The fibre innovation hub project being piloted in certain parts of the Cacadu District is gaining momentum as key role-players in the development agenda of the province have been roped in as members of the steering committee. The Eastern Cape Development Corporation (ECDC) and the provincial Departments of Agriculture and Environmental Affairs have now joined the Council of Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR) and the Cacadu District Municipality (CDM) in the project which involves processing and value-add opportunities in leaf, animal and bast fibre.
CSIR, leading the research and development phase of the project, has also committed R12m for the next three years (up to 2011) towards further research on the sustainable development of the Agave Americana plant, its potential applications and the development of new Agave based industries. In this regard, a working group comprised of the ECDC, CDM, Camdeboo Municipality, Agave Farmers and CSIR has been established and is responsible for driving this project.
Seeing that 2009 is also “The Year of the Natural Fibres”, the CSIR would like to tie-in some key milestones of the project with this international affair. CSIR’s researcher, Sunshine Blouw, lists some bold milestones which he says will be the focus of the project in the next six to twelve months. Key developments include cultivating agave on the 1 000ha parcel of land in Graaff-Reinet which has been allocated by the Camdeboo Municipality;
Blouw also adds: “In six months, we also aim to have secured a machine for extracting fibre from the Agave Americana plant. We are currently assessing similar technologies used in Brazil and Tanzania that can be used in the province for the fibre project.”
Five industrial development projects have the potential to take-off throughout the Cacadu district and can be replicated in the province. The fibre innovation hub concept involves:
• Agave Americana (farming, fibre and inulin production, paper making and animal feed) pilot project at Camdeboo Municipality;
• Pineapple leaf (fruit production, fibre and yarn production, and paper making) currently championed by the Ndlambe Natural Industrial Products NNIP (Pty) Ltd;
• Wool (value add opportunities such as spinning and weaving SMMEs);
• Mohair and cashmere (value add opportunities such as spinning and weaving SMMEs); and
• Flax and hemp (cultivation, production and value add opportunities)
Blouw explains that there have been some significant developments that have taken place in various streams of the project: “The pineapple leaf project, facilitated by the NNIP together with commercial farmers in the Bathurst area, has already concluded the research phase. The project coordinators are now in talks with potential funders and investors for the pineapple leaf facility projected to be worth R260m. The CSIR is involved in conducting research on the processing of pineapple leaf fibres for use in textile applications, such as spinning and nonwoven product development. In this regard, the CSIR has been successful in its research trials to process and spin pineapple leaf fibre and cotton blends.”
In addition, hemp cultivation pilot trials undertaken by the Agricultural Research Council – Institute for Industrial Crops (ARC-IIC) and the Eastern Cape Department of Agriculture at Addo showed favourable results.”
“Our vision for the fibre project is to transfer technical skills to communities that can then drive fibre related industrial development which in turn will uplift the community. If the projects show success, this then will give us a case to replicate the project throughout the province,” he ends.
