A deep desire to give her children a quiet and safe lifestyle inspired Gugu Mthembu to move her family to a rural area and start a farming business. Today her farm produces mixed crops and specialises in goat farming. “I grew up in a township and when I was older, I yearned to move to a farm to raise my family and to be close to nature,” she said.
Her business, Shazini Farm, has been operating since 2013 and it’s located on 126 hectares of land in Otto’s Bluff Valley near Pietermaritzburg, KwaZulu Natal. The vast land is used to farm vegetables and is home to mixed cattle and goats.
You don’t always reap what you sow
Gugu strongly believes that it’s important to have faith because farming is an unpredictable business. Bad weather conditions, diseases, market prices, rising costs of fertilisers and shifting consumer demands are just some of the challenges that come with farming. “As a farmer, one needs to have faith that there will be enough sunlight and rain to nourish the crops and faith that cattle won’t be infected with diseases,” she said. Having faith that her farming business will be successful is her secret weapon.
It’s all about goats
Shazini Farm is popular for selling different types of goats, even goats that are not usually available in KwaZulu Natal. “I worked together with the Department of Agriculture to learn how to breed certain types of goats instead of buying them from other provinces,” she said proudly. Goat breeding is not easy and Gugu provides training to young people and women who want to learn about goats. She believes that this training will empower them with knowledge so that they will find jobs or start their own businesses.
Facing start-up challenges head on
As a black female-owned business, Shazini Farm has overcome major challenges. Gugu said the challenges started when she was looking for a farm to buy – she noticed that her male peers often overlooked her because they didn’t believe she could run a successful farming business. “Once I overcame start-up challenges, my business flourished because there are many opportunities for female farmers,” she said.
Advice for emerging farmers
Gugu believes there are many business growth opportunities for female farmers and urged young people to grab these opportunities. “You have to knock on doors until you get what you want, it’s not easy but it’s worth it,” she concluded.
Listen to the interview in isiZulu on Khwezo Radio here
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Gugu Mthembu is a participant on the SAB Foundation’s Tholoana Enterprise Programme, an 18-month business accelerator powered by Fetola which supports the lasting success of businesses from across South Africa, particularly those owned by women, youth and people living with disabilities, and those in township and rural areas.
