Horticulturist family decries high diesel costs
Lesedi Mkhutshwa | Thursday May 18, 2017 14:56
The farmers stated this during a media tour organised by the Local Enterprise Authority (LEA) for its Small, Medium and Micro Enterprises (SMME) in the Central District recently.
The tour was intended to create a platform for the media to engage and interact with various LEA clients in Letlhakane, Serowe and Palapye as well as to appreciate the impact the Authority’s interventions in the growth of the businesses.
Oduetse Oscar Ramonameng and his spouse Keneilwe Ramonameng, the owners of a horticultural farm called Ovine Farms said diesel prices were their main hindrance in producing vegetables. The couple said diesel prices had the potential of throwing them out of business.
“We are feeling the pinch of high diesel prices. Diesel is the only fuel we use for harvesting and irrigation equipment, as well as for fertiliser application and transportation of crops to the market. “We use up to 30 litres per hour on cabbage produce, which translates to P360 per day and close to P10,800 per month,” Keneilwe said. She said Ovine Farms also uses up to 50 litres of diesel a day pumping borehole in order to water the produce during rain-free days. “During summer we end up using P600 per day on diesel, which is expensive,” she said.
She added that the fuel costs slightly decline during winter as the produce does not have to be watered as regularly. “We use approximately close to 20 litres of diesel or less per hour during winter, which means that we end up using only P240 or less per day,” she said.
The entrepreneur disclosed that before meeting LEA in 2007, the business was on the verge of collapse as the couple was unable to meet all the production requirements.
LEA’s intervention included entrepreneurship development training, business plan facilitation, horticulture techniques, trade show readiness, training on branding, labelling, packaging, marketing skills and others.
Keneilwe said due to the training obtained, Ovine now has about 20,000 cabbage heads ready for market and 10,000 seedlings in the nursery.
“The current demand for cabbage in the market is 800 per day, but our production can only manage to supply for three weeks. “Production period takes up to four months, which normally delays the supply of vegetables. “Some of our customers feel that I am an unreliable supplier because I cannot meet the market demand,” she said.
Oduetse explained that Olive Farms started off in small stock and later diversified to horticulture. He said that they are currently supplying cabbages and other vegetables to retail outlets such as Choppies, Sefalana, Spar as well as to hawkers.
“Our net income for cabbage is between P20,000 to P30,000 per month,” he disclosed.
Ovine Farms also has small stock production with 25 sheep and 20 goats as well as 12 cattle which are being bred for sale. g to people in this country, giving them loan after loan, bo machonisa and others also involved, without giving them advice, is killing our people.”
- Balisi Bonyongo