From her garden to the city!
Cynthia Sekgobela from Zuurbekom in Johannesburg is a woman passionate about community upliftment and healthy living.
She uses her organic produce to 'heal' and uplift her community. Her achaar flavours include beetroot, brinjal and tomatoes. Some ingredients she uses to make her achaar include mixed herbs, coconut oils, and pink salt.
Cynthia started her journey by growing her vegetables, sourcing medicinal herbs, and then selling them to the community.
The woman, who grew up watching her father sell achaar to support the family, followed in his footsteps. Today, she runs Gung's Boerdry, where she employs people from her community.
Who is Cynthia Sekgobela, the woman behind Gung Boerdry that produces the achaar that you sell?
Gung Boerdry is a family business, founded by Cynthia Sekgobela in 2017 in Zuurbekom, West Rand after retirement as as accountant and a tax consulted in 2016.
It started by farming organic vegetables and medicinal herbs and selling them fresh to the neighbourhood and informal market and moved on to supply retailers and Jo'burg Market.
Our main commodities are chillies, beetroot, brinjal, tomatoes, green leafy vegetables and kitchen herbs.
We then moved to Agro-processing after identifying a gap in the Achaar varieties sauces and dried fruits and vegetables.
Tell us about your love for achaar.
I have been a fan of achaar since my primary school days. We used to buy magwinya/kota, achaar and polony from the auntie's ( street hawkers) during break until Form Five (Grade 12) and it was delicious.
My late dad owned shops in Pretoria, Boekenhoutfontein, and he used to mix achaar with peanut butter to stuff the kota, adding more nutrients as kota was a treat in those days and I loved it so much.
Tell us about the day you made your first achaar. How did you feel?
The day that I first made my brinjal achaar, I was anxious to taste it and share it with my family and friends. [ However], it was so delicious and I could not stop sharing the news to my loved ones.
Did someone teach you the skill of making achaar, or are you self-taught?
I am a self-taught. I used to watch my mom who was a home economist and a cook. I used that experience.
It is one thing to enjoy eating something, but it is something else to turn that love into a product you sell. Why did you choose the achaar business?
I choose the achaar business to express my creativity and innovative skills with the health of our people in mind.
There are lots of achaar brands on the market. What makes your business unique?
My brand is unique because it is local manufactured with locally owned organic vegetables and herbs and preserved naturally.
What is your dream for the brand?
To make a positive impact on the lives of our customers by providing them with products that conquer diseases and improve their well-being.
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