Local farmers are said to contribute to the growth of the country’s economy through modern skills and knowledge on farming.
The sentiments were said by Managing Director of Naturals Limited, Towera Jalakasi, when a team from the International Labour Organisation (ILO) visited her premises on Wednesday to appreciate the work she is doing.
Jalakasi said when she started her business of supplying Baobab products like juice, oils, powder and also mango juice, she only relied on her farm to make the produce but they were not enough.
“When we started this business we used to collect the materials needed from our farm but it was not much. We then decided to engage other farmers around the community, we were doing our farming to help in collecting the materials for us. We now have about 1,400 farmers who collect the Baobab fruits for us.
“These farmers have been given the necessary training so that they produce quality and standard products because we are buying from them and need standard products,” she said.
She further explained that the farmers whom they are working with are in partnership with Naturals Limited and are trained in business dynamics and how to keep farm records throughout so that the relationship is sustainable.
Asked how the company has grown over the years Jalakasi said a lot has happened since they started operation in 2013 as they used to do everything manually and could only produce a limited quantity of the produce.
“At first we used to produce 1,000 litres of juice per month but now we are producing over 50,000 litres in a month. I can happily also say that we have also grown in terms of employees, we used to have only two but now we can boast of having 35 employees working for us,” she said.
She further said they are in partnership with the International Labour Organisation where they are working together to create jobs for the youth and also to train youths that want to venture into self-employment, a thing she said started this year.
“We received funds amounting to MK30 million from the ILO to train young entrepreneurs and we engaged experts to train the youth in various skills,” she said.
In an interview with Malawi News Agency National Project Coordinator for the Global Program on Skills and ProAgro Youth Project Malawi, Patrick Makondetsa said his organization started working with Naturals Limited after an industrial meeting on how best apprentices can be placed in various areas to learn hands on skills by doing actual work but at the same time learning new skills.
“Am impressed with what Naturals Limited are doing as they have become a best example on how agricultural products can add value and be able to create more jobs for young people thereby contributing to the county’s economy.
“The company has impacted a lot of knowledge and skills to young people and we have seen today that the youths that had been trained by them have been given permanent jobs meaning they were good and displayed their skills very well,” he said.
Naturals Limited began operations in 2013 and has evolved significantly over the years.
Initially packaging their products in bottles, they have transitioned to using biodegradable cartons in response to climate and environmental concerns. What started as a door-to-door distribution model has now expanded to supplying over 120 retail outlets across the country.
