Mulalo Mudau, a female farmer from Maila, was invited to sell her fresh produce directly to the public from Checkers at the Makhado Crossing Mall today (Thursday, 17 November), as part of the Shoprite and Checkers Market Day.
This nationwide initiative was first introduced by Shoprite and Checkers in 2017. According to Sanjeev Raghubir, sustainability manager at the Shoprite Group, the market was introduced to extend their support of the many community food gardens Shoprite and Checkers partners with to help create sustainable livelihood opportunities. It also provides vegetable farmers with an opportunity to sell their fresh produce and earn an income while promoting themselves to a broader audience and gaining valuable retail experience.
The Vhembe region has four food gardens affiliated with Shoprite and Checkers that are run by local communities, who in turn get the opportunity to sell their fresh and organically grown produce directly to the public from selected Shoprite and Checkers supermarkets across the country, provided they meet the required standard of quality and freshness.
Mudau's garden was selected by Checkers, so she gets to sell her produce from the Makhado Crossing Mall. Mudau runs the Marubini Multi-Purpose Women's Primary Cooperative. On her two-hectare land, she grows beetroot, butternuts, onions, okra and spinach. She has three full-time employees, but during harvesting time she hires three more.
Limpopo Mirror caught up with Mudau and asked her why she thought her garden was chosen. "I am a perfectionist in everything I do. I have a procedure that I stick to. I don't take shortcuts, and I guess my dedication comes through my vegetables, which look healthy and appetising," she said.
According to Mudau, anyone, irrespective of gender, can do farming. "Anything is attainable, whether you are a woman or a man. Women are naturally good at nurturing, so farming will be easy for them."