Michele Macfarlane, the 53-year-old mother of four, writer and advocate for visually impaired people, is also a competitive surfer representing South Africa abroad.
Even though cotton is grown in South Africa, most is exported for processing and manufactured into clothing items, before being imported again
As apparel retailers and brands scramble to try to disentangle their cotton supply chains from possible links to forced labour abuses in Xinjiang province, China is likely to be looking for alternative markets for its fibres – presenting new challenges for countries like South Africa.
Allegations that ethnic minority labourers in the Xinjiang region in China – which produces 85% of the country s and 20% of the world s cotton – are forced to pick cotton by hand through state-mandated schemes first surfaced more than a year ago.
South Africa: Competition Commission to probe ginger and garlic price hikes
South African consumers have been venting their frustrations on Twitter over the skyrocketing prices of ginger. These Prices have increased, with consumers sharing images of prices as high as R400 (€2.40) per kilo.
In July 2020, Food Lover’s Market was found by the Competition Commission to have contravened the Competition Act after it admitted to charging excessive prices for “essential” raw ginger sold at its Westgate store.
Silindile Gumede, from Woolworths, admitted that there had been increases in their ginger pricing. However, they did try to keep it at the absolute minimum.