For a family of big eaters, Mayi Market produce has proven to be more affordable than the produce sourced from local supermarkets, according to Mossman resident and regular Mayi Market customer Deidre Murray. She also claims that it has helped steer her back toward a more healthy and wholesome diet. “The Mayi Market helps a lot with healthy eating,” she says. “I get many unexpected family visits around my house, and I always like to offer them something to eat. They’re all big eaters. Since I started with Mayi Market, my shelves are full.”
Deidre has been using the Mayi Market service for more than four months now, and says that the whole process, from initial sign-up to ordering her food boxes, has been easy and affordable. “I was reading about it one time when I visited O-Hub, and I remember thinking ‘this sounds like a good idea’,” she says. “Now, I just give O-Hub a call each fortnight, and my coach-consultant comes to visit with some order forms.”
Deidre is a creative cook, and says that she enjoys making many different dishes with her Mayi Market produce. “I love the fruits and the meat. I like to make roasts and salads, and also cold meat sandwiches,” she says. Deidre now recommends the service to her family. “I recently recommended [the Mayi Market] to my niece and told her that it would save her a lot of money and hassle. I hope she has signed up now,” she says.
The Opportunity Hubs — or O-Hubs — located in the Cape York welfare reform communities have been an indispensable part of the Mayi Market’s distribution process, a sentiment shared by Deidre. “Without the O-Hubs, [Indigenous people] wouldn’t have help the way we have it now. With the Mayi Market, they’re willing to help people as far as Wujal Wujal, which is really good,” she says.
The Mayi Market service, products and delivery operations have been designed in consultation with stakeholders in its serviced communities, according to project lead Rohan Gupta. It treats its customers, such as Deidre, more like partners in the venture. They are able to give regular feedback on the contents of their food boxes. “Right from the initial idea through to the frequency of deliveries and content of the boxes … all of this has almost entirely been brought about by the women of Cape York,” says Rohan. Deirdre certainly has a unique recommendation for future food boxes. “I’d like to see more organ meats,” she says. Rohan is open to her idea. “If that particular demand becomes adopted by a wider proportion of the customer base, then it is certainly something that we are prepared to accommodate,” he says.
Concerning the Mayi Market in a more general sense, Deidre’s advice to potential customers is far more succinct. “Just sign up,” she says.
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