Spirulina
- Output is forecasted to be 420kg with 3 spirulina ponds. 6 will be operational in 2015 and will allow to reach the 1,000kg output target.
- 120kg will be distributed for humanitarian purposes in specific structures.
- 300kg will be sold commercially thanks to the new head of distribution. and by following the marketing plan, which is currently being designed.
- Spirulina-based products are being developed, especially soaps, which have proven their efficiency and profitability.
Beekeeping
- The apiary and its 30 hives are regularly maintained.
- 150kg of high-quality honey is produced and sold per season, which amounts to 300kg per year.
1st semester 2014
As the country’s situation improved at the beginning of the year, Antenna Technologies conducted a field mission of 6 weeks in February-March 2014.
Out of the 300m2 of production area available at the beginning of the year, 200m2 were operational, generating a very small output due to the political events that shook Mali. From January to March the harvest was only 11kg and was distributed solely for aid purposes and in the neighbourhood of CPM. Production resumed in April to achieve 44kg in June and with it, the productivity rate returned to its initial rate of 4.9g/m2/day. Out of the 120kg produced since January, 75kg have been donated to the organisation in charge of distribution. The 2014 target is to produce a total of 420kg. In the second semester the productivity rate should be between 4.5 and 5g/m2/day. The field mission conducted by Vincent Guigon, our Technical Director, from February 16 to March 15 has enabled a technical, organisational and financial overview of the spirulina and beekeeping projects.
Spirulina
Vincent assisted in recruiting a new head of operations and a new head of distribution. He started training them together with Joaquim Cabrol, a spirulina producer from the French “Pyrénées-Orientales” region. The aim is to optimise the distribution policy with the arrival of the new head of distribution. The idea is to find a right balance between the commercial sale to intermediaries, the sale to individual consumers in the CPM Farm’s local shop and finally, aid distribution. The CPM Farm has applied for a renewed Marketing Authorisation with the ANSSA (the national agency for food security). This field mission led to a number of new contacts with organisations, which were very interested in obtaining spirulina. Agreements should be reached in no time.
Beekeeping
Following a difficult period, a new team was appointed to take care of the apiary during the second semester of 2013. Daniel Ponchant trained the team. Thank you Daniel for your help. The apiary is now back in good shape and contains 21 hives plus 9, which have been emptied to welcome the right type of bees. This brings the number of hives up to 30 in total.
The October / November harvest was exceptional: 300kg of honey was produced and the quality was remarkable according to specialists. The total output was sold within only a few weeks of the harvest.
