Dancing Goat Creamery Products and Bushblok are Now Certified Wildlife Friendly®

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Contact: Liz Georges, Communications Coordinator, liz@cheetah.org

Dancing Goat Creamery Products and Bushblok are Now Certified Wildlife Friendly®

September 12, 2013 (OTJIWARONGO, Namibia) – Cheetah Conservation Fund (CCF) is pleased to announce that both its Bushblok fuel logs and its Dancing Goat Creamery dairy products have been accepted as Certified Wildlife Friendly® by the Wildlife Friendly Enterprise Network (WFEN). Certified Wildlife Friendly® develops, certifies and promotes products and practices that conserve threatened wildlife while contributing to the economic vitality of rural communities. Both the Bushblok and Dancing Goat Creamery products will now feature a specially-designed label indicating that they have met WFEN’s standards for certification.

“We’ve been involved with WFEN since its inception,” says Dr. Laurie Marker, Founder and Executive Director of CCF. “We believe strongly in the power of consumer choice to promote conservation. By allowing those who utilise predator-friendly farming practices to promote their products with a certification, you create a premium on those products that benefits both the farmer and the predators.”

Dancing Goat Creamery is part of CCF’s mission to conserve wild cheetah populations in Namibia. By creating a model farm alongside its celebrated Livestock Guarding Dog Programme, CCF is able to demonstrate how local farmers can be successful using non-lethal predator management strategies to protect their livestock and thus their livelihoods.

All of Dancing Goat Creamery’s products use milk from CCF’s Saanen and French Alpine dairy goats. CCF currently milks over 15 goats daily. CCF’s Feta is a firm, salted, fresh cheese, cured in brine, available as cut blocks in light salt brine, or as a small cheese wheel. CCF’s Chèvre is a soft, light-textured, goat cheese with mild flavour. Chèvre is sold as a log in vacuum packs or in bulk containers for larger quantities.

Dancing Goat Creamery cheeses, ice creams, and fudge are available for purchase every day at the Cheetah Conservation Fund’s Centre near Otjiwarongo. The Creamery’s large viewing windows allow visitors to watch the cheese making process. Cheese platters are available at the Centre’s Cheetah Café with homemade bread, and can be followed by a delicious dessert of CCF’s homemade ice cream or fudge. Creamery products are also available for purchase at several Namibian businesses including Maerua Superspar, Fruit & Veg City, Geocarta Namibia, and Pure & Simple in Windhoek; Desert Hill in Swakopmund; Spar in Omaruru; and Theo’s Spar in Otjiwarongo. For more information or to place an order, contact Creamery Manager Hanlie Visser, (067) 306225, tourism@ccfnamibia.org.

Bushblok is produced by CCF Bush Pty, Ltd., which was established by CCF. Bushblok is a low emission, high efficiency fuel log made from processed thornbush. Namibia’s farmlands are choked with thornbush, which not only reduces the available range lands for cheetahs, but the potential farmlands for Namibians. Bushblok is The Forest Stewardship Council (FSC)™ (FSC-C004580) certified, meaning that it is harvested sustainably. Bushblok has received the Tech Museum’s Intel Prize for the Environment in 2008 and was one of only 12 finalists of the prestigious 2009 BBC World Challenge.

Bushblok is useful for cooking fires, braai, home heating, and industrial heat applications. As a result of the extrusion process, it has a caloric value approaching coal, some 4870 Kcal. It has an after burn ash content of 0.35-0.5% and is classified as a Smokeless Fuel. For more information on where you can purchase Bushblok, visit https://www.bushblok.com.

Founded in Namibia (Africa) in 1990, Cheetah Conservation Fund (CCF) is the global leader in research and conservation of cheetahs. CCF is dedicated to saving the cheetah in the wild. CCF’s Founder and Executive Director, Dr. Laurie Marker, an American biologist, is considered one of the world’s foremost experts on cheetah biology, ecology and conservation and has developed CCF’s conservation strategy, which has contributed to increasing the wild cheetah population in Namibia by ~50%. CCF’s long-term studies analyse and monitor the factors affecting the cheetah’s survival in the wild, and results are used to develop conservation policies and education programmes that have reached over 300,000 people. CCF is a registered nonprofit in Namibia, Canada, UK and the US, where it is listed as a “Four Star Charity” by Charity Navigator, which recognises sound fiscal management and commitment to accountability and transparency. People can learn more about CCF or make a donation to the organisation by visiting www.cheetah.org.

Certified Wildlife Friendly® is a trademark of the Wildlife Friendly Enterprise Network (WFEN). WFEN is a global community dedicated to the development and marketing of products that conserve threatened wildlife while contributing to the economic vitality of rural communities. WFEN includes conservationists, businesses, producers and harvesters. For more information on Certified Wildlife Friendly® or WFEN, visit www.wildlifefriendly.org.