Sithembile Ndlovu has transformed her life by establishing a mushroom business using the skills she gained from a food security programme.

Originally from Emdlebeni in KwaDukuza, Ndlovu’s entrepreneurial spirit and dedication to growing her business led to her winning the 2024 iLembe Chamber of Commerce Entrepreneur Competition.

Known as the Mushroom Queen, a title the 39-year-old chose herself to reflect her creative approach to the business, Ndlovu’s journey into farming was unexpected.

Despite growing up in a farming household, she initially wanted nothing to do with agriculture.

However, her perspective changed after she participated in a 2019 training programme hosted by the Mfolozi municipality’s Department of Agriculture.

“We were given seeds ready for planting as part  of a food security initiative. That was when I saw abusiness opportunity,” she said.

As a graduate in business management and financial planning, Ndlovu always dreamed of becoming a business owner.

She set herself a five-year goal to work as an employee before transitioning to entrepreneurship.

Her journey into mushroom farming soon began and she quickly fell in love with the lifestyle. Today, she’s passing down her knowledge to her 14-year-old son, hoping to prepare him for a future when job opportunities are scarce.

Since starting her business in 2022, Ndlovu has expanded. Local is definitely ‘lekker’ as she now supplies fresh oyster mushrooms to local stores, including KwaDukuza Spar, Ballito Food Lover’s
Market, Ideals Butchery, Nature’s Best and Farm Choice Food Market.

Operating out of rooms made available at her church, which provides the indirect sunlight mushrooms need, she’s found a unique way to grow her crops. With increasing demand, Ndlovu’s dream of establishing a dedicated mushroom lab is within reach.

“I used to work out of my kitchen, but now I need more space. I already have four other businesses requesting my services,” she said.

However, she still faces challenges. Ndlovu hopes to acquire a bagging and steaming machine to streamline her production.

“It takes me three to four days to manually prepare the seeds, but with this machine, it would only take one to two days,” she said.

Contact Ndlovu at 064 6373428.

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