From Scarcity to Surplus

2 Kings 7:1 “…This is what the Lord says: About this time tomorrow, a seah of flour will sell for a shekel and two seahs of barley for a shekel at the gate of Samaria.”

The Mutarara District of Tete Province in Mozambique is a unique location that is full of extremes: it either has drought or floods. Most recently, the state of food security in the region swung drastically from acute scarcity after a heavy flood to an over-abundance of vegetables – a glut.

Local farmers who participate in World Renew’s food security project in Mutarara were hit by another round of flooding between January and February 2013. The project is supported by the Food Resource bank and managed by one of World Renew’s church partners in Mozambique, the Igreja Reformada em Mozambique (IRM). Many of the flood victims had lost hope that they would ever get over this most recent disaster. However, World Renew provided 21.32 MT (23.5 tons) of improved seeds to the disaster survivors and not only brought hope to the flood victims, but also enabled farmers to produce so many vegetables that they now have in surplus!

“If it was not for these seeds, many people here would be suffering.”

As we visited several farms in three communities in Mutarara in mid-September 2013, we were both surprised and dismayed that many fields were still full of over-ripe tomatoes that were going to waste. When I asked one of the farmer, why the fruit was being left to rot, he replied that the price was so low that it did not make economic sense to harvest the tomatoes and transport them to the market only to sell them at a loss.

One of the families we visited in Velha, Mutarara, participates in the food security project and appeared to have found a solution to saving their surplus. Khembo and Fatima decided to blend and grind the tomatoes into paste and store it in plastic containers sealed with a layer of oil. They explained that the tomatoes stay fresh for several weeks this way and maintain their color and taste as well.

Khembo said that a container of their tomato paste can be sold at about 250MT (US$8.40) in the off season-much higher than the current 100MT (US$3.35) that they currently bring at the market. We also learned that other farmers were drying their tomatoes to store for the off-season to avoid a total loss.

This experience is challenging both the farmers and World Renew staff to strategically plan the type of seeds that are distributed and their days to harvest so that farmers can better benefit from a greater variety of crops that are available year-round.

Through learning and adjusting, World Renew and our partners will continue to work with local farmers in Velha improve their harvests so that nutritious food is available to them year-round. The seeds they received from World Renew in May 2013 provided them with a good harvest and a good problem – a surplus! One farmer, Jorge Armando from the village of Jardim, said, “If it was not for these seeds, many people here would be suffering.”

To God be the glory!

Pray for Mozambique

Praise God for the safety and journey’s mercies that Istifanus has enjoyed as he visited World Renew Partners over the last few months.
Praise God for the new leaders for World Renew’s partner, IRM (Reformed Church of Mozambique, Mphatso Synod), that were elected in August 2013. Pray for wisdom and unity for the new synod executive committee as they lead the church.
Continue to pray for fruitful ministry of World Renew partners in Mozambique, IRM and the Anglican Diocese of Mozambique, that their ministries will impact and improve the lives of the poor.
Pray for Istifanus and Esther, for strength and grace as we continue to serve among World Renew partners in Mozambique, that God would bless this ministry.

Yours, In His Service,