Historically breads have been an important part of traditional diets around the world. The recipes for bread made at International Community Bakeries are carefully crafted and reflect the needs of the particular location. Our breads are made from a blend of local ingredients (whenever possible) and nutritional supplements.
Bakeries can be made out of converted shipping containers, brick and mortar or modular, whichever is most cost effective. A reliable source of water and adequate power (electric, diesel, gas all possibilities) are required but depending on location, generators and water storage tanks are all possibilities.
“Care for us and accept us — we are all human beings.
We are normal. We have hands. We have feet.
We can walk, we can talk, we have needs just like everyone else — don’t be afraid of us — we are all the same!”
“Dearest Rosalia,
You are a miracle, a saint and an inspiration
May love shine on you and the children forever
We will always support your efforts”
Nkosi Johnson spoke those words at the 13th annual AIDS conference held in Durban South Africa in the year 2000. He had been infected with HIV since birth and was just eleven years old. When he died less then a year later, he had the distinction of being the longest surviving child with HIV.
Nkosi’s bakery opened on World AIDs Day, December 1,2009. It continues to feed the resident moms and their kid’s healthy whole grain bread and supplies other organizations in surrounding communities. Plans are in the works for a second bakery at Nkosi’s 4Life farm, a self-sustaining “Kabbutz” style farm for HIV/AIDS infected moms and their children.
Rosie’s bakery has another very important function, to train disadvantaged youth. In a pilot program, two young women were referred from the Child Headed Homes Project, a program to help children taking care of their siblings without any adult supervision. They were trained in bread making and employed by the bakery enabling them to support the rest of their family. In the future this program will be expanded. As with all Baphumelele projects, an important goal of the bakery is to enable young people to go out in the world and have the skills to be able to live full productive lives.
“Haiti should remind us all that there is an immediate need to invest in and promote long-term development projects that are sustainable, scalable, and proven to work.”
Soul Of Haiti has been very active in the community initiating projects from street cleaning to the painting of buildings with Merci Bon Dieu Bolangerie as a centerpiece. The bakery employs 4 young men from the neighborhood as well as Grandoit and his wife. An expansion is already underway and a training program for bakers is being developed.
AFFILIATIONS
One of the organizations International Community Bakeries has chosen to work with is Enactus (formerly SIFE). Enactus's mission is "To bring together the top leaders of today and tomorrow to create a better, more sustainable world through the positive power of business."
We believe the partnership between International Community Bakeries and Enactus University teams with the guidance and help of the corporate world can make a real difference in poor, underserved communities around the world.
We are presently working with Enactus teams on multiple bakery projects in the U.S. as well as Africa.
Co founder Neil Ratner (photo center) has been a judge at the 2011 South African SIFE (now Enactus) National finals as well as the 2011 SIFE World Cup in Malaysia. He will be judging both in the US and Africa in 2012.
BRANDS WE WORK WITH
