East vegetable garden creates jobs for unemployed residents
They started as a group of nine but today only two remain.
An illegal dumpsite-turned-into-vegetable-garden in the east has created jobs for at least four community members already.
The garden was started by James Moyo (55) and Bryan Swart (54) 16 years ago, when they were recruited by South African National Council Alcoholism office in Eersterust to clean the dumpsite.
When they started, there were nine people in the project but only two have remained and have created employment for four more.
ALSO READ: Food in the nude – NZ ditching plastic packaging of fruit and vegetables in supermarkets
Bryan Swart said the Sanca office was experiencing break-ins because of the dumpsite and so decided to invite community members to clean the area up then he and Moyo later decided to create the vegetable garden, which they named Masada.
He said they grew onions, cabbage, spinach, beetroot and the chomolia they are famous for.
“We are grateful for the lot of rain that we had this year. Our food garden has been green and fertile” said Swart.
They get seed from the department of agriculture and sometimes they buy their own.
“We are happy to be working in this garden because we love playing with nature. And we are also grateful for the workshops that we recently got from the department of agriculture.
ALSO READ: Pesticides found in Gauteng fruit and vegetables could pose health risks
“We have been here for a long time and we are not planning to quit anytime soon” said Moyo.
They say most of their customers loved the fresh chomolia because it gave them energy and was good for their health.
The garden also supplied Pick n Pay in Eersterust with fresh chomolia daily. The South African Breweries Watloo depot helps with irrigation.
Their biggest challenge is that they don’t have enough equipment to manage the garden. They said they needed equipment like a sprinkler and a greenhouse net.
“If we can get the right equipment’s, we can be able to supply many supermarkets and our customers who buy in bulk.
ALSO READ: Why you should wash fruits and vegetables before eating
“We now have to turn away some customers because we are not able to supply many,” said Moyo.
One of their loyal customers Nicholas Louw said he loved to buy vegetables from Masada because they were fresh.
“I always buy my vegetables from them because I know that they are fresh from the soil.”
The garden also helps feed needy residents who don’t have money to buy for their families.
Anyone who wish to help Masada garden with equipment may contact Bryan Swart on 078-045-2927.
Do you have more information about the story? Please send us an email to editorial@rekord.co.za or phone us on 083 625 4114.
For free breaking and community news, visit Rekord’s websites:
For more news and interesting articles, like Rekord on Facebook, follow us on Twitter or Instagram
