Social & Environmental Impact

Job creation

Botanican has created 26 jobs in the Ha Rakolo community (3 full time and 23 seasonal), through cultivating its 0.5Ha operation. The site has the potential to grow up to 8Ha, and with this the number of jobs will also increase.

While jobs are an important contribution, Botanican’s goal is to build a
network of farmers operating under the Botanican licence, cultivating
their own land. Some of the farmers in the Botanican team own land
adjacent to the current site. They are learning to cultivate biodynamic,
regenerative cannabis, and as demand for our products grows, they will
be able to farm on their own lands. Hence, the potential exists for these
farmers to build their own farming operations, create jobs in their
communities and build intergenerational wealth in Ha Rakolo.

Soil health

Soil erosion is a challenge facing much of Lesotho, and the soil on Botanican’s site needs a lot of nurturing. To boost soil health, Botanican employs a number of regenerative practices, including:

• Low till farming
• Cover crops
• Welcoming livestock from the community to graze in our fields
• Using only organic fertilisers and manures

With each season, the health of the soil improves, and so do our yields.

CO2 Absorption

Each 0.5 hectare absorbs 11 tonnes of CO2, which is about the same as 65 trees. We are very much looking forward to when our fully cultivated 8Ha site will sequester 176 tonnes of CO2 per year.