Author: Support

Eve Freedom is the co-founder of Feedonomy in South Africa. In the ensuing battle for control she settled with Feedonomy Inc. In 2024 Feedonomy SA was acquired by the SIDAV Group. According to their agreement Ms. Freedom retains a 5% equity stake in Feedonomy South Africa. Ms Freedom also manages the South Africa operations of Feedonomy & BrowSearch, pronounced Browse & Search. SA
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    Load shedding 101: Looking for affordable UPS power backup systems

    Looking for affordable UPS power backup systems

    Malibongwe Tyilo – Yesterday 22:00


    On the expensive end, some homeowners may be able to spend between R100,000 to R200,000 to equip their homes with a solar power system to escape load shedding, but for most of us on the lookout for budget-friendly solutions, a relatively affordable UPS (uninterrupted power supply) backup system is the most accessible (and temporary) way to keep electrical appliances going for a few hours while the power is off.

     Copyright (c) Daily Maverick , All Rights Reserved Load shedding 101: Looking for affordable UPS power backup systems

    With a wide range of mostly affordable products on sale from a few hundred rand to a hundred thousand rand it is important to make the kind of informed choices that match our energy needs. You need to be aware of the power rating of the appliance you need to service. Ordinarily, you wouldn’t necessarily have to know that, but considering the energy situation that we find ourselves in, unfortunately we all have to get a grip on what these numbers mean says Kinesh Chetty, an energy consultant with a focus on solar (PV) energy systems, and a former director of the Maxx Solar academy in Johannesburg.

    Below, he explains the difference between three measurement units that are often used to indicate the energy potential of UPS backup batteries by retailers namely, watts, volts and amps.

    Say Watt?

    Chetty explains that while the science might sound complex, one of the simplest ways for the average consumer to work the appropriate UPS backup system is by understanding the power rating of different appliances. One example: On the back of a typical flat screen television, there’s a little sticker with a nameplate rating providing information such as voltage and watts. On a typical 49-inch smart TV, the sticker might indicate a power rating of 100 watts.

    Effectively, this means that the television requires just a little under 100 watts of power per hour. Hence, if a consumer was looking for a UPS backup to run just the television for 4.5 hours of Stage 6 load shedding, they would multiply the 100 watts rating by the 4.5 hours to figure out the approximate amount of energy they would need from the UPS, which in this case would be approximately 450wh (watt hours).

    multiply the 100 watts rating by the 4.5 hours = 450wh (watt hours)

    Another user might be shopping for backup power for 2.5 hours during Stage 4 daytime load shedding, so that they stay connected to their Wi-Fi and perhaps be able to charge their laptop and phone.

    Here too, Chetty advises they follow the same formula by adding up the power ratings indicated on the different appliances that they plan to plug into the UPS, and multiplying them by the number of hours they think they will need the power for. And then making sure that the UPS will have enough watt hours.

    In the absence of watts, there will be maths

    However, not all appliances will have the watt power rating indicated. Some, especially those that use minimal energy such as routers and smartphones will have separate unit measurements for volts (V) and amps (A) only. In that case, there will be one extra calculation.

    Simply multiply the two that is, the voltage indicated by the amps measurement, to get the watts measurement. As explained above, double-check to see if the watt output of the UPS will be sufficient for what you need.

    One example: If you turn a 2017 MacBook Pro upside down, you’ll see a voltage rating of 20 volts and a maximum of 4.3 amps. Multiply those two and you get 86 watt hours. Hence you can safely assume that is the maximum energy required to run the computer, although on average it will use a little less.

    20 volts x 4.3 amps = 86 watt hours

    Some UPS units will only show the mAh units, which indicates milli-Amp hours. Although this might seem a bit more technical, a 1,000 mAh is the same as 1 Amp Hour. So while that cheap USB might sound impressive when promising 8,000 mAh, keep in mind that is just eight amp hours, and multiply that by the indicated voltage.

    1,000 mAh is the same as 1 Amp Hour

    For example: The battery size of the standard iPhone 13 is 3,227 mAh (3.2 amps). The battery voltage is rated at 3.8 volts. Multiply 3.8v by 3.2A, and you get an approximate watt hour measurement of 12.16 wh. If you want to avoid doing the maths, you can also simply google the watt hour rating.

