Authentic Just a Marketing Ploy

Was it made in Italy or Scarborough Ontario?

What does authentic and dinosaurs have in common? Extinct. Did dinosaurs really exist? I’ll take Hollywood’s word for it because it defined our existence, before the internet hijacked that function.

Authentic is also extinct because it is more expensive. Dress designers stitch every gown, give it to a celebrity to wear on the red carpet and orders start coming. China is always on stand-by to make thousands of the same gown, to be sold in discount outlets.

It is particularly damaging to countries like Nigeria where ordinary people make a living, tailoring. KiekieTV, a comedy show, likes to highlight designers’ lives. China discovered their passion and reproduces men’s outfits cheaply.

Food items, are they authentic? This piece was inspired by a trip to a super store to look for olive oil. The near-by store slapped $6 more on a bottle they had sold for nine dollars, for almost three years. My eye caught this bottle of spaghetti sauce as I zigzagged store aisles.

What is authentic, is it the country? Is it authentic because it was bottled in Italy, with a recipe from Sicily? This label gives me the impression that there is something special about spaghetti sauce from Sicily.

Then comes the contents of the bottle. Are the tomatoes born and raised on Italian soil? We shall never know. I prefer making my own spaghetti sauce: slowly cook onions, big garden tomatoes, green chilies and ginger in olive oil for 15 minutes. Remove from heat. Add 2 tablespoons herb salad dressing and let it sit for 20 minutes. Mix with boiled pasta. Eat.

Now, that is authentic. LOL.

By: Nonqaba waka Msimang.