While I was on my way to the Limpopo Province near the Kruger National Parc to visit fruit and nut farms I came upon a number of what they call "High Accident Zones" and "Hijack Spots".
So I slowed down at the first and speed up at the second. Bad driving and hijacking seem to be national problem in South Africa. Well, without accidents or hijacks I arrived at the first macadamia processing unit I wanted to visit. The macadamia is a very valuable nut that grows well here and until now we have not bought our macadamias from this part of the world. Apart from macadamias, South Africa grows pecans and raisins: also of interest to us. Samples of the macadamias have been sent for testing soon. And then we hope to be in business!
Sorting macadamias
Second stop is at the Timbali Technology Incubator. That sounds like a breeding project, but it’s actually a structured program we’re starting, to help farmers gain experience in growing flowers and vegetables, and also in marketing them. During the long years of apartheid entrepreneurship was extremely difficult - to say the least - for the non-white working population. I believe that this is one of the more professional approaches to give back what has been lost. First of all, we want to help Timbali entrepreneurs to learn how to be successful in their local market. That’s already a large step there; to launch straight in to the export marketplace would be too large a leap. I gave them contacts at development organizations, and at Woolworths and Pick 'n Pay: the local supermarkets. And I accepted an invitation to come back and give a presentation to their clients - the farmers - to give them an overview of what export is all about.
The end of the day brings us rain, rain and more rain. Wow. As they say here: "Farmers love rain, as long as they can decide how much." I’ve decided this is too much. A dam in the neighborhood is flowing over.