A spoonful of sugar: how South Africa’s weigh-and-pay shops are tackling ‘poverty tax’ head on

One of the shops runs by Gcwalisa – which means ‘fill up’ in isiZulu – in Johannesburg’s Alexandra township. Photograph: Julie Bourdin

Every morning, on her way to the laundry shop she runs in Johannesburg’s Alexandra township, Tsholofelo Mphela stops at a bright yellow shipping container to buy a few spoonfuls of sugar.

Inside, shelves are lined with large jars of beans, rice and maize meal, and clear boxes filled with breakfast cereal and loose teabags. A tap dispenses cooking oil by the millilitre. The cashier weighs Mphela’s purchase before ringing it up for a few rand.