Browsing by Author "Setati, Matlou Bartina"

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    The availability and diversity of food items sold in spaza shops around the Moletši area in the Limpopo Province : a cross-sectional study
    (Stellenbosch : Stellenbosch University, 2022-04) Setati, Matlou Bartina; Beukes, Ronel ; Stellenbosch University. Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences. Dept. of Global Health. Human Nutrition.
    ENGLISH SUMMARY: Despite interventions through various community programmes, poverty, inequality, and food insecurity still exist in South Africa. Many rural areas still lack good infrastructure for accessibility and availability of nutritious and diverse food products. Spaza shops have and continue to be the main channel through which food is sold in remote areas without formal retail and provincial markets. It is therefore possible that these shops, if well supported, could play a major role in enhancing accessibility and availability of diverse food products to support food and nutrition security. Aim: Due to the rural challenges in formal retail and infrastructure, it was important to understand the availability and diversity of food products sold by spaza shops as well as the challenges these shops may be encountering in ensuring the availability of food products in villages around the Moletši area, Limpopo Province. Method: The study was based on exploratory and descriptive research designs and a quantitative method was undertaken by using a questionnaire to collect the data. The sample size consisted of 41 spaza shops. The collected data was analysed using the latest version of Statistical Package for the Social Sciences (SPSS) software with a focus on the descriptive output. Results: Among others, the study found that the Dietary Diversity Score (DDS) for spaza shops in the area was generally high and not dependent on the period in business and ownership, among spaza shops operating in the Moletši area. The results showed that there is no significant difference between foreign or local ownership nor the period of years in business and the DDS of the spaza shop. The study determined that the most predominantly available products in spaza shops are egg (95.1%), fish, condiments, and maize meal groups (92.7%), sugar-based and fats/oil-based food groups (90.2%), beans food groups (87.8%), meat, mostly chicken organs (85.4%), followed by fruits (70.7%), Vegetables (65.9%) and lastly potatoes (56.1%). The study also sought to understand the reasons behind the lack of availability of some food products. High on the list was the rate at which fruits and vegetables spoiled, making them unfit for human consumption; followed by the inability to stock up on potatoes due to storage and transport challenges. Another reason was the lack of funds for the shops to stock up on products. Socio-economic challenges found in the study correlate with previously reported research and the results indicated that lack of funds (24%), high level of competition (20%), lack of purchasing power/bulk purchasing ability (15%), lack of business management knowledge (12%) and lastly lack of stocking opportunities and transport challenges (7%) were prevalent. Recommendations: Concerning the results presented earlier, opportunity exist in more villages for entrepreneurs to enter the spaza shop sector if financially supported and equipped to mitigate against the challenges indicated. Spaza shops have a critical role to play in providing dietary diversity and spaza shop owners could plough back any profits, if any, equip themselves with business management skills and reach out to government support for additional support to maintain and even expand their businesses. Implications: The research is aligned to previous research in the case of challenges and less availability of fruits and vegetables, although the study area had a high DDS. Spaza shops (local or foreign owned) and related businesses in other rural areas, municipalities, traditional leadership, government business development and funding agencies and policymakers may draw vital lessons from this study.