4th South African Essential and Vegetable Oils  Conference

Date: July 2026
Venue: Rosemary Hill, Pretoria

Conference Theme: Treasures of the past, leading to the trophy of the future

Invited Conference Presentation

Beyond the oil: from Crop to Enterprise

Presented by Kate B Nene (Bangiswani K. Sithole) Yeye Farming

In July 2026, I was honoured to be invited to present Beyond the Oil: From Crop to Enterprise at the 4th South African Conference on Essential and Vegetable Oils.

The presentation explored how essential oil production can become the foundation for value-added enterprises through innovation, product diversification, farmer education, agritourism and community development.

Following the presentation, conference organisers and academic representatives requested copies of the presentation for further discussion and knowledge sharing, reflecting growing interest in enterprise development and value addition within South Africa's essential oils sector. 

Beyond the Oil - From Crop to Enterprise 

by Kate B Nene (Bangiswani K Sithole) from Yeye Farming

4th South African Essential and Vegetable Oils Conference

Good afternoon everyone,

It is both a privilege and an honour to stand before people who have dedicated their lives to growing, researching, processing and advancing South Africa's essential and vegetable oils sector.

I would like to thank the organisers for creating this platform where farmers, scientists, government, industry and entrepreneurs can learn from one another.

Today I would like to invite us to look at something we often overlook...

Not the crop.

Not the distillery.

Not even the oil itself.

I want us to look at the opportunities we leave behind.

Allow me to begin with a simple question.

What happens after the oil is extracted?

For many of us... 

The conversation ends there.

The farmer sells the oil.

The truck leaves.

The season ends.

And we begin waiting for the next harvest.

But what if...

The oil was never the destination?

What if it was simply the beginning?

My own journey into essential oils did not begin in a laboratory.

It began in the field.

Like many farmers, I planted because I believed agriculture could create opportunity.

When I harvested my first Rose Geranium crop and produced my first oil, I was excited.

But very quickly I realised something.

The real value wasn't only inside the bottle of oil.

It was everywhere around it.

- the hydrosol.

- the biomass.

- the dried leaves.

- the knowledge.

- the products.

- the experiences.

- the brand.

- the stories.

- the tourism opportunities.

- the training opportunities.

- the communities that could grow around one crop.

That changed how I looked at agriculture.

Many farmers unknowingly fall into what I call The Oil Trap.

We believe that if we can only produce more oil... Everything else will take care of itself.

But increasing production without increasing value often means working harder for the same income.

The world does not simply buy products anymore.

It buys: 

• Experiences.

• Solutions.

• Stories.

• Authenticity.

• Traceability.

• Innovation.

This realization inspired me to write Beyond the Oil.

The book asks one important question.

How do we move from being raw material suppliers...?  to becoming enterprise builders?

Imagine if every litre of oil became...

ten different businesses.

1. Hydrosols…

2. Room sprays…

3. Body care products

4. Cleaning products

5. Herbal beverages

6. Agritourism

7. Training…

8. Seedlings…

9. Farmer education

10. Natural wellness

11. Products.

Suddenly one crop supports many income streams.

That is resilience!

It's time we start to think in a different ways of measuring success,

Perhaps we should begin asking different questions.

Instead of asking,

"How many litres did we produce?"

Maybe we should ask,

1. How many livelihoods did this crop create?

2. How many young people found employment?

3. How many women started businesses?

4. How many communities benefited?

5. How much value remained in South Africa?

Those are the questions that will define the future of our industry.

• South Africa has exceptional growers.

• Excellent researchers.

• Strong institutions.

• Growing markets.

But imagine what becomes possible when these groups work together intentionally.

• Researchers solving farmer problems.

• Farmers informing research priorities.

• Government enabling enterprise.

• Industry opening markets.

• Education preparing the next generation.

That is how ecosystems grow.

Today I would like to invite every person in this room...

Whether you are a 

• farmer...

• A processor...

• A buyer...

• A policymaker... Or 

• researcher...

To ask one simple question..

What opportunity have I stopped seeing?

Because sometimes the greatest opportunity is not what lies ahead of us.

It is what has been sitting beside us all along.

I believe Africa has never lacked resources.

We have often lacked systems that help us recognize their full value.

Our crops are valuable.

But our ideas are even more valuable.

When we move beyond producing oil and begin building enterprises, 

we move beyond surviving to transforming communities.

I hope I did not waste your time..

If today, I have challenged even one person to look beyond the bottle..

If one farmer leaves here seeing ten opportunities, instead of one.

If one young entrepreneur decides to start to build an enterprise instead of selling a crop.

..then these 20 minutes will have been worthwhile .

Thank you.

Conference Outcome

• Invited speaker at the 4th South African Conference on  Essential and Vegetable Oils. Presented Beyond: From Crop to Enterprise.

• Presentation generated interest from industry and academia, resulting in requests for copies from conference organisers and university researchers.

• Contributed to discussions on value addition,  enterprise development and the future of South Africa's essential oils sector.

What if the oil was never the destination? 

What if it was simply the beginning?