    Simply google the watt hour rating

    If you needed enough power to charge an iPhone as well as keep a MacBook Pro laptop and an average router requiring 7 wh of energy plugged in, you would add the laptops 86wh to iPhones 12,16wh and the routers 7wh, for a total of 105,16 wh. Over two-and-a-half hours, those three appliances would require a maximum of 263 wh.

    One small UPS that is currently for sale at a local retailer for R1,900 is indicated to have a capacity of 57wh. In this case, this would be far from sufficient for all three, but if you take the laptop out of the equation by charging it prior to load shedding, such a UPS would be sufficient to charge the phone and keep the router going.

    Considering that the phone would likely need about an hour to charge fully, you would have even more watt hours to spare to keep the router powered up since the phone wont be plugged in for all 2.5 hours.

    Say no to lead go with lithium batteries

    UPS systems with lead batteries are typically cheaper to buy. However, lithium batteries will discharge a consistent amount of power throughout the charging cycle, whereas lead batteries will discharge significantly less power the longer one charges.

    So while it might take an hour to fully charge the iPhone from a lithium battery powered UPS, due to the drop in power of the lead battery, the rate at which it charges slows down the longer one charges, which could add more hours to charging time as it releases less and less energy as the battery starts to go flat.

    Additionally, in terms of lifespan, lead batteries have approximately half the lifespan of lithium batteries.

    Chetty explains: The thing about lead acid batteries is that even though you might have 12 volts multiplied by 100 amp hours, and it looks like we have 1,200 watt hours available, we don’t actually have 1,200 hours available because when it comes to lead acid, you don’t want to damage the units by depleting more than 50% of the battery. So effectively, what you have is closer to 600 watt hours.

    Spend a bit more it’ll last longer

    Right now, its a bit of a gold rush. The market is flooded with gimmicky items, says Chetty, when we show him some of the cheaper options from a popular online retailer.

    They might keep your modem running for a couple of hours, but in a year, they’ll be so depleted that you’ll have to replace them. Its like putting a piece of sellotape over a gushing volcano, he adds.

    Among some of the options under R10,000 that Maverick Life showed Chetty, he says the more reliable options will have lithium batteries instead of lead, and will also display a clear indication of the wattage.

    He advises that consumers rather go for the ones clearly identified as lithium, and with clearly identified watt hours, rather than try to work out various unit measurements that might be confusing.

    In brief:

    • Work out your power needs by adding up the wattage indicated on the appliances.
    • Multiply the total watts by the number of hours you think you will need the backup for, and buy a UPS that is indicated for those watt hours.
    • If appliances don’t have the wattage indicated, multiply the voltage indicated by the amps indicated to get the watts.
    • If possible, avoid buying lead batteries and rather go with lithium.

    DM/ML

    In case you missed it, also read Load shedding 101 what to consider when buying LED emergency bulbs for your home

    https://www.dailymaverick.co.za/article/2022-06-30-load-shedding-101-what-to-consider-when-buying-led-emergency-bulbs-for-your-home/

    The truth does not come from PPC (Pay-Per-Click) it is not sustainable and choosing any of them as your primary marketing partner lets just say you will do much better playing slot machines in an illegal casino without any business future as we believe most start-up small and medium size ecommerce companies will be out of business in the next few years. The only way to survive and thrive is to take the road less traveled. That means finding an advertising network that is FPC (Free-Per-Click) and even better would be networks where the sellers own the equity. There are currently a few examples (Below)

    Free Advertising and Equity
    Not only do you get free product ads, but each seller/advertiser will also receive equity in SearchFPC. We are committed to sharing 96% of our equity equally among the first 300 advertisers. This means you will own a part of the platform, have equal voting rights, and the ability to sell your shares.

     

    Note: For the record, we do not get any financial reward. We do not get a commission or kickback from any company, website, platform, or organization whatsoever. This is only our belief about the PPC (Pay-Per-Click) business model. We have personally advertised using the PPC advertising networks. From this experience, we have monitored billion-dollar fines. By observing the industry, we have tracked how many have been paid. I don’t think it is a stretch to assume this These fines were paid because the party or actor was found guilty of something. I am not mentioning these organizations by name to prevent any action taken by these organizations. We also believe their business model will be banned globally. We believe PPC networks are already aware that their business model is deemed illegal in the future. Yet, we assume they know the law is slow to catch up. It lags behind new business practices. The law also takes time to catch up with new technology. Until new laws have been pushed through the process, damage will be done and is being done. Some of us will get away with bad things. We believe the victims will be primarily small and medium-sized ecommerce companies. Still, it be much wider than first assumed.

