Food security

Introduction

The availability of food is the starting point of all life. The main issue around food is whether people can afford it, a nutritious adequate diet that makes for healthy human beings.

The UN’s Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO) defines food security as “A situation that exists when all people, at all times, have physical and economic access to sufficient, safe and nutritious food to meet their dietary needs and food preferences for an active and healthy life”.

Food insecurity is strongly related to unemployment and poverty. The two are justifiably linked as the first two goals of the UN’s Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs): “No poverty” and “No hunger”.

 

The issues

Food waste

Each day, between 800 – 900 million people go hungry. In a world where there was not enough to go around, perhaps this could be understood. But the fact is that we already produce enough food to ensure everybody could have enough to eat. And then we essentially throw one-third of it away. Food waste and loss reaches an astonishing 1.3 billion tonnes per year.

South Africa produces about 31-million tons of food every year. A third of this is wasted, the majority lost/wasted before retail (Arnoldi, 2024).

 

Food sovereignty

“Food sovereignty” serves as an alternative paradigm to the current global “food security” narrative. “Food security” says nothing about where food comes from, or how and under what conditions it is produced and consumed. Food security offers little in the way of alleviating hunger, and even less for the contradictions of hunger and malnourishment in the global agri-food system.

Source: Busiso Moyo, South Africa’s new food and nutrition policy fails to address constitutional right to food (adapted).

 

The effect of poverty and unemployment on food security

There is a creative tension where a food business makes food available that is affordable while the business itself remains profitable.

If the food isn’t affordable the business won’t sell its product and will go out of business. It must keep its eyes on the other businesses too (including those from other countries). If their food is cheaper, or is a better option for whatever reason, the food business could lose sales and go out of business.

The ideal agri-food system is one where food is on people’s tables because it is affordable and available, while food companies are profitable. What happens though when companies have kept their costs low, but substantial numbers of people are not earning money, or when the incomes of people are too low?

 

Hidden hunger

Across the world two billion people live with hidden hunger. In South Africa, 24% of children under the age of 5 show signs of stunting, a sure indicator of hidden hunger. Hidden hunger in children means:

  • They eat enough calories to sustain life, but they don’t get enough of the crucial vitamins and minerals essential for optimal physical and mental health.
  • Hidden hunger causes some 1.1 million of the 3.1 million child deaths each year.
  • Ultimately they will fail at school, will never achieve their income potential, and will remain forever trapped in the poverty cycle.
Source: Bright4Africa. Visit https://twitter.com/Bright4AfricaSA and www.facebook.com/Bright4Africa-South-Africa-1904640343102878/

International business environment

Article 25.1 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights states: “Everyone has the right to a standard of living adequate for the health and wellbeing of him and of his family, including food, clothing, housing and medical care”, and the second of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) is “End hunger”. How do we improve the current global food system which fails the estimated 800 million people globally who experience food insecurity?

