Red Bull Amaphiko Academy 2019 – call for social entrepreneurs to apply
The Red Bull Amaphiko Academy is a great initiative that has been going since 2014 that “gives wings” specifically to grassroots social entrepreneurs who are making a positive difference in their communities.
The Red Bull Amaphiko Academy is a great initiative that has been going since 2014 that “gives wings” specifically to grassroots social entrepreneurs who are making a positive difference in their communities, and working to resolve social issues of national relevance. It gives a platform to entrepreneurs who use their skills, talents and energy to solve South Africa’s social problems.
South Africa’s 2019 Red Bull Amaphiko Academy will take place in Durban between 16 and 26 May. Durban is one of South Africa’s biggest cities, and a hotbed of innovation and talent.
Applications for the next edition of the Red Bull Amaphiko Academy commence in South Africa from October 1 and end November 31.
Profile
Bio Diesel (The Problems)
There is a high consumption of toxic non-organic oil products that are harmful to the environment and human beings.
Selokong Sa Dimelana (SSD) addresses rural brain drain, a social problem facing Muila village, where out of those that are left 7 out of 10 young people are unemployed.
Our Solution
We use idle and marginal land to farm castor seeds and process them to castor oil and biodiesel.
Our Business Model
We engage in a business model that cuts prices to gain an industry share and then make profits. We are targeting the biodiesel market and, markets that use castor oil as a starting material. We also collaborate with small scale farmers through contract farming, where we supply farmers with castor cake (organic fertilizer) for free in exchange that the farmer dedicates one or more hectares of their land to castor seed farming, and then we buy castor seeds from them.
SSD Traction
In 2012, Thabang Mabapa discovered castor seeds when he volunteered to clean the community church which lead to the research of castor oil as a feedstock for biodiesel and other oil-based products.
In 2013, during his visit in Muila village, Limpopo, he coincidentally meets a man who offered to teach him how to grow the seeds. SSD was founded and secured 1000 hectares of land for castor seed farming. During that year, an agronomist did soil tests as the crop requires loamy soil of medium texture.
Castor beans do well on either alkaline or acid soils, as long as the subsoil is permeable and there is good drainage. The tests were also done to ensure that the castor oil plant is not planted in an area that is subject to erosion.
In 2014, SSD grew hybrid castor bean (seeds from South Africa and India), in Muila village, Limpopo province, South Africa. This pilot-test demonstrates that hybrid castor bean is well adapted to South African soil, specifically in Limpopo and the average yield per hectare is around 1 ton per harvest.
Key factors for the pilot programme is evaluating the quality of the soil, seed rate, spacing plant population, irrigation, use of fertilizer, high-quality stock from superior genotype, use of pesticide, inter-cropping, and harvesting. SSD did further research (science and market) on castor oil and attempts to extract the oil manually.
In 2015, SSD partnered with the University of the Witwatersrand (Wits). The organisation conducted further research on castor oil as feedstock for bio-products and discovered potential patent. We also extracted castor oil mechanically and sold it informally. Red Bull Amaphiko Academy supported us financially and non-financially during an 18-month program with them.
In 2016, SSD started searching for funding and also developed 100 hectares for castor seed feed. We entered entrepreneurial competitions as one way to raise funds. We were selected as one of the top 10 starts ups in South Africa by Total. We won the Spark International (South Africa) ‘Changemaker’ of the year award (2016).
In 2017, SSD won the Old Mutual Business Pitch Competition. We aim to develop 1000 hectares of land for castor seed farming and to secure funding for efficient machinery. We have formalized our business and aim to be commercial by end of 2017.
We have partnered with Round Table on Biomaterials (RSB), a company that drives the development of the bioeconomy through sustainable solutions and collaborative partnerships. RSB is helping us gain access to markets locally and internationally.
RSB is currently coordinating a project in collaboration with WWF, SAA, and the Boeing Company to assess the potential for aviation biofuel production in South Africa. They have identified Selokong Sa Dimelana as an organisation with high potential for feedstock production scalability and market access.
Selokong Sa Dimelana also partnered with Isivuno Ex, a company that focuses on the marketing, selling, and distribution of bio-products. Through Isivuno, we issued a letter of intent for eight tons of cold pressed castor oil.
In 2018, SSD has bought commercial equipment to produce castor oil and biodiesel in larger volumes. We have changed our strategy from selling our oil to end user consumers to selling it to cosmetic companies, oil companies, and distributors. We have also developed 250 hectares of land for this season, which will produce 280 tonnes of castor oil. Our team has also grown to 24 full-time members.
Social and Economic Impact
* Our team has grown to 24 full-time members.
* We have also developed 250 hectares of land for this season, which will produce 280 tonnes of castor oil. Our team has also grown to 24 full-time members.
* We are working with small scale farmers and villagers to also start farming castor seeds as access to the market is available through SSD.
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