EGBF Nov Update

We are pleased to announce that last month’s re-cladding of the factory’s walls was a success.  We sent the sample of our new walls in to be tested and have passed that part of the fire safety inspection. Full certification is ongoing.  We praise God for leading us down this path that spoke of his character and integrity.

The rest of the month has been rather interesting in light of the fact we have been waiting our latest increase of funds to arrive in country.  First our company’s business license had to be updated to reflect the increase of investment capital.  As we waited, our lack of funds on hand made it hard to proceed with some tasks like signing contracts and ordering our organic vegetables, everyone understandably wanted to be paid a deposit.  We therefore had to wait for the money and trust Father that the companies we have been in touch with will still have the amount of produce we need when we were able to pay for it. The procedures are now complete so we are busy securing the contracts we need to move ahead with a slightly delayed goal of full production in January. Please ask that the Father would help us prioritize well during this time.
While waiting for the funds we have tried to push ahead on finishing up our pouch designs.  We have hit a few road blocks in the process, including getting our barcodes and a phone number to print on each package. It has been a challenge to get a phone line.  One company wants us to pay a whole year up front at 10 times the going rate, the other insists we must grease the palm of the man who actually does the installation if we want him to get around to it before February.  Navigating corrupt business practices continues to be a request. With perseverance we have found a solution and the line is being installed as we speak, the installation fee is still a little high, but much cheaper than the alternatives. The big advantage is that the monthly fee is much more competitive (10 times cheaper).

Michael's return was greeted by a new local regulation that requires his whole family to leave the country to process some paperwork. The regulation seems to be the whim of a local official but it is very difficult to argue with as the official concerned has a lot of power to make life very difficult for us. The next month will be very busy preparing paperwork for Michael's trip, taking some key time away from doing the other things we need to do to move forward in our production dates. We are trying hard to remain patient in light of the time and cost this trip will involve. Please ask that our company would continue meeting with favour as we work hard to both honour and  challenge the business environment here.

Thanks for continuing to remember the needs of our company.  May you and your family have a very Happy Holiday season.

Eleanor’s Garden Baby Food Team