Karabo Beracah Farming Project Reaps Rewards for Community Members

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Karabo Beracah is one of the community projects entrepreneurial student organisation, Enactus UKZN, is involved in geared at making a difference in the lives of others.

Project Karabo Beracah was started by a family farming spinach, tomatoes, beetroot, onion, cabbage, carrots, pumpkin and dry beans on a hectare of land in Emxhakeni near Newcastle. Now it is a 12-member co-operative farming a 20ha piece of land, the use of which was secured from the local chief, iNkosi Khumalo.

Initially a family business, the farm floundered after financial difficulties and the death of the founder. That’s when Enactus UKZN got involved, converting the direct beneficiary, Ms Nokuthula Matubaba (aka ‘mam Thuli’), into an industrialist by adding the concept of agri-processing which has taken the project to another level.

The project addresses food security and health by promoting a healthy lifestyle and has created employment opportunities for community members through the use of agents who sell the products to the local community in and around Newcastle. Melon jam, Moringa porridge and vegetable juice are some of the products produced.

The co-operative is headed up by mam Thuli and her daughter, Ms Noluthando Mazibuko. ‘Mam Thuli and the Karabo Beracah co-op now plant their crops, manufacture and process a range of products, brand them and then send the final products to the market,’ said Enactus UKZN Project Manager, Ms Nolwazi Qumbisa, a Masters student in the Housing programme.

‘With this concept, mam Thuli has moved away from being a farmer to being an industrialist,’ said Qumbisa.

‘Melon jam is a health product which is good for diabetics as melons reduce diabetes and because the jam is made with treacle sugar rather than normal everyday sugar.’

The porridge, Moringa Meal, is a cereal made from yellow maize and Moringa tree powder. ‘The Moringa tree has many nutrients and anti-oxidants, making this product another health product produced by the co-operative,’ said Qumbisa.  It is available at Health Box at Westwood Mall.

The co-operative makes a range of vegetable juices, each with their own health properties, including beetroot, cucumber, sweet potato, pumpkin and lemon.

Karabo Beracah was named after the beneficiaries of the project, a co-operative which operates under the slogan; By Courage and Faith. It is one of the projects which helped Enactus UKZN emerge winners at the national Enactus championships earlier this year.

Raylene Captain-Hasthibeer