AGAINST ALL ODDS ENTREPRENUER OF THE YEAR

Ncumisa Mkabile is a young farmer and entrepreneur from the Khayelitsha township in Cape Town. Mkabile is also an award-winning business owner. In 2020, she won the “Against all odds entrepreneur of the year.”

In 2022, she won the “Realise a Dream” competition, and she was recently appointed Youth Leader for the African Farmers Association of South Africa in the Western Cape. In 2020, she had to close her catering business due to the pandemic. Among her clients are UNICEF, Trace Urban, Blue Ribbon, and BarOne.

Can you tell us about your business and what inspired you to start it? The name of my business is called Dawana Fresh Produce, we specialise in crop and poultry farming. I started farming in March 2020 when I had to close down my catering business due to the pandemic.

Can you tell me about the type of farming you do? My business focuses on organic farming.

How big is your farm? My farm is one hectare.

How does the weather affect your work ? It doesn’t affect my work in any negative way because I know what to plant when the weather changes.

Can you tell me if you use sustainable or organic practices? I use organic practices.

How would you define sustainable agriculture? Sustainable agriculture is one of the most important things to consider when becoming a farmer because it’s about protecting the soil for future generations, and being mindful of the chemicals you use in growing your products because they may adversely affect the soil and the consumer.