Honey Honey Honey

Honey is one of the most versatile products known to man and has been used for centuries as a source of food as well for medicinal purposes. Whilst working as poachers in Tsavo West National Park, the people of Kidong, Kasaani and Mahandakini used honey as both an energy rich source of food and also as a preservative for the meat they obtained whilst poaching. Although these three communities gave up poaching three years ago, this does not mean that they no longer have a use for honey. In fact, honey is now set to play a key role in the alternative income generating activities being pursued in Kasaani, one of the three aforementioned ex-poaching communities.

A traditional beehive

Over the past six months GVI volunteers have been teaching the community of Kasaani how to make a variety of value-added products from honey. The purpose of these lessons was to provide the community with ideas for sustainable alternative livelihoods and to replace the incomes which they have lost since they relinquished poaching in 2006. The lessons delivered in the past were received enthusiastically by the community, and as such, we have decided to follow up these lessons by teaching the community of Kasaani how to package a number of these products for sale to the tourist market in Kenya.

A Kasaani ex-poacher tending their modern beehives

Encouraged by the successful finalisation of soap products in Kidong, our enthusiastic volunteers were eager to ensure that the village of Kasaani can build upon the set of finished products initiated in Kidong last week. What products are Kasaani making from honey you might ask? A true business person never releases an unfinished product! So stay tuned until the products are finizalised at the end of this week...

GVI volunteers working with Kasaani and their honey

Honey Honey Honey