one in two infants, Nutri’zaza offers a sustainable way of combating this scourge by marketing a local, effective product that is accessible to all. [/chapeau]

In Madagascar, food security is still very fragile. Children are particularly at risk: it is estimated that one in two children under 5 suffers from chronic malnutrition (ESD, 2008-2009). Less visible than acute malnutrition, which is characteristic of food crises, chronic malnutrition nevertheless delays children’s development and weakens their health. The after-effects are irreversible after the age of two, and chronic malnutrition is one of the main causes of mortality in young children. This is due to the inadequate quality of young children’s diets (breastfeeding practices and diets that do not cover essential needs, poor-quality complementary foods).

It was to address this problem in a sustainable way that the social enterprise Nutri’zaza was created in 2013. Following on from the “Nutrimad” project launched ten years earlier by GRET, Nutri’zaza distributes a complementary food, Koba Aina, to underprivileged populations via a network of baby restaurants (hotelin-jazakely) and a home sales network. [blockquote noquote=”1″ float=”right”] By becoming a founding shareholder of Nutri’zaza, and an active shareholder on the Board of Directors, SIDI is helping to support the company’s development and give it the means to experiment with different models in order to perpetuate a service that plays a key role in reducing chronic malnutrition in Madagascar. [/blockquote] This highly nutritious infant flour provides the elements needed for infant growth when breastfeeding is no longer sufficient (from 6 months) and traditional household meals are not yet sufficient. Koba Aina is produced and packaged from Madagascan raw materials and based on a nutritional formula developed by GRET. The product complies with the strictest international quality standards, both in terms of nutrition and health. This product offers the best value for money on the market, so that we can reach the most vulnerable households. Nutri’zaza also provides families with a place to check their children’s health, with regular weighing and monitoring of undernutrition. To reinforce its impact on the most disadvantaged populations, Nutri’zaza has also developed long-term partnerships with local associations, regularly supplying them with Koba Aina at highly preferential prices.

In order to guarantee the equilibrium of its economic model, Nutri’zaza is banking on the transformation of Koba Aina into a mass consumption product, intended for and accessible to as many people as possible, notably through the traditional distribution network (supermarkets, local grocery stores, etc.).