Kava sellers at the Suva market say they are feeling the pinch of the COVID-19 pandemic as people focus more of their income on buying food and essentials for their families.
Avinesh Chand said people were not spending as much as they used to on kava.
“It is understandable because right now the priority is food, people can live without kava,” he said.
“People are still buying but not as much as they would have before the pandemic.”
On Friday, April 30, he said he noticed something different compared with what has become normal with the pandemic.
“We had a lot of people who came to buy from us who are not our regular customers and they bought unusual amounts, it was like they were stocking up for the lockdown.
“It does happens sometimes, but it’s usually the people who sell kava from their homes.
“We have a bunch of people who come to us for their supply all the time, but we saw a lot of new faces.”
