In Kadale Village, Salima District, members of Chifatso Women Group are struggling to keep their fish sausage-making initiative running as rising fish prices and damaged processing equipment threaten an activity they once relied on to generate income.
For Zeres Chibwana, the group’s cluster leader, the challenges have turned what was previously an income-generating opportunity into a difficult undertaking, with members continuing to work despite the growing costs and limitations.
The women travel to buy fish, which they process by removing the flesh, grinding it and mixing it with spices before passing the mixture through a machine to produce sausages.
But the machine has broken down, forcing them to continue using the damaged equipment, which makes the work more difficult and demands extra effort from members.
“Our machine broke down, but we are still forcing ourselves to use it even in its damaged state. It makes a lot of noise and requires considerable effort to operate,” Chibwana says.
The equipment problem comes at a time when the price of fish has also increased, making it more expensive for the women to obtain the main ingredient for their products.
Chibwana says the group previously managed to make some money from sausage production when fish was cheaper, but the situation has changed as the cost of buying fish has risen.
“Fish has become very expensive, and when we make sausages, we no longer make enough money to recover what we spend,” she says.
The challenges raise questions about the sustainability of the group’s processing activities, particularly as members attempt to maintain production without functioning equipment and affordable supplies.
For women involved in small-scale food processing, the cost of raw materials and the condition of equipment can determine whether an initiative remains a source of income or becomes an additional financial burden.
Chifatso Women Group’s activities extend beyond sausage production to promoting improved nutrition and household feeding practices in Traditional Authority Maganga and surrounding communities.
Group promoter Chimwemwe Chipala says the initiative began in 2016 with support from GIZ through CARE Malawi, initially focusing on community education to address child undernutrition and stunting.
Members later incorporated fish powder into their nutrition activities, teaching households how to process dried fish and add it to foods such as porridge and beans to improve dietary diversity.
Chipala says the group has also expanded its work to include breastfeeding, complementary feeding, hygiene, family planning and the importance of consuming foods from the six food groups.
The group’s nutrition activities form part of wider efforts under the Ulimi ndi Chilengedwe (UCHI) Joint Programme, a five-year initiative funded by the European Union under its Global Gateway strategy. UNICEF implements the nutrition component in partnership with the Government of Malawi.
While the programme promotes access to diverse, nutritious and safe foods, Chibwana’s experience highlights the practical challenges community groups face when attempting to turn food processing into a sustainable source of income.
For the women in Kadale, continuing their sausage-making initiative will require finding ways to manage the rising cost of fish and addressing the equipment problems that have made production more difficult.
Without a clearer path to controlling these costs, an activity that once offered the prospect of earning money could become increasingly difficult to sustain.