Basra grandmother’s homemade goods gain wide following after viral video

BASRA — From her home in the Al-Bihar neighborhood of Al-Faw, Um Thaer has turned more than a decade of experience making traditional products into a small business that now serves customers from across Iraq and the Gulf.

“I have been working in this field for 12 years, and I produce some items myself while buying others to market and sell,” she told 964media.

Her work slowed after a household accident in which she broke both hands, but she continued at a reduced pace. “I tripped and fell, breaking both my hands, which made me work at a slower pace,” she said.

A video recorded by her granddaughter and posted online brought unexpected attention to her business. “That video made me well-known for selling these products,” she said. Since then, orders have come in from as far as Erbil and Kuwait.

Um Thaer’s offerings include a variety of pickles, such as those made with bamper fruit, lemon, and maabooj, a spicy eggplant pickle. She also produces several types of vinegar — date, apple, and Zahdi date — aged at home and priced between 1,000 and 4,000 Iraqi dinars ($0.71 to $2.86).

Other products include clay stoves and ovens, which have reached customers in Kuwait and Erbil, hand-dyed reed mats, coarse sea salt used in local customs, and specialty vinegars said to bring blessings to homes and shops.

She also prepares herbal remedies, including Adam’s apple herb, used to aid conception, and chaste tree herb, used to ease childbirth. Pomegranate peels are ground for mouth ulcers, and she makes a winter tea blend of 10 ingredients, including saffron and rose, which she says helps with colds.

“The demand is high, and we have an online store with delivery service,” she said. “One reed mat can take two days to make, and I enjoy talking to customers face-to-face in my live streams.”