Factory a first for SA and Louis Trichardt

Date: 25 June 2015 By: Isabel Venter

With unemployment rates shockingly high in the rural parts of Venda, one local company is head and shoulders above others in addressing the situation.

EcoProducts is not only a Limpopo-based company, but also proudly based in Louis Trichardt. Last week, this local company opened its doors to its new, state-of-the-art factory here in the town’s industrial area.

EcoProducts has, since it started in 2006, led the way in the development and supply of baobab oil and baobab powder to the manufacture and retail sectors.

The idea to harvest baobabs originated with EcoProducts owner Dr Sarah Venter (PhD in Ecology), for whom the baobab has held a life-long fascination. She was driving through northern Venda in 2005 when she noticed that the fallen fruits were not harvested. Realizing that this nutrient-rich fruit could be used to generate an income for locals was how she decided to establish EcoProducts.

Within a few months, Sarah was working with 20 women from a little village called Madifha. Word quickly got around and, by the following year, she was working with 400 women.

Today she has more than a 1 000 women harvesting baobab fruits for EcoProducts and generating an income for themselves.

With the opening of her new factory last week, Sarah also celebrated her first shipment of baobab products to the United Kingdom. “Mine is still a small company, but I am proud to say that I employ just over 50 people on a permanent basis,” said Sarah.

Guests at the opening of the factory, which is the first of its kind in South Africa, was treated to a tour which showed off the production line. EcoProducts has developed expertise in wild-harvesting protocols, rural-community supply chains, track-and-trace systems and baobab-fruit-processing technology. It is also one of the first companies in the bio-trade sector in South Africa to gain organic status and to comply with national bio-prospecting legislation.

While going through the factory, which complies with a stringent set of health regulations, Sarah explained each stage of production to extract the powder and oil that contain high levels of Vitamin C, calcium, magnesium, potassium and dietary fibres. Nothing is wasted after the seeds have been extracted from their cracked pods. The powder is removed from the seeds and dried until it can be packaged and sold. This is a careful process, as EcoProducts prides itself on providing a pure white powder. Other companies situated outside of South Africa tend to grind up parts of the seeds with their powder, making it greyish. Sarah therefore decided not to strip her seeds of all their powder.

After this process, seeds are minced down, so that they can be fed through a cold press. This whole process gives about a 5% extraction of oil.

Surprisingly, the seed mulch is a highly sought-after product by cosmetic companies in America, who buy it from Sarah to extract the remaining nutrients and proteins for high-end cosmetic products. Some of the mulch also gets sold to local companies who produce animal feed from it. The empty pods also have a use. They are donated to local people who use them for fire fuel, which saves a few trees from ending up as firewood.

EcoProducts, says Sarah, will continue to strive to make a meaningful contribution to the livelihoods of rural people and to the conservation of baobab trees. 

For more information, phone Sarah at Tel 082 374 9534.

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Isabel Venter

Isabel joined the Zoutpansberger and Limpopo Mirror in 2009 as a reporter. She holds a BA Degree in Communication Sciences from the University of South Africa. Her beat is mainly crime and court reporting.

More photos... 

Guests at the new EcoProducts factory were treated to a tour of the factory. Leigh Bristow was one of the first to crack open a baobab pod.