A labour of love
Showing no signs of slowing down, Elize and her staff will continue producing the divine jam well into the future.
A sweet tooth savours its flavour; a treat cultivated in the heart of KwaZulu-Natal.
Every year, businesswoman, Elize Conradie and her staff work around the clock to produce a delicious purple jam called umsobo.
“When I moved to Botha’s Pass, every housewife would cook it for themselves, so I started too,” Elize explained. “My mother-in-law showed me the ropes.”
On the outskirts of the Ingogo River, pickers spend hours braving the blistering heat on the Conradie farm, handpicking buckets full of nightshade.
With no set working hours and an opportunity to make extra money, labourers travel from surrounding areas, keeping the legacy of umsobo alive.
“Everyone who wants to work is welcome to. I pay them per kilogram, so it depends on how hard they want to work. It’s open to everyone.”
Once the berries are washed and weighed, they are left to simmer on the stove top for less than an hour at the end of each day. Before it congeals, the sticky jam is bottled and set aside.
“Umsobo is cooked on the same day the berries are picked. It’s as fresh as it gets.”
Towards the end of the season, Elize extracts the seeds, and replants them for the following season.
“The seeds are tiny, and it takes a lot of work to harvest them. Once the plants have grown enough, they are transferred to the crop fields.”
Commenting on the challenges faced when it comes to producing umsobo, Elize said the heavy hail the province experienced earlier this year took its toll on the season’s yield.
“It hurt us, but it could have been worse,” she added.
Ancient history
When Elize moved to Botha’s Pass, she spent her time teaching the locals how to do needlework.
Once they had furthered their skills and showed proficiency in crafting beautiful creations, Elize decided to establish a farm stall, where the items would be sold.
Wasting little time, she purchased an old post office building, breathing new life into the century-old structure.
Here, the Bothaspas Kontreiwinkel was born, just 30 kilometres from Newcastle.
“That’s why I started all of this,” she reminisced.
Soon, Elize began selling her homemade jams at the store, never expecting to have to supply umsobo to cities as far as Cape Town by 2016.
From weeds to wonder
Although nightshade is technically considered a weed, there’s no denying it makes for a delicious treat.
While some believe the plant may be toxic to livestock and humans, Elize said a student from the University of Pretoria disproved this theory.
“She did her thesis on nightshade, and proved it was safe for consumption.”
Toiling away in the field, labourers, Stephen Khumalo and Ncamisile Mkhulisa said they used their earning to support their families and purchase clothes.
“It’s hard work, but I like being here,” Stephen said. “I can fill a seven litre container in a day.”
Showing no signs of slowing down, Elize and her staff will continue producing the divine jam well into the future.
“All we add is the berries, salt, a bit of water and sugar to the mix. Last year, we made about 15 000 bottles and people love it,” she concluded.
There’s no secret ingredient; umsobo is the product of a labour of love!
