Lungile Mkhize grew up watching her mother use gardening as therapy while growing food for the family in Edendale, Pietermaritzburg, KwaZulu-Natal. That early experience stayed with her, even after she explored opportunities outside farming.
When unemployment forced her to rethink her next step, she decided to start small at home, using the garden and the little capital she had. Today, that decision has grown into Lugcwabe Agric Solutions.
Rooted in resilience and family legacy
After losing her father in 2000, Mkhize’s mother, Thembi, turned to gardening for comfort. Mkhize says the family learned how gardening could help people cope with difficult times while providing food. Each family member had responsibilities in the garden to ensure they had enough to eat.
She had hoped to become a social worker, but her matric points fell short of the requirements. Working in the corporate world also piqued her interest, but her career took a different direction, including a role as a teaching assistant.
Mkhize later studied entrepreneurship and business management at Umgungundlovu TVET College, gaining knowledge of finance, marketing and customer service.
Photo: Supplied/Food For Mzansi
Sadly, her mother also died in 2018, and Mkhize took responsibility for the family’s 269-square-metre garden. Having been involved in gardening for years, she began to see farming’s potential beyond feeding the family and considered turning it into a business.
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Putting her business and marketing skills to the test
Lugcwabe Agric Solutions grows spinach and lettuce on family land. Mkhize currently sells her produce through informal channels and hopes to grow her customer base as the business develops.
She also looked at the businesses operating in her area and noticed a high concentration of coffee shops. Since many serve sandwiches, she sees an opportunity to supply them with lettuce as she works towards growing the business.
“My approach is to produce good-quality crops and let the produce speak for itself. I also want to build reliable relationships with customers,” she says.
Her marketing knowledge helps her identify potential customers and think about what they need. She says her lettuce can sell out as soon as it is ready for the market.
“Spinach is also in demand. We sell it chopped, which makes it easier for busy customers to use.”
Mkhize says her studies have helped her understand how to manage the business side of farming, from budgeting and tracking income and expenses to managing cash flow and saving towards future investments.
“My customer service training helps me work with different people, keep customers happy and look for new ones,” she adds.
She completed an internship with the KwaZulu-Natal department of cooperative governance and traditional affairs (Cogta) between 2024 and 2026.
Overcoming climate hurdles and securing resources
Despite her experience in gardening, Mkhize says farming comes with challenges, particularly when weather conditions and water shortages affect the quality of her crops.
“Sometimes the heat becomes too much, and I do not have a greenhouse to protect my crops. Water has also been one of my biggest challenges since I started farming.”
These conditions can lead to losses when the vegetables do not meet the quality customers expect. Mkhize notes that appearance matters when selling fresh produce, as customers often judge its quality before buying it.
“When the product does not look good, it becomes a loss for the business,” she says.
Although she has been involved in farming for years, Mkhize admits she only began taking the business more seriously in 2026.
Water access remains a concern, but she recently received a JoJo tank donated by the office of ward councillor Nkosinathi Masoeu of UMsunduzi Municipality. The donation, made about a month ago, is expected to help her manage water on the plot.
Cultivating community impact and future expansion
“I want to improve my knowledge of pest and disease control because poor control affects the quality of crops and can make it difficult to supply bigger markets,” she says.
She hopes to learn more and afford irrigation systems to make watering easier and reduce her reliance on watering cans. She also wants to develop her livestock management skills.
Mkhize’s plans extend beyond vegetable production. She hopes to venture into poultry farming, focusing on layer production, as well as food processing.
She sees these areas as opportunities to respond to gaps in her community, create jobs and provide learning opportunities for agriculture students and interns.
She also wants to reach more children’s centres through her educational visits, teaching children about farming and how it can open up opportunities for them.
“I still have that love for serving people, but now I do it differently,” Mkhize says.
For her, farming offers a way to continue serving people, drawing on the lessons she learned in her family garden while building a business that can support her community.
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