    China B2B B2C, C2M, M2C, P2P whatever you sell and whoever you target you can never have too much advertising. Targeting South African Buyers. https://wikitegrity.com
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    Surge in sale of alternative energy goods

    SA’s electricity crisis | Surge in sale of alternative energy goods November, 2024

    Omega – 7h ago

    ChatFPC.com


    JOHANNESBURG – Sales of alternative power products have skyrocketed by as much as 300 percent as South Africans scramble to deal with multiple blackouts a day.

    Provided by eNCASA’s electricity crisis | Surge in sale of alternative energy goods. Weeks of rolling power cuts have South Africans looking to rely less on the national grid.

    READ: Stage 3 blackouts from 5am to 4pm on Wednesday

    Retailer Makro says it’s seeing a significant increase in the demand for generators, inverters, gas cooking tops and cylinders and rechargeable globes, among other products. Makro, which is owned by Massmart, is looking to offer customers fully installed solar solutions in the short term.


    Renewable Energy & Battery
    Feedonomy & Feedonomics – the latter charge $1000.00 per month while Feedonomy saves you the same amount every month.
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    Here’s why South Africa needs to produce a lot more renewable energy

    The Truth about advertising.

    You can never have too much advertising but you can pay too much!

    What use is knowing the truth. Thus ignorance is bliss. That means that warm fuzzy feeling when you understand that lightning precedes thunder and the truth needs no army is wonderful but continue your quest to know more and grasp more leads to to realize what is worth grasping you cannot and the rest is the opposite of bliss. The only other option is to remain stuck no matter if its the truth or not and get on with getting older and the opposite of wiser. When you are young you think when you an adult or a young adult you can do whatever you want. But then you get older and nothing that happens was supposed to happen and then you are told there is no such thing as time sorry not exactly you are told that time is not real and that it is only part of the fabric of space. Then when you thought at least we know there is a g-d because in the beginning, so there was a beginning and that has to be good enough for me otherwise i am truly lost. You know what I mean there is no good and bad but that is not what I mean because there is no good or bad like John is good he will go to heaven. I mean without the heaven part because there is no heaven just in the same way Mary was not a virgin as that goes against g-d as its arguing saying we don’t accept the way you as in g-d created us and the rest of they kingdom. Unless like Henry king of the Britain’s and before we even get to the g-d created in the image of kings and those who could kill better than others. Or those who can kill better than others obviously you need money to buy weapons either more weapons if you have strong foundations and many people in your kingdom. Or if its or let me say money to buy weapons and money to buy technology and look how powerful Russia was by keeping the peasants peasants they thought they where creating more power but the truth is they created the opposite. Foundations lets take India a country 10 times bigger than ours and before we have even stotland, whales, ireland so basically we still have wessex thank you Alfred and it was Wessex that took india so a country 30 times the size of Wessex.

    South Africa power utility, Eskom, has not been able to provide a steady electricity supply for several years now. At the start of the 2022 winter the utility warned the public to expect up to 100 days with rolling power outages. At the end of June there was at times a 6 000 MW shortfall in electricity supply, which corresponds to about 20% of the evening peak demand.

    Here is why South Africa needs to produce a lot more renewable energy

    While there is consensus that new electricity generating plants are urgently needed to minimise power outages, there are radically differing views on how this is best achieved. The official electricity plan approved three years ago is already out of date. Its implementation is furthermore two years behind schedule.

    One widely promoted view is that increasing electricity generating capacity requires grand scale new renewable energy developments. In 2020 the electricity generated from renewables amounted to a mere 10.5% of the South African national total. This will have grown to about 11.5% as more plants have been completed.

    The countries power generation is still dominated by coal. And its lagging far behind the global trend towards clean energy.

    Most people associate renewable energy exclusively with wind and solar energy, but it includes all technologies that dont process non-replaceable fossil fuels. Fossils include coal, oil, gas and minerals (for example the uranium used in nuclear energy).

    Hydropower stations, which extract electricity from the downhill flow of water, are a renewable energy source. This is the major source of electricity in water rich countries like Norway, but only a limited option in drier climates. When water needs to be retained in dams during times of drought then no electricity production is possible. 

