Food garden changes lives

An initiative of the Dis-Chem Foundation, a community gardening project, is changing lives in a sustainable way in the Midrand area, and the word is out that they will be replicating this project in other areas.

The project generates donations of fresh produce to various NGOs every week and is now expanding. The second phase will launch in March to involve and empower surrounding communities.

The project will provide NGOs with everything they need to grow their own nutritious vegetables and herbs for home use or to sell.

The Dis-Chem Foundation was started by Dis-Chem Pharmacies to assist those in need. Over the years they have noticed the need for food – from children’s organisations to old age homes – increasing significantly, receiving about 8 000 requests from communities every month.

In August 2013 the transformation of vacant land, owned by Dis-Chem and situated next to its head office in Midrand, started and it was decided to employ natural methods, without the use of artificial fertilisers or insecticides.

Good vegetables provide good nutrition without harming the environment. It is now a burgeoning vegetable garden that already provides food for more than 5 000 people, a project which many residents in the south would appreciate.

Lynette Saltzman of the Dis-Chem Foundation said, “The success of this vegetable garden has exceeded all our expectations. What was formerly a forlorn and empty piece of land, has been transformed into a thriving food garden that will actively change lives and contribute towards an overall sense of community.”