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Mngazana Mangroves And Bee Farming

Posted on: September 15, 2015, in DID YOU KNOW

Did You Know?
Mangroves play an important role in nutrient cycling, nutrient export, sediment trapping and coastal protection, and act as breeding and nursery grounds for marine and estuarine organisms. The best honey is considered to be that produced by bees feeding in mangroves, particularly the river mangrove. Hence, the Ackerman Pick n Pay Foundation funded the Cwebeni Village Bee Farming with a food safe honey bottling plant as well as ongoing training in Food Safety management systems and financial management.
Pick n Pay seeks to enhance the economic sustainability of the project through providing access to market. Mngazana Mangroves that are heavily relied upon by the local rural households for building material, and to a lesser extent, for firewood to meet household energy needs. The two main project activities involved developing a management system to encourage sustainable use and management of the Mangroves, and secondly, to investigate alternative economic opportunities to reduce dependency on the Mangroves and create incentives for management.
The honey will soon be available at selected Pick n Pay stores as well as at the Umngazi deli. The project started with 39 hives and has currently grown to 450 hives.

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