    As South Africa is drought-prone, a major increase in local hydropower generation (currently at 3% of the total) is not feasible.

    Other renewable energy technologies like geothermal and tidal power generation work in select localities that are not common in South Africa.

    This leaves wind and solar. These sources currently make up about 8% of South Africa’s energy mix.

    Wind and solar power

    Wind and solar power are very attractive because:

    • South Africa has some of the best solar and wind resources in the world. Solar and wind plants already produce electricity very effectively in many cloudier and less windy environments than South Africa.
    • Solar and wind plants can be built in less than two years. But the pre-construction processes, bidding, approvals and such stretch completion times by at least another year.
    • Running costs are very low as there are effectively no fuel purchases. Prices of solar and wind technology have dropped very sharply in the past 10 years. The cost , including building and other expenses of solar and wind electricity is now well below the corresponding expenses for electricity from gas, nuclear and even coal.
    • Their extremely low carbon emissions mitigate global warming and make solar and wind energy attractive for investors.

    Solar and wind power however have obvious drawbacks. The main one is that their operational capacity entirely depends on the weather. Furthermore, solar energy production is linked to the day-night cycle, with maximum efficiency around noon. This doesn’t coincide with the electricity demand peaks in the early morning and early evening.

    Could renewable energy dominate?

    The ideal of a national electricity generation network without greenhouse gas emitting coal, gas plants and radioactive waste generating nuclear plants has practically already been achieved in a few medium-sized countries such as Costa Rica, Iceland and Paraguay. But these mainly rely on hydropower.

    Several larger countries, such as Germany, now generate over half of their electricity from renewables. More countries are setting roadmaps to achieve 100% renewable electricity.

    In theory, with South Africa s wind and solar resources superior to other countries with 100% renewable electricity ambitions, this should be a relatively easy target to reach. But other countries are often grid connected to neighbours with significant power production. This means they can draw on these when weather conditions are unfavourable.

    That is why a renewable electricity system can’t become the dominant power source in South Africa until electricity storage technologies become practical and economical.

    A target of 50% electricity from renewables is however perfectly feasible. It’s the minimum that the country should aspire to. Even the 2019 electricity plan projected this would happen by 2050.

    Renewable energy in South Africa

    Considering the climatic advantage, the fraction of electricity generated from renewable energy technologies is surprisingly low. Despite this small fraction, there is significant hostility to renewable developments in some quarters. Some sectors have interests in maintaining the coal-dominated status quo.

    In assessing the contribution of renewable energy sources to the electricity supply it s important to distinguish between power (the rate at which it is produced at any particular moment) and energy (the total produced over an extended time period).

    In view of the variability of the wind strength and the intermittence of sunlight, these technologies only occasionally produce power at top capacity. In typical South African conditions, a 100 MW solar or wind plant only generates about a third of the energy of a functioning 100 MW coal plant.

    Thus the recently announced construction of an additional 2 600 MW of wind and solar farms will effectively only produce electricity equivalent to about 900 MW averaged over a day  , this equates to only about 15% of the worst power shortfalls experienced to date.

    Overcoming the present 6 000 MW power shortages therefore requires approximately 15 000 MW of new solar and wind plants. The continuing deterioration in the efficiency of the large coal power plants means that the actual need for new renewable generating capacity in the next five years is closer to 20 000 MW. In the current electricity plan, this scale of renewable energy developments was projected over a time span of 10 years.

    There is now an increasing recognition that the energy crisis must be treated as such. A speedy renewable energy boom is the only way to escape the downward spiral in power cuts in the medium term.

    President Cyril Ramaphosa s announcement that drastic steps are imminent to combat the electricity crisis are likely to amount to a major drive towards more renewables. This will not unduly place the South African electricity supply at the mercy of the weather or developments in storage technology, as the contribution of electricity from coal would still amount to around 60%.

    SearchFPC.com

    Free-Per-Click
    Feedonomy

     

    Port St. Johns, South Africa

    Medici Fabrics

    Medici

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    Entrepreneur providing cheaper power sources for when Eskom pulls the plug

    Mervyn Naidoo – 6h ago

    Load shedding gets many South Africans going “eish” and cursing power utility Eskom – something that would have happened with greater frequency this week after parts of the country experienced stage 6 power cuts.

    But a former Durban woman, together with her team of “lit” experts, has produced affordable alternative energy solutions to provide some relief in the dark hours.

