<p>The ubiquitous plastic trumpet, embraced as an emblem of the World Cup by South Africans and visitors alike, sells for between 20 rand ($2.6) for a simple Chinese import to 60 rand for a more contoured instrument, produced in South Africa.<br /><br />"Our vuvuzelas have the purest sound and they are the easiest to blow. A two-year-old could play it," said Cape Town-based Neil van Schalkwyk, who developed the vuvuzela seven years ago and whose sales have grown from 500 a month to 50,000.<br /><br />"Our vuvuzelas also have a much more comfortable mouth-piece. I think at the end of the World Cup we'll see a lot of people with cut, sore lips," he added.<br /><br />Watching the horn sold everywhere from street corners to airport duty free shops and listening to the cacophony of vuvuzela blasts ringing out through the city, Van Schalkwyk, a plastics expert and mould maker, says he feels very proud.<br /><br />With a background in toolmaking, the 37-year-old football fan watched people taking home-made tin horns to games in the 1990s and decided to try producing his own in plastic.<br /><br />Van Schalkwyk initially named his horn the boogie-blaster, but fans dubbed it the vuvuzela -- which means 'pump' or 'lift up' -- and the fad was born. Today, the vuvuzela industry is worth 50 million rand ($6.45 million) in South Africa and Europe, he estimates. He declined to say how much he had made from his invention.<br /><br />"The vuvuzela is a symbol of the way we can celebrate and how we would like the rest of the world to enjoy their celebrations as well."<br /><br />The fact it has been much copied does not irk him, he says. "We were never under the illusion we'd have a monopoly on the product and we couldn't patent the design. When we started out we were told a horn is a horn and it has been around for centuries!"<br /><br />Horns have always played a part in South African culture, from the earliest kudu horns, traditionally used to announce a ceremony or a major event.<br /><br />The latest version of the horn is made from three pieces of injection-moulded plastic, and the mouthpiece has been modified to reduce the noise level by 20 decibels, a concession to those who have complained about the din generated by vuvuzelas.<br /><br />"They have become so popular, it has surpassed my wildest expectations," said Van Schalkwyk.</p>
<p>The ubiquitous plastic trumpet, embraced as an emblem of the World Cup by South Africans and visitors alike, sells for between 20 rand ($2.6) for a simple Chinese import to 60 rand for a more contoured instrument, produced in South Africa.<br /><br />"Our vuvuzelas have the purest sound and they are the easiest to blow. A two-year-old could play it," said Cape Town-based Neil van Schalkwyk, who developed the vuvuzela seven years ago and whose sales have grown from 500 a month to 50,000.<br /><br />"Our vuvuzelas also have a much more comfortable mouth-piece. I think at the end of the World Cup we'll see a lot of people with cut, sore lips," he added.<br /><br />Watching the horn sold everywhere from street corners to airport duty free shops and listening to the cacophony of vuvuzela blasts ringing out through the city, Van Schalkwyk, a plastics expert and mould maker, says he feels very proud.<br /><br />With a background in toolmaking, the 37-year-old football fan watched people taking home-made tin horns to games in the 1990s and decided to try producing his own in plastic.<br /><br />Van Schalkwyk initially named his horn the boogie-blaster, but fans dubbed it the vuvuzela -- which means 'pump' or 'lift up' -- and the fad was born. Today, the vuvuzela industry is worth 50 million rand ($6.45 million) in South Africa and Europe, he estimates. He declined to say how much he had made from his invention.<br /><br />"The vuvuzela is a symbol of the way we can celebrate and how we would like the rest of the world to enjoy their celebrations as well."<br /><br />The fact it has been much copied does not irk him, he says. "We were never under the illusion we'd have a monopoly on the product and we couldn't patent the design. When we started out we were told a horn is a horn and it has been around for centuries!"<br /><br />Horns have always played a part in South African culture, from the earliest kudu horns, traditionally used to announce a ceremony or a major event.<br /><br />The latest version of the horn is made from three pieces of injection-moulded plastic, and the mouthpiece has been modified to reduce the noise level by 20 decibels, a concession to those who have complained about the din generated by vuvuzelas.<br /><br />"They have become so popular, it has surpassed my wildest expectations," said Van Schalkwyk.</p>
