"Don't be lazy" - Giovanni's top tip to tackle cost of living pressures
Cost of Living Crisis
Popular long-term Port Douglas market trader Giovanni Favaro has some straight shooting advice for people struggling to make ends meet when putting food on the table.
“I can be very frank… people still go to the supermarket because it’s cool and airconditioned and they will still throw their money away and buy stuff which is twice as much as you’ll pay at the market,’’ he said.
“You don’t see the drunks and the druggos and the lazy people going to the markets. So all I say is people create their own bog.
“These people here, the Scomazzons, they grow a lot of their own and they are much cheaper than the supermarkets.
“But people are people… we know what people are like. They whinge but they’re too scared to get out of bed in the morning.’’
Giovanni goes to growers across Douglas Shire and the Tablelands to source produce to sell at the weekly markets, a role he has done since 1985.
“I used to grow tobacco until the government pulled the plug on that… now I just have a big garden,’’ he said.
“The growers are copping the raw end of the stick.
“It’s a market economy, it’s a cut throat economy and they’ve got no association, the governments got rid of the marketing boards and whatever, so it’s dog eat dog.
“Managements of supermarkets, they’re just looking for the profits and the dollar…. They’ve got no heart.’’
Giovanni joins hundreds of stall traders weekly on Sundays at the Port Douglas Markets.
Newsport captured some of the colour and characters of the Markets on Sunday and they’re showcased in the latest edition of the FREE Newsport Daily Print, out on the streets now.
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