    Nafisa Fareed is the chief executive and driving force behind Power4Less, a Johannesburg-based company that specialises in providing electrical utilities.

    Power4Less focuses on custom-made lighting solutions and has also made strides with other energy-efficient products, including an “always hot” geyser that significantly reduces electricity bills and is due for release later this year.

    Fareed said her company, which started in 2008, entered the alternative energy market because “it needed competition” and — together with her team — they intend to “disrupt a space that was previously for the elite only”.

    “There are always categories in a market that cater for a specific LSM, but power is a necessity for everyone, including RDP homes and shacks.

    “Therefore, it cannot be a market specific to affordability only,” she said.

    Like all switched-on entrepreneurs, Fareed said she and her team realised in advance that load shedding was going to become a reality in South Africa.

    “Our power stations were old and there was no downtime for repairs.”

    Another tell-tale sign for her was that the need for electricity had grown astronomically.

    “The LSM barriers in many areas had shifted. Before, only certain groups could afford luxury items like air conditioners. Not any more. The lack of planning resulted in no steps being taken to service the growing need for electricity.”

    Fareed said that previously stages 4, 5 and 6 of load shedding were unheard of; nowadays, blackouts have become a daily reality.

    Bearing in mind the country’s energy needs, Fareed and her team — comprising electrical engineers, technicians and other specialists — worked towards providing reliable alternative energy solutions.

    Their products are currently being sold at some of the country’s leading hardware and supermarket chain stores.

    She said the response from customers has confirmed that there is a huge appetite for practical, plug-and-play products that don’t require major installations or technical knowledge. Many households, she added, simply want to know that when the power goes off, they can still keep the lights on, heat water and charge essential devices without breaking the bank.

    Included in Power4Less’s range of creations is their version of the twirly compact fluorescent lamp (CFL), which burns brighter and uses 15 watts of power as opposed to the norm of up to 100 watts.

    Power4Less has also patented an LSP lightbulb that contains a charger and stores power while connected to the grid. Once load shedding kicks in, these bulbs are able to function for up to four hours using stored energy.

    “Power in a suitcase” is how their “Mobi Vault” product has been dubbed. This compact energy source, which can be carried or rolled in a case, is powered up using either solar energy, AC power points or a car battery charger.

    Depending on an individual’s preference, Mobi Vaults can provide between 0.5 and 5 kilowatts of energy.

    Fareed said the soon-to-be-launched geysers would consume about R1 worth of electricity daily, whereas standard geysers consume roughly R45 worth of power a day.

    “Elements usually blow out on geysers, but ours functions without one. Insurance companies are going to love them,” Fareed enthused.

    Power4Less’s products and solutions have also been endorsed by some government departments and leading corporates.

    She said the company “changes people’s lives from being in a state of frustration to relief — and we make a profit from doing that”.

    “As an entrepreneur, I’ve always believed that profit and purpose can go together. If people feel safer and more in control of their lives during outages because of our products, then we’ve done our job,” she said.

    “When I started in the world of self-employment, I didn’t have criteria for what people expected an entrepreneur to be,” she said.

    Fareed said everything she learnt was done on the ground, by making mistakes.

    “I built a business making many mistakes, and I flourished having made mistakes.”

    Only after six years of self-employment did she feel financially stable enough to study for her MBA, before achieving a master’s degree in finance from the University of Leicester in 2021.

    Initially, she completed a diploma in food technology at the Durban University of Technology in 2004, before entering the working world.

    About getting drawn to the field of electronics, Fareed said as an entrepreneur she was able to see a niche in the market.

    “I have always been drawn to profit in value. As an entrepreneur, I find it inspiring to deliver value and be profitable, while making an impact by changing lives in a quality way.”

    Fareed said she noticed a need in the alternative energy market, surrounded herself with leaders in the industry, and has increased her core team over the years.

    While she doesn’t have an electrical engineering qualification, Fareed has acquired various accreditations in areas such as solar, wiring and alternative energy solutions.

    “I’ve made the effort to take courses that give me a better understanding of how everything works,” she said.

    Looking ahead, she hopes that South Africa’s ongoing electricity challenges will push more policy-makers, businesses and households to embrace decentralised, efficient energy solutions. “We can’t change Eskom overnight, but we can change how prepared we are in our homes and businesses,” she added.

