A Day at Koopmanskloof

So here it is folks, my purpose of traveling to South Africa. Although the award to my first fair trade certified site visit goes to Kuappa Kokoo and Volta River Estates in Ghana, this was my first time visiting a fair trade certified cite on 'business', as an Ambassador - as a Volunteer Ambassador for Fair Trade USA (...its a mouthful isn't it?).

Let me just say that since traveling alone, I've experienced situations of pure frustration. The morning I was supposed to visit Koopmanskloof was one of them. Prior to coming to Cape Town I was forewarned that renting a car would be ideal, since public transportation isn't as reliable or widespread as say, in New York. There are limits to how far a bus, train, or even affordable taxi will take you. However, from Cape Town to Stellenbosch public transportation was perfectly fine - Metrorail for R17 straight to the Stellenbosch train station which was only walking distance from Ikhaya Backpackers. Completely doable. However, getting from Ikhaya to Koopmanskloof winery was another story. The distance between the two was about 20km and my options were 1.) hire a shuttle taxi and pay R180 for a 10 minute ride or 2.) hire an even more expensive shuttle taxi because R180 is considered affordable. You can understand my frustration when I was able to get from Cape Town to Stellenbosch spending less than R17 and a mere 10 minute car ride would cost me more than 10 times that. I repeat, pure frustration!

Upon arrival I was greeted by Mario, Koopmanskloof's new Fair Trade Officer. We then met with Rydal Jeftha, the Manging Director. We spoke for an hour about his views on fair frade in general, fair frade in South Africa and BEE standards. I was honored to meet Rydal because unknowingly enough he was also responsible for Thandi's success, the world's first winery to achieve fair trade certification. In 2007 he left Thandi for Koopmanskloof with the intent to transform it into a fair trade certified winery. He left Thandi for because Koopmanskloof has the advantage of having the entire value chain located in one area whereas Thandi was only a brand and today is still only a reseller. On December 24, 2007, only 6 months after Rydal took over Koopmanskloof they achieved fair trade certification.

Koopmanskloof takes pride in the fact that they are one of the few black-owned wineries, and they should. Koopmanskloof was probably the only winery I visited where there were undoubtedly more blacks or coloured people in management positions than white. After spending an afternoon with Mario and Rydal, the genuine investment in their workers is boldly visible. As we drove around to snap a few photos and speak with several workers, Mario knew the name of each person encountered his conscious effort to maintain strong relationships with them was evident. Mario is constantly inventing new ways to give back to their workers. He recently arranged a food donation program with Pick n' Pay, organizes domino competitions on he weekends, and is planning a huge festival in December. Additional benefits for Koopmanskloof workers include daily transportation from their house to the farm, transportation each Saturday into town to go collect groceries, and an on-site creche (preschool) and primary school.

Greatest challenges with fair trade? Trying to explain to workers what fair trade is not. Most workers equate fair trade premium to extra money in their pockets, when the purpose is to financially support community development projects. So as a compromise, most fair trade premium money is spent on projects that can be easily seen in their eyes as money – food, uniforms, scholarships – essentials that they would have spent their extra money on anyway. And then of course, a commonly mentioned challenge of being fair trade certified is that it is expensive. Adhering to high environmental and quality standards requires training, which requires time, which requires money. However if you ask any owner why they became fair trade certified, they'd most likely tell you all the hoops fair trade requires you to jump through is worth it if it benefits the workers.

We visited the on-site creche to say hello to some of the most cutest children I have ever seen. As I walked in one of them was getting his hair washed. So cute!

The solar panels captured in this photo were funded by FT premium dollars. The installed panels provide heat for warmth and hot water. 

As I was photographing the solar panels, their neighbor called for my attention. He didn't speak English, but since he saw my camera I gathered he wanted me to take a photo of him. 

The Cabernet was pleasantly soft and subtle. Strong berry flavor. Smooth finish. FT is often criticized for outshining the quality of the product but I found their Cabernet competitive with similar-like wines.

I greatly enjoyed myself at Koopmanskloof and thank Rydal and Mario for welcoming me into their community and sharing their knowledge about the fair trade winemaking industry in South Africa. I have nothing but the utmost respect for Rydal's passion for and dedication to creating a family-like environment for his workers. 

For more information about Koopmanskloof you can visit them at their website, http://www.koopmanskloof.co.za/.