Franschhoek's cableway feud

Tensions rise, secrets unfold, and relationships are put to the test.

𝗧𝗵𝗶𝘀 𝘀𝘁𝗼𝗿𝘆 𝗼𝗿𝗶𝗴𝗶𝗻𝗮𝗹𝗹𝘆 𝗮𝗶𝗿𝗲𝗱 𝗼𝗻 𝟮𝟰 𝗢𝗰𝘁𝗼𝗯𝗲𝗿 𝟮𝟬𝟮𝟭. On the menu in the fanciest restaurants in town, escargot is a delicious, mouth-watering delicacy but on a farm in the Western Cape, these humble snails are helping one family build an empire. With eggs that have become an indulgence, selling for up to R30,000 a kilo; shells used for compost; slime for cosmetics and meat that packs a protein punch, there seems almost no end to the value of snails. So, could these creature be the next farming frontier in South Africa? Your favourite episodes are now available on Carte Blanche: The Podcast: https://linktr.ee/carteblanchetv

𝗧𝗵𝗶𝘀 𝘀𝘁𝗼𝗿𝘆 𝗼𝗿𝗶𝗴𝗶𝗻𝗮𝗹𝗹𝘆 𝗮𝗶𝗿𝗲𝗱 𝗼𝗻 𝟮𝟯 𝗝𝘂𝗹𝘆 𝟮𝟬𝟮𝟯. It’s a story that spans continents – from Europe to the USA, and to Kuruman in the Northern Cape. In 2004, Russian oligarch Viktor Vekselberg arrived in South Africa looking for manganese mining opportunities and a BEE partner to win the mining rights. Several politically connected entities jostled for the privilege, but one consortium stood out. It included the ANC's investment holding company, Chancellor House and the little-known Kuruman Community Trust. The consortium won the mining rights and Vekselberg invested $350 million to build the mine. Today, the mine is the third-largest manganese producer in the world and the shareholders should all be reaping the benefits. But that hasn’t been the case for the poor local villagers who are beneficiaries of the Kuruman Community Trust. While the politically connected earn millions from the mine, they’ve been reduced to little more than R1000 a year and an annual Christmas hamper. Believing they were simply used to acquire the mining rights, they survive on pensions and government grants in villages with no running water, no inside toilets, and no jobs. In this two-part investigation, Carte Blanche examines how the poor and disenfranchised were used to line the pockets of the rich. .. Your favourite episodes are now available on Carte Blanche: The Podcast: https://linktr.ee/carteblanchetv

𝗧𝗵𝗶𝘀 𝘀𝘁𝗼𝗿𝘆 𝗼𝗿𝗶𝗴𝗶𝗻𝗮𝗹𝗹𝘆 𝗮𝗶𝗿𝗲𝗱 𝗼𝗻 𝟭𝟲 𝗝𝗮𝗻𝘂𝗮𝗿𝘆 𝟮𝟬𝟮𝟮. When a geneticist from Cape Town headed to Namaqualand to figure out why so many people were developing bowel cancer, he couldn’t have imagined that his research would lead to the discovery of a home-grown genetic mutation affecting generations of people. Now, every year a team of medical experts travels to the far corners of this district, armed with state-of-the-art equipment, to treat those known to be at risk and offer hope for a longer life.