Communities encouraged to produce own food

WITH food prices skyrocketing daily, communities are advised to re-think the concept of using their gardens to produce their own food.

In 2010 the KwaZulu-Natal Department of Agriculture and Rural Development (DARD) undertook to assist small farmers and agricultural co-operatives with implements, advice and seeds to produce their own food.

uMhlathuze Municipality Agricultural Office Manager SA Shandu said DARD provides small farmers with knowledge through their agricultural advisers who take soil samples, and then determine what kind of crop can be planted in a particular area.

‘Our advisers visit the local co-ops and then disseminate information about the soil types, water requirements and other necessary information for them to produce healthy crops.

‘They also attend community Operation Sukuma Sakhe (OSS) meetings, where they provide communal farmers with similar information,’ Shandu said.

‘Agricultural tools are kept at the uMhlathuze office, and then distributed to co-ops around the district.

‘The ones currently stored with us belong to the Nongoma co-ops. The drought has compelled us to keep the implements here until the rains come.