- Thembalethu Dyalivani sells sheep feet for R8 each in the streets of Khayelitsha to support his children.
- He wakes up early, cooks outside using firewood, and walks for hours despite swollen feet and robbers who steal his food.
The 48-year-old from Khayelitsha, Cape Town, cooks and sells sheep feet to put food on the table.
He walks door-to-door in the township selling each sheep foot for R8.
“Preparing them is not easy,” he said. “I dry them, put them in the fire, clean them and cook them for hours.”
He uses firewood to cook outside. A single bag of wood costs him R120.
But Dyalivani’s biggest challenge is the thugs who rob him. “They take and eat without paying,” he said.
Some customers also ask for food on credit, but don’t come back when it’s time to pay. “Even when they promise to pay on a certain date, I still have to chase them.”
Every day, Dyalivani wakes up early to start the long cooking process. He leaves the house at 2.30pm to start selling.
“I come back with swollen feet but I push on. I do this for my children,” he said.
Even though he doesn’t know exactly how much he makes a month, it is enough to buy food for his family.
“People love meat and eat it every day. I don’t have to wait for pay day to make money.”
He buys food combos to last the whole month. “We stick to the basics. No red meat or cereal. We eat tins and chicken, what we can afford.”
He also uses his earnings to pay for the family’s funeral insurance.
Pictured above: Sheep feet
Image credit: Supplied
