Libode-based Greenvines Agricultural Primary Co-operative co-founder and chief executive, Neziswa Mlenzana, has described the support they received from the Nyandeni Local Municipality as a timely intervention that will prolong their production cycle and increase their production.
Mlenzana was speaking after her co-operative received fencing materials for two hectares, as well as wheelbarrows, spades, and other farming tools from the municipality, through its special programmes unit (SPU), on September 13.
Greenvines Agricultural Primary Co-operative is based in Mhlabeni Village and is made up of five youth members, four females and a male.
The co-operative produces and sells organic vegetables using permaculture farming systems which protect the environment against climate stressors.
“The intervention by the Nyandeni Municipality will enable us to increase our production output of vegetables and further prolong our production cycle to eight months a year. It will also create at least three permanent jobs because of increased production and prolonged production cycle,” said Mlenzana.
The donation was officially presented to the co-operative by SPU portfolio head, Councillor Zamekile Nondlevu.
“To ensure sustainability of our farming model, we also farm worms, known as vermiculture, producing worm compost and worm tea. This acts as an alternative to the largely-used synthetic fertilisers,” added Mlenzana.
She added that their employees undergo in-house training on permaculture and vermitechnology, so that they can duplicate what they do at work in their home gardens.
The municipality further handed over an industrial overlocker sewing machine, an industrial machine, and a three-door wardrobe to another youth owned sewing co-operative in Misty Mount, Libode, on the same day.
The South African Youth Council, through its Nyandeni branch, submitted a list of youth projects that are active with visible products for the Nyandeni Local Municipality to support.
The municipality said that its special programmes unit standing committee, and the SA Youth Council, visited all projects to check project existence, project functionality, project members, types of inputs received, to offer support and deal with project challenges.
