A few of the students
The attendees were from established beekeeping groups supported by Bees Abroad some, like the Synyati group were traveling long distances to get here, staying overnight at Cabernet.
Monday morning we started by making candles. Creating the wick from cotton string and the mould from a paper drinks cup. The wax was melted over a charcoal fire. Each attendee made a candle, some were more successful than others.
Practical Candle making.
The finished products lined up
In the afternoon we made skin cream. This time we had to use an improvised wood fire built in a drain as the charcoal had run out. Heating liquid paraffin and beeswax to boiling point on an open fire in a ditch is quite interesting.
Mixing the ingredients
Pouring the lotion
Nothing is wasted - the pan was so clean it sparkled.
It all worked and soon we had 50 containers of skin cream and a very excited group of students. They got even more excited when John led them through the numbers to show that for every batch of 50 they sold the profit was around 2,500 schillings, about £18,a huge sum of money.
The class broke up for the evening excited and happy. Most students were sleeping at the centre so the talk continued over dinner.
Day two started by Winnie demonstrating how to make a cough medicine using honey, garlic, Ginger and lemon. Easy to make and certainly clears the sinuses when drunk.
Training on day took place under a 'Gazebo'
Preparing the ingredients - The cough medicine - brought tears to your eyes.
The second recipe was for asthma & arthritis, this included honey and aloe (direct from the plant's leaves. This was much more palatable.
Great fun was had during these demonstrations and tastings,at one time the group was joined by two cows from the herd grazing nearby, attracted by the noise.
A couple of additions to the class
Mary then showed the group how to make Candy Bars with Milk Powder, honey and coffee, or chocolate. This was a great success, not something to sell as packaging would be a problem, but a great treat for a special occasion.
Mixing the Candy Bars.
Also, by this time, the wild bees living close by had smelt the honey and were coming into the training area in quite large numbers to eat up any spilt honey or rob out any dirty jars.
The bees taking advantage of the training.
A break for Lunch and Mary continued the training with body lotion bars. Each of the four groups would make their own bars of body lotion. This was the same training that she gave to the Synyati group last Wednesday.
Pouring the Body lotion liquid into the moulds.
John and I set up a 'production' line to get sufficient wax melted and measured out to support the training. The groups were as interested in this as in making the lotions..
Even the men got involved - What is it about men and fires?
Then Mary aroused huge interest by showing how to Add Value to cheap shampoo by adding honey to it. She had collected sufficient empty water bottles for each group to take home with them two bottles of shampoo to try.
At the end of the day the groups left excited and enthused at the prospect of using both their honey and wax to make money for themselves.
The Synyati group had already been making the lotion bars since last Wednesday and had been selling them at 100 schillings per bar, proving to the others that there was a market for these products.
The two days training were a huge success and show how a little help from Bees Abroad can go a long way to helping these communities.
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