Practical agriculture is being used to help residents develop the skills to grow food, reduce household costs and create opportunities for greater self-reliance.
Through its Agriculture and Food Security Project, Spiritual Chords has included Orange Farm among several communities receiving agricultural training and support.
Since 2023, the organisation has conducted 15 training programmes reaching 216 recorded participants across Orange Farm, Lawley, Thembelihle, Vlakfontein/Blackfontein, Soweto and other communities.
The programme focuses on establishing productive food gardens and giving participants practical knowledge they can continue using after the training ends.
“The aim is not simply to provide food today, but to equip people with the knowledge and resources to grow food tomorrow,” Spiritual Chords said.
For residents in Orange Farm, sustainable food gardens can help lower grocery costs while creating opportunities to develop agricultural skills and potentially generate income.
The project is also expanding this year, with a target of planting more than 1,200 trees across identified community and educational sites. These include lemons, oranges, avocados and apricots, alongside spinach, cabbage, carrots, coriander and mint.
“Every person trained can take knowledge back to their family and community, helping to create a cycle of food production and skills development,” the organisation said.
