Stock up on food
ASINATE Bale has a fortnightly shopping budget of $200.
Her favourite places to shop are Shop N Save supermarket, RB Patel supermarket and MaxVal-u Supermarket.
Mrs Bale’s shopping list includes flour, sugar, rice, dhal, cooking oil, salt and toiletries, to name a few.
“I prefer to stock up on foods because of the current situation we’re in,” she said.
“For vegetables, I just use whatever produce I have left to sell at the end of the day.”
“OUR body is the temple of God, so we need to be careful with what we eat, say and also think about.”
These were the words of Asinate Bale who added, if we don’t take care of our body, then we should be ready to face the consequences of it.
“It’s so important to eat the right kinds of food,” she said. “Eating healthy could help you lose weight, have more energy and prevent many diseases. If you change your eating habits for the better, you should see a big difference.”
Apart from just buying healthy foods and vegetables, people could keep healthy by drinking a lot of water.
“Drinking water is beneficial,” Mrs Bale said.
“Make it a habit to at least drink two litres of water a day because it keeps you hydrated, it flushes out toxins, sends nutrition around your body and aids in digestion. Eighty per cent of the brain is made up of water.”
Mrs Bale who is an Adventist, says she doesn’t allow any junk food at her home.
“With this COVID-19 pandemic, I constantly remind my family to always be careful with what they eat,” she said.
“When you eat right, your health is better and you feel good about yourself. My only advice to shoppers is to read the labels of your items and check the expiry dates before you throw them on to your shopping trolley.”
The 53-year-old is from Ovea, Bau, Tailevu.
She has six children, seven grandchildren and has been a market vendor for 20 years at the Suva Municipal Market.
She has been selling her fresh produce at the Lami market for two months now.
“Market vending is the only source of income for her family,” Mrs Bale said.
“This has helped me to put food on the table, pay for my children’s education and also pay for our bills.”