{"id":267402,"date":"2019-05-28T12:44:35","date_gmt":"2019-05-28T10:44:35","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/informante.web.na\/?p=267402"},"modified":"2019-05-28T12:44:35","modified_gmt":"2019-05-28T10:44:35","slug":"seedpods-and-grass-sold-for-survival","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/informante.web.na\/?p=267402","title":{"rendered":"Seedpods and grass sold for survival"},"content":{"rendered":"<div id=\"js_2\" class=\"_5pbx userContent _3576\" data-testid=\"post_message\" data-ft=\"{&quot;tn&quot;:&quot;K&quot;}\">\n<table>\n<caption>Pictured: Men women and children ply their trade in harvested grass and camel thorn seedpods next to the B1 highway north of Windhoek. \u2013 Photos: Marthina Mutanga<\/caption>\n<tbody>\n<tr>\n<td><a href=\"https:\/\/informante.web.na\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/05\/61818250_2263689547031326_6507232863438503936_n.jpg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter size-medium wp-image-267405\" src=\"https:\/\/informante.web.na\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/05\/61818250_2263689547031326_6507232863438503936_n-300x225.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"300\" height=\"225\" srcset=\"https:\/\/informante.web.na\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/05\/61818250_2263689547031326_6507232863438503936_n-300x225.jpg 300w, https:\/\/informante.web.na\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/05\/61818250_2263689547031326_6507232863438503936_n-768x576.jpg 768w, https:\/\/informante.web.na\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/05\/61818250_2263689547031326_6507232863438503936_n.jpg 960w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 300px) 100vw, 300px\" \/><\/a><\/td>\n<td><a href=\"https:\/\/informante.web.na\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/05\/61440001_2263689650364649_1434774653187915776_o.jpg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter size-medium wp-image-267404\" src=\"https:\/\/informante.web.na\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/05\/61440001_2263689650364649_1434774653187915776_o-300x225.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"300\" height=\"225\" srcset=\"https:\/\/informante.web.na\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/05\/61440001_2263689650364649_1434774653187915776_o-300x225.jpg 300w, https:\/\/informante.web.na\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/05\/61440001_2263689650364649_1434774653187915776_o-768x576.jpg 768w, https:\/\/informante.web.na\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/05\/61440001_2263689650364649_1434774653187915776_o-1024x768.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/informante.web.na\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/05\/61440001_2263689650364649_1434774653187915776_o.jpg 1728w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 300px) 100vw, 300px\" \/><\/a><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n<p>Marthina Mutanga<br \/>\nTHE informal sale of grass and seedpods next to the B1 main road has become a profitable business for traders who found a niche in the market in the current drought situation as farmers buy the products on sale.<br \/>\nTHE 30-year-old Anna Thomas who hails from the Ohangwena Region has found alternative ways of making money by selling grass and seedpods to passers-by.<br \/>\nThomas gathers her wares in the bush surrounding Windhoek and sells her products from her stall, by the side of the busy road a few kilometres north of Windhoek. She and other women with roadside stalls use their earnings from selling their wares to buy food and other household essentials.<br \/>\nFarmers pay N$5.00 for a sheaf of grass or N$20 for a ten kilogram bundle of grass sheaves.<br \/>\nAnna said she has been doing the roadside business for the past six years. She normally collects the goods she sells during the week to have it ready for sale on Fridays and Saturdays when farmers return to their farms after doing business in the city during the week. Over weekends is when she sells the bulk of her grass.<br \/>\nThe 27-year- old Kakoto Messa decided to collect camel thorn seedpods at the road side near the Hosea Kutako International Airport during the week. He then moves to the B1 road north of Windhoek over the weekends to sell his product packed in old feed bags. He also sells the product per weight. Farmers buy the seedpods because it is a very good source of nutrition for cattle.<br \/>\nMessa said it normally only takes him half a day to collect enough seedpods to fill ten bags before he brings it to the roadside marketplace over the weekends.<br \/>\n\u201cA day can go by with customers passing by without us doing any sales but I do not give up hope. I keep harvesting and coming back here to sell the grass and seedpods,\u201d said Messa.<br \/>\nMessa like the other traders on the side of the road have no other means to support themselves and the families.<\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter size-full wp-image-267156\" src=\"https:\/\/informante.web.na\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/05\/BlackHouse728x180px.gif\" alt=\"\" width=\"728\" height=\"180\" \/><\/p>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Pictured: Men women and children ply their trade in harvested grass and camel thorn seedpods next to the B1 highway north of Windhoek. \u2013 Photos: Marthina Mutanga Marthina Mutanga THE informal sale of grass and seedpods next to the B1 main road has become a profitable business for traders who found a niche in the &#8230;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":10,"featured_media":267404,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[27,24],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-267402","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-business","category-news"],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v28.8 - 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