In a week from now, Food For Mzansi fans will be able to read some of their favourite agriculture news and inspiration stories in isiXhosa and isiZulu. This is in addition to the English version that has taken South Africa by storm in the last four years.
The publication’s co-founder and editor-in-chief Ivor Price describes this as a game-changer and a defining moment for Food For Mzansi. Since its launch in November 2018, it has grown into one of the country’s leading agriculture publications reaching more than a million people per month.
“As we speak, our newly-appointed indigenous languages team are working hard for lift-off on Monday, 16 January. We have known for a long time that isiXhosa and isiZulu are among the top languages spoken by Food For Mzansi readers and we’re honoured to now also speak to them in their mother tongues,” says Price.
He looks forward to seeing how future engagement with the publication’s readers will take shape and what the future will look like for Food For Mzansi.
The start of something magical?
“The media should play a much bigger role in promoting African indigenous languages. Our audience is hungry for more authentic and accurate diversity in media, and we hope that this could be the start of something magical,” adds Price.
These sentiments are echoed by Food For Mzansi co-founder and strategy director Kobus Louwrens. He expresses his excitement about the year-long trial project and welcomed the new team members.
He says, “We couldn’t have asked for a greater team, including Slindile Khanyile, editor of Umbele, a Zulu-language business publication; and Mawabo Sijila, an isiXhosa editor at an Eastern Cape university. Nyiko Maluleke is our isiXhosa and isiZulu proofreader and sub-editor.”
Louwrens says he sees making Food For Mzansi content available in indigenous languages as an important step towards the publication meeting its mandate: highlighting and co-creating the new face of South African agriculture. “We work hard to help producers farm smarter and more productively. We believe making this information available in two of the country’s most spoken languages can make a powerful impact.”
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