Source article published 18 April 2024

In South Africa’s food system, there is far too much waste – but also far too much hunger.  Nonprofit organisation FoodForward SA is setting out to change this by redistributing nutritious food and partnering with a Khayelitsha-based community organisation, Kwakhanya to help communities grow their own vegetables. 

What is the problem?

Over 10 million tonnes of food are wasted in South Africa each year, that’s 45% of the country’s total food supply. At the same time, many communities suffer from high rates of food insecurity. According to Stats SA, over 2 million households in South Africa faced hunger in 2021. 

How are they fixing it? 

FoodForward SA recovers quality food surplus and sends it to community organisations who serve meals to people facing hunger. In 2024, they also started the Food Gardens Connect programme to help people in Khayelitsha to grow their own food and earn an income. 

What makes it work? 

• Redistributing food that would otherwise go to waste: FoodForward SA collects donations of surplus food within its expiry date but that would otherwise be wasted. They collect from farmers, manufacturers, wholesalers and retailers. Operating in all 9 provinces, the organisation redistributes this food through 2500 community organisations like food banks, soup kitchens and early childhood development centres. Every day, their efforts help provide 920,000 people with nutritious meals.

• Empowering Khayelitsha residents to grow food: Starting in January 2024, FoodForward SA and Kwakhanya have trained 10 people who were previously unemployed in an intensive 6-week agricultural course. Program participants were also provided with the resources and tools needed to set up their own gardens.

• Long-term sustainability: FoodFoward guarantees the farmers in Khayelitsha that it will buy all of their surplus food, enabling them to earn an income and maintain their gardens. The food purchased is used in FoodForward SA redistribution efforts. Meanwhile, the tunnel at FoodForward in Lansdowne is being used to grow seedlings to support the gardens.

“Food is so expensive; now we can cook when we get to our houses, support our families and be sustainable. At home, I’ve got three children and five grandchildren who I live with that I also have to support,” NoFirst Mdlaza, one of the food garden farmers, said of the project.

Acknowledgements

How community gardens are reducing foodstuff waste and increasing food security in SA by  Kristin Engel

Our Foodbanking Model – FoodForward SA

Photograph: Kristin Engel