Black Wattle - South Africa

Acacia m. is a large shrub to tree, reaching heights of up to 15 metres.
The species is often considered an invasive invader outside its area of origin in Australia, posing a massive threat to ancestral ecosystems.

The South African "Working for Water" programme aims, among other things, to remove this tree species because it has a negative impact on the water balance and indigenous plant diversity. Thus, it competes with indigenous vegetation, reduces indigenous biodiversity and also leads to water loss in riparian margins. This is the reason why Black Wattle is listed in the Global Invasive Species Database as one of the hundred most harmful invasive plants worldwide.

Through a cooperation, mediated by the Federal Ministry for Foreign Trade, we were able to get a close look at sustainable charcoal production and the associated social project on site in February 2020.

With her idea of creating up to 40 jobs per village in the remote villages through sustainable charcoal production and thus helping people to help themselves, the company founder was named Entrepreneur of the Year in the Eastern Cape province.

 The proceeds contribute not only to livelihoods but also to the development of village infrastructure (access to water and electricity, construction of schools, etc.).

 We are proud to be part of this project and to pay the people in this scenic but remote area a fair price for an excellent handcrafted product.

In addition to these social aspects, it was of course important to us from a professional point of view to be able to gain the many years of experience of the charcoal burners for a charcoal of outstanding quality!