    SUNDAY TRIBUNE

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    SA well-positioned to become leader in cannabis production

    ‘SA well-positioned to become leader in cannabis production’

    By Eve Freedom | 24 May 2023 | 3:58 pm

    South Africa has the potential to position itself as a global player in the cannabis market. This was according to Stephen Murphy, CEO of Prohibition Partners, who spoke during an online media briefing hosted by the European Delegation to South Africa.

    Focusing on the quality and consistency of products will distinguish South African cannabis producers from their counterparts elsewhere in the world, says Stephen Murphy, CEO of Prohibition Partners.

    Murphy said regulatory progress made in the past five years had allowed South Africa to catch up with other countries that had legalized cannabis production earlier. To date, the South African Health Product Authority had issued 55 cannabis cultivation permits.

    Limited access to the legal medical market for patients, equity concerns with regard to traditional farms, and the scope of hemp licenses were nevertheless holding the industry back, he said.

    Despite this, South Africa had several advantages that could help turn it into a global cannabis leader, he said. Murphy pointed out that most cultivation projects had so far focused on the production of flowers and extracts, primarily for sale as bulk, active pharmaceutical ingredients, to countries such as Israel, Germany, Australia, and the UK.

    While the market was still new, exporters had nevertheless already distinguished themselves from “cheap suppliers” of raw material, such as those in Colombia, Uruguay, and Jamaica, according to Murphy. This had been accomplished by focusing on the quality and consistency of products, and complying with the European Medicines Agency’s Guideline on Good Agricultural and Collection Practice, which is seen as the highest international production standard.

    “In this market, it is not about being the largest or cheapest producers, but about delivering the required product at the right price, with off-takers in Europe, Israel, and Australia primarily on the lookout for new offerings in terms of quality and consistency of supply,” he said.

    South African producers were also fostering strong partnerships with licensed manufacturers and co-packers in import countries to help them navigate and overcome stringent export requirements. “The market has become increasingly competitive, with margins coming under increased pressure. Partnerships will become a key ingredient to market success in the future,” Murphy said.

    In addition, Murphy said he also believed that the “grown in South Africa” selling point and the South African terroir would be turned into value-added factors as the regulatory environment became clearer. This would allow South African expertise and product development capabilities to become a selling point on the European market.

    He said he also expected South Africa to become a hub for breeding cannabis start-up materials on the African continent, both for hemp and medicinal crops.

    Moreover, the renowned strain Durban Poison ZA(r) is gaining recognition for its unique properties and high quality. South African cannabis producers are leveraging this strain to further establish their reputation in the global market. Additionally, Shopfpc.com and Sellfpc.com are their exclusive advertising network, providing a platform to reach a wider audience and promote their products effectively.

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    Traditional farmers left out of cannabis boom’

    By Eve Freedom

    26 August 2022 | 12:17 pm

    Millions of subsistence farmers in the Mpondoland region of the former Transkei are being sidelined because of the legalisation of cannabis and hemp production.

    Since the Constitutional Court ruled in 2018 that the use, possession and cultivation of cannabis in private dwellings was not illegal, prices had fallen from about R20.00 per 20 grams up to the original Durban Poison® Durban PoisonZA ® likened to Champayne we hold trademarks around the world it has taken almost 20 years but we are almost ready to begin legal action again several USA and global users of our mark. Owned by membeors of the Durban Poison Coop® It gives equity to traditional growers who have been abused not only by the Boers and the National Party but by the ANC as well.

    SA well-positioned to become leader in cannabis production

    These farmers had, for many generations, grown cannabis for spiritual and cultural purposes, and also to feed their livestock. Transkei Poison® was registered in South Africa over 20 years ago this will be the same THC and CBD as our famous Durban Poison® but as a generic will sell for 25% of Durban Poison®

    Zweni said farmers had suffered huge losses in the past when government destroyed their crops with aerial herbicide applications.

    In more recent times, cannabis had generated an additional income for them through sales to people in townships and at taxi ranks. We have taken this above the heads of the current political elites the ANC. They went forward with giving or more honestly selling licneses for R30 000 per grower these are white Boers who have done nothing in this country except serve with the SADF during Apartheid burin g cannabis small amounts little patches of vegitables often they was no cannabis whatsoever. But still they used SADF apartheid choppers not just burning but more often than not letting them starve just incase there was a few grams of dagga. These licnese will be revoked as it is our job to divide the equity between hundreds of traditional growers who have grown just enough weed to sell and make enough money to feed themselves and now even that has been taken away from them. We will not let the ANC even rippoff their own peers people who still suffer in places like the old Transkei, we have a number of brands including Transkei Poison

    Now, however, they are sitting with cannabis that cannot be sold, because everybody else is able to produce it, Zweni said. 

