By Matṧeliso Phulane
Mosa Ntaote has now spread her wings to form Senqu Muesli, a cereal produced from sorghum.
It is produced under the banner of an already existing company called House of Mosa established and registered in 2020.
“Muesli was launched in December 2022 and its name Senqu Muesli pays homage to the Senqu river where we get sorghum from.
“Our very first harvest of sorghum was from across the Senqu river in an area called Tebellong, from my maternal grandparents’ fields. Also the abundance of sorghum in that area inspired me to seek other ways to use sorghum other than the usual traditional ways of using it as sorghum flour,”Ntaote said.
She said the Senqu Muesli is made from sorghum, nuts and dried fruits. Its gluten free, meaning its ideal for a wide range of health benefits. It can be consumed by diabetics as it regulates high blood pressure. Again, it is good for people with cardio-vascular diseases while also increasing appetite.
Her main raw material is sorghum which she says is abundantly available in the country.
Her target market are people willing to lead a healthy life adding each week she is able to produce a 50kg of muesli.
“To make this product I have learned through trial and error, hence I always loved muesli and just needed a better alternative since the common muesli is made of grains like oats and wheat which have gluten,”Ntaote said
She has currently employed five people who assist her in the production chain.
A shortage of machinery for her production tops the list of the tools to enable increased production.
In addition, she added, a lack of adequate financial resources to cover areas like marketing on a large scale. To overcome this, the company holds small scale marketing campaigns that steadily increase with time.
Aged 35 years, Ntaote was born and bred at Ha ‘Nelese, in Maseru district.
She studied Counselling at the National University of Lesotho and has ever since detoured what she studied into entrepreneurship.
Her love for business growth is at her heart.
“The market is steadily improving and more Basotho are warming up to eating muesli for breakfast. Since we launched we are able to fetch up to M4 000 monthly or more.
“Right now our major goal is to set up a bigger factory. Our business is growing rapidly so much that our small working area is no longer adequate. Our future goal is to be number one manufacturer of quality house-hold goods, offering employment to Basotho and contributing to the economy.
“I think the biggest hurdle entrepreneurs face is starting. I would like to encourage all entrepreneurs to stop sleeping on that dream and get started working towards it. The rest you will figure out as you progress. The best time to start is now,” She concluded.
Each pack of 1kg muesli goes for M80. Those who are interested can contact her on +266- 57893105, or visit her Facebook and instagram page at Mosa Chrissy Ntaote.
