The informal food marketing system in urban environments: Case studies of Kagiso and Orange Farm

Abstract

The rapid development of urban townships and the failure of the formal sector to meet the township demand have led to the emergence of informally organised marketing systems, which have certain advantages over their formal counterparts. This note presents the findings of a study on the informal marketing of vegetables and fruit in two townships of Gauteng Province, namely Kagiso and Orange Farm. The data collection procedures are discussed first and then the results are presented with regard to the kinds of vegetables and fruit sold, their pricing, supply and transport, and the constraints faced by informal traders.

Notes

Respectively, Postgraduate School of Agriculture and Rural Development, University of Pretoria; National Department of Agriculture, Pretoria and Department of Development of Agricultural Economics, University of the Free State.