At a time when millions of young South Africans are struggling to find work, Mpumalanga entrepreneur Lebo Mashigo has turned her mother’s backyard egg business into a commercial poultry enterprise producing nearly a million eggs a month and employing 20 people.
The 35-year-old founder of Eggsellent by Lebo has built an operation housing 30 000 chickens in Kwaggafontein, under Thembisile Hani Local Municipality, supplying supermarkets, restaurants, hotels, bakeries and boarding schools.
Remarkable journey
Mashigo’s remarkable journey demonstrates how entrepreneurial determination, backed by government funding, traditional leadership and access to markets, can transform rural economies and create desperately needed jobs.
According to Statistics South Africa’s second-quarter 2026 labour force survey, unemployment reached 33.6%, leaving 8.5-million people without work. Among young people aged 15 to 34, unemployment stood at a staggering 47.4%.
Mashigo knows that struggle.
In 2019, after several unsuccessful business ventures, she returned to her mother’s home in Mandlethu village while raising her baby. Determined to escape unemployment, she began buying eggs in small quantities and reselling them.
Rural challenges
“I knew the challenges of being unemployed in a rural area. I had to find a way to support myself and my child,” she said.
Her breakthrough began with a National Youth Development Agency grant in 2020, which helped expand her stock and customer base.
But progress came at a painful personal price. “There were days when I had to choose between buying milk formula for my child and buying feed for my chickens,” Mashigo said.
In 2021, unsuitable feed contributed to a devastating production setback, leaving her chickens consuming resources without producing the expected eggs.
“I wanted to give up. I was investing in chickens that were not laying eggs but they were eating the feed I had bought.”
Golden opportunity
In 2023, Mashigo secured an opportunity to present her business plans to a provincial panel that included former premier Refilwe Mtshweni-Tsipane.
The provincial agriculture department subsequently supported infrastructure development, while the Ndzundza-Somphalali Traditional Council provided land. Government assistance brought 15 000 chickens, followed by National Empowerment Fund (NEF) support for another 15 000.
Today, her eggs are supplied to Roots Butchery outlets, SPAR at Phola Mall, Sandton hospitality establishments, Gauteng bakeries and customers in Limpopo.
“I started from the backyard at home, moved to the street corner, then to Phola Mall and now my eggs are on supermarket shelves,” she said.
Unlocking economic opportunities
Chief Bongani Reuben Mahlangu of the Ndzundza-Somphalali Traditional Council said the land contribution reflected traditional leadership’s responsibility to unlock economic opportunities. “It doesn’t begin or end with Lebo. If there are young people out there interested in creating businesses in the area, our doors are open.”
Provincial agriculture department head Dan Chunda said the government had merely helped Mashigo climb a ladder she had begun ascending.
“There are many Lebos in our province. We can help lift them so that they can realise their visions.”
Support for credible businesses
Agriculture MEC Khethiwe Moeketsi said Mashigo’s progress demonstrated why public funding should support credible businesses. “We saw her vision, her determination and that this was a passion needing a breakthrough.”
NEF board member Lisa Mangcu said development finance should be judged by its economic impact.
“The success of NEF cannot be measured only by how much money we approve. It must be measured by what that money enables, which includes businesses that grow, jobs that are created and value chains that become more inclusive,” he said.
Mashigo wants to establish a packing facility through which smaller poultry farmers could supply larger markets using her distribution network.
For a woman who once struggled to buy baby formula, the ambition is no longer merely to survive. It is to help other South Africans earn a living.
- Lebo Mashigo transformed her mother's backyard egg business in Kwaggafontein into a commercial poultry enterprise producing nearly a million eggs a month and employing 20 people.
- The business, Eggsellent by Lebo, houses 30,000 chickens and supplies supermarkets, restaurants, hotels, bakeries, and boarding schools.
- Mashigo expanded her enterprise with support from a National Youth Development Agency grant, the provincial agriculture department, the Ndzundza-Somphalali Traditional Council, and the National Empowerment Fund.
- The traditional council provided land, and government assistance enabled the purchase of 30,000 chickens, while Mashigo's products reached outlets such as Roots Butchery, SPAR at Phola Mall, and establishments in Gauteng and Limpopo.
- Mashigo aims to establish a packing facility to help smaller poultry farmers access larger markets using her distribution network, reflecting her commitment to creating economic opportunities for others.
