"Something New": Limpopo Man Turns Sweet Potatoes Into Yogurt Business Pursuing International Market
- Edward Kgarose started experimenting with sweet potatoes in his mother's kitchen before launching a full yoghurt business in Polokwane
- The Limpopo entrepreneur spent four years unemployed after graduating before turning his idea into a factory producing hundreds of units daily
- International buyers from Nigeria, Uganda and Canada have already been calling to get their hands on the product
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A young man from Ga Molepo in Limpopo built a yoghurt business out of a simple question he asked himself in his mother's kitchen: could sweet potatoes become yoghurt?
Edward Molatela Kgarose, founder of Kgarose Kgaros (Pty) Ltd, launched his sweet potato yoghurt brand in 2016 after researching the health benefits of the vegetable and spotting a gap in the food sector. The product, sold under the name Yumkwane, comes in three flavours: banana, strawberry and apricot.
Kgarose completed a qualification in marketing management in 2011 but spent four years struggling to find work. Rather than giving up, he began attending business conferences, which shifted his thinking toward entrepreneurship. His experimenting in the kitchen eventually led to a fully operating factory in Polokwane where sweet potatoes are processed and bottled with care.
Sweet potatoes as a healthier alternative
The science behind the product is straightforward. Sweet potatoes are low in sugar, high in fibre, vitamins and calcium, and carry a neutral flavour that blends easily with other ingredients. Kgarose noted that their high plant protein and low calorie count make them a smart swap compared to other starchy root vegetables.
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The product has passed laboratory testing and is certified safe for consumption. According to a Vukuzenzele report, Kgarose received around R70,000 from the Shoprite Hustle competition and approximately R50,000 after his business won on SABC1's Making Moves entrepreneurial show. Those funds helped him purchase equipment to scale up production.
Plans to go national and export
Kgarose currently supplies two retail stores in Polokwane and employs four people at his factory. He has also been exploring plans to open a facility in Germiston, Gauteng.
His ambitions stretch well beyond Limpopo's borders. He told SABC News that he receives calls regularly from buyers in Nigeria, Uganda and Canada, and he hopes to be producing over 14,000 units daily within the coming year, a milestone he sees as the trigger for national rollout and eventual exports. He said:
"Every day I receive calls from international countries. Those guys are in need of this product because they see it as something new, something unique indeed, but it is something new and something extremely healthy."
View the Facebook post here.
Viewers react to the sweet potato yoghurt story
People watching the clip on the page had plenty to say:
@Marve Mekler Meki wrote:
"The way the reporter is saying yogurt, he was surely craving some of it"
@Rati Matsika said:
"Wow, there is a lot we can do in this world. Thank you"
@Sean Maluleke shared:
"I am glad that I got an opportunity to taste all flavours of this yoghurt. Once you taste it, you will never ask for anything else"
@Emmanuel Mbao noted:
"You're now thinking of exporting... that's interesting"
@Chimanga Kabwe added:
"Yummy from Zambia, I love sweet potatoes"
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- Families in Mpophomeni, KwaZulu-Natal, are turning to food gardens to grow their own produce and cope with difficult economic conditions.
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Source: Briefly News