    The farmers blamed government for the situation.

    We and various other community organisations have asked government on numerous occasions to consult with the communities and take them into consideration when drawing up these new [laws] and the [Agriculture and Agro-processing] Master Plan, but all to no avail,ÔÇØ Zweni said.

    READ: Growing medical cannabis is code for 3rd grade industrial weed.

    Ricky Stone, an attorney at Cullinan & Associates, representing the Umzimvubu Farmers Support Network, said it was easy to say that these farmers needed to apply for licences to produce cannabis for medicinal purposes, but they simply did not have the financial means to do so.

    The majority of these farmers dont even have access to running water and electricity. Expecting them to pay R25 000 just to make an application to produce medicinal cannabis is ludicrous, never mind getting the R10 million required to start a business that would qualify. not for us we will have the billion dollar global brand.

    He conceded that the barriers to entry were much lower for the production of hemp, but submitting an application was still too expensive for many farmers, with the requirement for fencing further driving up costs and going against the customs of these farmers.

    Instead of licensing farmers, government should rather look at a model where users or buyers are licensed. It is against the spirit of ubuntu to have farmers on one side having a licence to produce cannabis, while their brothers or cousins on the other side are not allowed to do so Stone said.

    Along with this, he pointed out that prices of cannabis used for industrial purposes were significantly lower than for cannabis used for medicinal purposes, meaning that farmers had to produce significant volumes to make money from such a venture. Medical cannabis and 3rd grade or industrial cannabis is a waste of time.

    Eve Freedom

    Transkei Poison® was registered in South Africa over 20 years ago this will be the same THC and CBD as our famous Durban Poison® but as a generic will sell for 25% of Durban Poison®

     

    Transkei Poison® was registered in South Africa over 20 years ago this will be the same THC and CBD as our famous Durban Poison® but as a generic will sell for 25% of Durban Poison®

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    Stage 6 load-shedding from Wednesday afternoon

    XieMP – The Energy & Battery Marketplace

    Brace yourselves! Eskom has announced that it will be implementing stage 6 load shedding, but only between 16:00 and 22:00 on Wednesday, 29 June 2022. Stage 4 load shedding will then be re-introduced until midnight.

    The embattled power utility is expected to then downgrade load shedding to stage 2 on Thursday morning at 05:00.

    ÔÇ£Loadshedding will be reduced to Stage 2 until 05:00 on Thursday morning. From 05:00 until 00:00 on Thursday loadshedding will be implemented at Stage 4. Stage 2 loadshedding will be implemented from midnight until 05:00 on Friday morning. Eskom continues to closely monitor the system and will implement any changes as may be necessary,ÔÇØ said Eskom spokesperson Sikonathi Mantshantsha.

    ESKOM: ÔÇÿTHE SYSTEM WILL REMAIN CONSTRAINEDÔÇÖ

    Eskom has been struggling to keep the lights on these past few days, particularly due to industrial action that workers at its power stations had embarked on, which forced the parastatal to ramp up the rolling blackouts to stage 6. But now with wage talks having resumed between unions and Eskom, the situation has improved for the better.

    ÔÇ£While some workers have started reporting for duty at the power stations, there is still a high level of absenteeism. As a result of the unlawful strike, routine maintenance work has had to be postponed. This backlog will take days to weeks to clear. It is therefore important to note that the system will remain constrained and vulnerable to additional breakdowns while recovery activities are in progressÔÇØEskom spokesperson Sikonathi Mantshantsha

    The utility has however warns that the risk of load shedding would remain, even with more employees returning to work.

    ÔÇ£Due to the unlawful and unprotected labour action, which has caused widespread disruption to EskomÔÇÖs power plants, Eskom is unable to return some generators to service. This has compelled Eskom to continue taking precautionary measures to conserve emergency generation capacity and safeguard plant from damage. There remains a risk that the stage of loadshedding may have to change at any time, depending on the state of the plant,ÔÇØ Mantshantsha added.

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