Cake successfully closes phase 1 of its
anti-poaching initiative
Silent electric motorbikes proven to stop illegal attacks on wild animals in Africa
TUESDAY, JANUARY 25TH - STOCKHOLM, SWEDEN - CAKE, the Swedish maker of premium lightweight, electric motorbikes, today announces that it has closed phase 1 of its joint initiative for anti-poaching, together with the Southern African Wildlife College – the Electric Bush Bike Anti Poaching Act.
The project officially started in September 2021 when the first shipment of electric bush bikes - optimized to support wildlife rangers in anti-poaching - were delivered in Africa. Rangers have since become accustomed to the new bikes and have been using them for wildlife conservation purposes; already stopping illegal attacks on wild animals, including several types of antelopes (Suni, and Red and Blue Duiker).
”We are very proud to be partnering with Cake to test these electric off-road bikes given the impact that this could have on countering poaching across Africa,” said Theresa Sowry, CEO, Southern African Wildlife College, when the collaboration was announced.
“Offering multiple solutions to general challenges in transportation, our lightweight and silent electric motorcycles have proven to be a winner in areas with sensitive environments and uncertain supply of traditional fuel. Supporting anti-poaching is an amazing example of where our bikes are making a real difference to urgent challenges in our society,” says Stefan Ytterborn, founder and CEO of Cake.
The Anti-Poaching initiative
In close collaboration with the Southern African Wildlife College, Cake's engineers developed the Electric Bush Bike. The result was a silent, purpose-built electric off-road motorcycle that allows rangers to approach poachers without being detected, and paves the way for more efficient anti-poaching patrols in the region. Traditional combustion engine motorcycles require costly, inconvenient, and unsustainable deliveries of fuel to support the ranger teams as they work deep in the African bush. Those deliveries, by diesel trucks and even helicopters, further drive up the cost of anti-poaching patrols and cause even more pollution in environmentally sensitive areas. With Cake’s electric bikes for anti-poaching, rangers are equipped with mobile power stations and solar panels to charge the bikes with renewable power from the sun, allowing them to operate off the power grid and independent of traditional power sources.
Cake’s original Electric Bush Bike, with the model called Kalk AP, has only been available for Cake’s customers to buy in a special charity bundle where the buyer gets one bike and another bike is sent to Africa, together with necessary equipment for independent off-the-grid charging.
Summary of Phase 1
Thanks to Cake’s customers and external support, Southern African Wildlife College has to date received donations of equipment worth more than EUR 300,000. This includes 10 bikes, batteries, mobile charging stations, solar panels, lamps, and more.
First animals have been protected from poaching thanks to silence. In the areas where the Southern African Wildlife College has chosen to use the first bikes, the clear advantage of silent bikes has been confirmed. The bikes have proven very successful during conservation, especially during night shifts, and have to date protected different species of antelopes, especially suni, but also on red and blue duiker.
After just five months, Southern African Wildlife College’s running costs for anti-poaching have seen a significant cut. Avoiding unsustainable deliveries of gasoline to the distant places where rangers are operating, with helicopters or trucks, have resulted in major savings in both costs and CO2 emissions.
Important cost savings also means more budget. This can be allocated to salaries, hiring more rangers, and increased capacity for example.
Visit Cake at Outdoor Retailer 2022
The increased efforts and next phase of the project will be presented at the Outdoor Retailer show in Denver, CO, opening on January 26th, 2022. Attendees of Outdoor Retailer 2022 in Denver, CO, 26-28 January can visit Cake in booth #41029-UL.
Further information:
Media inquiries: christian.lundgren@ridecake.com
Cake pressroom: ridecake.com/en/pressroom
About CAKE
CAKE is a Swedish company with a clear mission to inspire towards a zero-emission society, by combining excitement and responsibility in its development of light, quiet, and clean high-performance electric motorcycles and mopeds. Its first model, the Kalk, debuted in January 2018 and received numerous accolades, including the 2019 and 2020 Red Dot Design Award, IF Design Award, Automotive Brand Contest Award, and “Best in Show” designation by several outdoor industry publications. In 2019, Cake launched the Ösa, a utility platform with an integrated power station and off-road capabilities, which extended their award-winning streak. Cake expanded into the race scene in November 2020, launching the Kalk OR Race and Kalk INK Race. In September 2021, Cake released a convenient and light city moped, the Makka, expanding the user matrix further. Building on Cake’s existing platforms, the :work series of bikes optimized for professional use, including last-mile delivery and service applications, was launched in November 2021.
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