Regenerative Agriculture is about acknowledging the harm our farming methods have done to the planet and reversing that impact. How this is done may differ from one farm to the next or from one enterprise (engaged in agriculture) to the next. So while the techniques and approaches may differ, the core idea of reversing the damage stays the same. And why all this is necessary is because we, as the collective human race have gone beyond the point where merely sustaining our natural world and its resources was enough.
In 2020 Goodfolks was founded with the mission to identify products with potential from the Micro and Small Sectors of farming and manufacturing and to elevate them to the international market through a process of continuous improvement. The resulting ‘value added’ products had to be good for the consumer – as in free of artificial additives, good for local communities by way of price and learning opportunities, and good for the planet in how the products are sourced, packaged and distributed.
One of our first products to be launched was bee honey which had often been overlooked. Goodfolks was the first to identify the natural variations in colour and taste of Sri Lankan bee honey and launched the Regional Bee Honey Collection – North and North Central, Uva and Sabaragamuwa. The initial products were sourced from established farmer networks subject to them meeting set standards. Unfortunately, we found it extremely hard to provide the ideal bee honey to our customers due to incessant tampering and unscrupulous activities from within the supply chain. This is when we decided to set up our own farmer network. However if the promises made by Goodfolks were to be truly met, we needed to go far beyond the collection and sale of pure bee honey.
This is when we at Goodfolks heard about the work Good Life X was promoting in the area of Regeneration. Good Life X had already supported Goodfolks during its launch through the Good Life X Accelerator programme in 2020 and both teams had very similar ideas on how businesses like Goodfolks could drive the changes the world is in need of. And thus Goodfolks was selected for the launch of the Good Life X Regenerative and Redistributive Business Model Canvas (R2BMC) pilot programme. Through various consultations, discussions and workshops that also included other like minded business, a model for Regenerative businesses in Sri Lanka took shape. And we at Goodfolks believe that the successful implementation of this project will demonstrate that the true and measurable impacts will go far beyond agriculture.
On the back of all this learning, Goodfolks began the soft roll out of its ‘Regenerative Agriculture based Bee Honey’ and rebranding its base products as
Sri Lankan Ayurvedic Bee Honey – Dark (from the North & North Central Regions) Amber (from the Uva Region) and Gold (from the Sabaragamuwa Region)
The project is focused on establishing the following outcomes
For the consumer:
- Pure, unpasteurised bee honey from home gardens and forest buffer zones.
- Honey that has not been tweaked by supplying sugars or mixing with giant bee honey
- Certifications and data that customers can easily check so they can consumer our bee honey with confidence
- Assurances that we practice bee friendly practices such as minimizing the use of smoke and only taking that which is excess
For the community:
- While we are training and developing our own farmer network we are also seeking to bring in new segments to bee keeping such as women, marginalized communities, youth and senior citizens
- The introduction of the Goodfolks bee honey box
- The highest price paid for bee honey so that these communities see their income levels increase
For the environment:
- Measuring the growth of bee honey colonies and crop yield to demonstrate the impact of a robust bee honey industry
- A low carbon footprint operation using existing resources (Ex electric bikes and the railways) for maintenance, monitoring and collection
- Educating consumers to consume sustainably harvested bee honey vs honey sourced from destructive practices
Please visit our YouTube channel to view some of our own ground work and follow us on our social channels to stay informed about all the good work we are up to