Thanks to DSTV and BBC Food, I don’t have to travel to the corners of the globe to see what other people eat as well as their culinary habits. That is why I was the cheese guru at a recent New Year’s Eve braai I had with some friends. Most of my fellow darkies didn’t know what to do with the platter of cheese, crackers and blueberry preserve.
I have always marveled at how food plays an integral part in some societies and the town/village life thus revolves around the market. The food market in Marrakech (see attached picture) is the size of four football pitches and is part of a UNESCO World Heritage Site. The hallmark of markets is fresh produce, well relatively speaking. Markets in Chennai might not sell you the freshest produce, but by Chennai standards it is very fresh. This is due to the absence of a long logistics chain that involves a central collection point, grading, distribution, etc. Its from farm to stand within a day.
My first encounter of a ‘market’ was in the former Transkei. There was a place called kwaNtozonke near the Mthatha taxi rank that was set up by the government to house informal traders in one building. This serviced mainly the people who commuted by taxi. It was only later on in life that I finally realized why my parents never bought from the market. It wasn’t really s market, but more a hub of informal traders. None of the people grew the fruit and vegetables they sold. The bananas were still trucked from Durban, the apples from the Western Cape. Prices were cheaper at the super markets and the fruit fresher.
As a country that relies so much on agriculture, I have always been surprised at the lack of markets in South Africa. My mom still grows vegetables on her two hectare plot in the middle of town, and she sells some to neighbours etc. Most she gives to needy kids at her school, who in turn help her with the garden chores. The absence of a market in my hometown has thus had an impact on the amount of pocket money I got as a student. It probably saved me from being an alcoholic. Story for another day.
You will get a market or two in the big cities in South Africa, but although these start as food markets other goods such as crafts from Zimbabwe, kangas and counterfeit soccer jerseys. Food then becomes an added feature.
Is the absence of markets brought about by people growing the same things in their gardens? I don’t think a market selling tropical fruits in Limpopo would survive if it serviced the local economy. Everybody has a mango tree in their back yard.
Or am I just too blind too see that markets cannot really survive in world where supermarkets have a monopoly over the food industry?
Time will tell.
I have always marveled at how food plays an integral part in some societies and the town/village life thus revolves around the market. The food market in Marrakech (see attached picture) is the size of four football pitches and is part of a UNESCO World Heritage Site. The hallmark of markets is fresh produce, well relatively speaking. Markets in Chennai might not sell you the freshest produce, but by Chennai standards it is very fresh. This is due to the absence of a long logistics chain that involves a central collection point, grading, distribution, etc. Its from farm to stand within a day.
My first encounter of a ‘market’ was in the former Transkei. There was a place called kwaNtozonke near the Mthatha taxi rank that was set up by the government to house informal traders in one building. This serviced mainly the people who commuted by taxi. It was only later on in life that I finally realized why my parents never bought from the market. It wasn’t really s market, but more a hub of informal traders. None of the people grew the fruit and vegetables they sold. The bananas were still trucked from Durban, the apples from the Western Cape. Prices were cheaper at the super markets and the fruit fresher.
As a country that relies so much on agriculture, I have always been surprised at the lack of markets in South Africa. My mom still grows vegetables on her two hectare plot in the middle of town, and she sells some to neighbours etc. Most she gives to needy kids at her school, who in turn help her with the garden chores. The absence of a market in my hometown has thus had an impact on the amount of pocket money I got as a student. It probably saved me from being an alcoholic. Story for another day.
You will get a market or two in the big cities in South Africa, but although these start as food markets other goods such as crafts from Zimbabwe, kangas and counterfeit soccer jerseys. Food then becomes an added feature.
Is the absence of markets brought about by people growing the same things in their gardens? I don’t think a market selling tropical fruits in Limpopo would survive if it serviced the local economy. Everybody has a mango tree in their back yard.
Or am I just too blind too see that markets cannot really survive in world where supermarkets have a monopoly over the food industry?
Time will tell.
2 comments:
Perhaps it has to do with the freshness of the food at markets, Lu? I'd love a market where all types of food were sold/cooked.
Imagine a huge outdoor restaurant with flavours from all over the world!
Ali
That would be nice indeed. I wonder how the supermarkets would react. Imagine if you bought freshly baked bread, eggs and veggies instead of popping into the local Woolies.
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