  • African Centre for Biodiversity www.acbio.org.za
  • The African Union Development Agency-NEPAD www.nepad.org
  • AGRA (Alliance for a Green Revolution) https://agra.org
  • Agriculture Market Information System www.amis-outlook.org an inter-agency platform to enhance food market transparency and policy response for food security 
  • Alliance for Food Sovereignty in Africa (AFSA) https://afsafrica.org
  • Find the Economist Impact-Fondazione Barilla Food Sustainabiity Index (FSI) at https://impact.economist.com/projects/foodsustainability
  • Bread for the World www.bread.org
  • The Centre for Global Development (CGD) has looked at how trade affects food security in developing countries. Visit www.cgdev.org.
  • Champions 12.3 https://champions123.org The 12th Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) is Responsible Consumption and Production. Bullet point 3 calls for halving food waste and reducing food losses worldwide by 2030.
  • Comite Permanent Inter Stat de Lutte Contre la Secheresse au Sahel (Permanent Inter-State Committee on Drought Control in the Sahel – CILSS) – www.cilss.int
  • The UN Committee on World Food Security (CFS) pages are at www.fao.org/cfs/en/. The CFS is “the foremost inclusive international and intergovernmental platform for all stakeholders to work together to ensure food security and nutrition for all”. It is advised by the High-Level Panel of Experts (HLPE).
  • EAT-Lancet Commission https://eatforum.org
  • The Global Food Security Index (GFSI) 2022 [the latest – Ed. 2024], developed by the Economist Intelligence Unit (EIU) and sponsored by DuPont, considers the three core pillars of food security-Affordability, Availability, and Quality & Safety-across 109 countries. See http://foodsecurityindex.eiu.com.
  • Famine Early Warning Systems Network (FEWS-NET) – https://fews.net – provides world overviews.
  • Find the relevant themes relevant themes to do with food security at www.fao.org, website of the UN’s Food and Agricultural Organisation (FAO). The annual State of Food Security and Nutrition in the World report, the Global Information and Early Warning System (GIEWS) and Food Insecurity Experience Scale (FIES), and the monthly Food Price Index are among the FAO’s offerings.
  • Food, Agriculture and Natural Resources Policy Analysis Network (FANRPAN) – https://fanrpan.org
  • The Global Agriculture and Food Security Program (GAFSP) www.gafspfund.org.
  • Find the Global Food and Nutrition Security Dashboard at www.gafs.info/home, website of the Global Alliance for Food Security (GAFS)
  • Global Alliance for Improved Nutrition (GAIN) www.gainhealth.org
  • The Institute for Food & Development Policy (Food First) – https://foodfirst.org
  • International Federation of the Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies (IFRC) – www.ifrc.org – responds to food crises as well as to other disasters.
  • International Food and Agribusiness Management Association (IFAMA) – www.ifama.org – “Your Global Food System Network”
  • International Food Policy Research Institute (IFPRI) – www.ifpri.org
  • IPES-FOOD (International Panel of Experts on Sustainable Food Systems) https://ipes-food.org
  • Landesa Rural Development Institute – www.landesa.org
  • One Acre Fund – https://oneacrefund.org
  • The mission of the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) is “to promote policies that will improve the economic and social well-being of people around the world”. Visit www.oecd.org.
  • Oxfam GB is a development, relief, and campaigning organisation that works with others “to end extreme poverty”. Find its State of Food Insecurity (SOFI) reports. An Oxfam electronic newsletter is available. See www.oxfam.org.uk.
  • ReliefWeb – https://reliefweb.int – is the global hub for time-critical humanitarian information. Updated reports on Food Security issues are included.
  • Right to Food – www.righttofood.org – website relating to Jean Ziegler, a previous UN Special Rapporteur.
  • Rise Against Hunger https://africa.riseagainsthunger.org
  • The Rockefeller Foundation. Find the “Food” option on its website, www.rockefellerfoundation.org.
  • Scaling Up Nutrition http://scalingupnutrition.org
  • Sight and Life http://sightandlife.org/
  • Solidaridad www.solidaridadnetwork.org An international civil society organisation “transforming economies to make them more inclusive and sustainable”
  • There are regular features on food security (and food prices) at www.worldbank.org, website of the World Bank.
  • World Farmers’ Organisation – www.wfo-oma.org.
  • The UN’s World Food Programme (WFP) – www.wfp.org, the “world’s largest humanitarian agency fighting hunger”

Further reference:

Local business environment

Food security is not easy to quantify and figures differ. Statistics South Africa (Stats SA)’s General Household Survey (GHS) is one source. In the Global Food Security Index, released by The Economist and Corteva in 2022 [the latest report – Ed. 2024], South Africa was ranked 59th out of 113 countries. 2024 saw the Shoprite South African Food Security Index 2024, authored by Stellenbosch University’s Professor Dieter von Fintel and Dr Anja Smith. The year also saw the Human Sciences Research Council (HSRC) release its findings of the National Food and Nutrition Security Survey (NFNSS).

The NFNSS was conducted across all nine provinces of South Africa between 2021 and 2023. According to this report, more than 36% of South African households are food secure, rarely worrying bout not having enough food. Another 63% of households (some 20 million South Africans) are food insecure. While the findings of the HSRC survey indicate that food insecurity in South Africa is not acute at national level, provincial and district scores reveal a different story, with crisis scenarios in some provinces e.g. the North West.

The Household Food Insecurity Access Score (HFIAS), one of the indicators in the survey, gave a score out of 27 (a score of one is regarded as food secure; between two and eight as ‘mildly food insecure’; and nine upwards as moderately to severely food insecure). The national score was 8.3 out of 27.

The HFIAS shows that:

  • 19.2% were mildly food insecure
  • 26% of households were moderately food insecure (frequently eating low-quality, undesirable food and occasionally reducing the size or number of meals).
  • 17% of households scored 18 or more, meaning they cut back on meal size or the number of meals eaten, and often run out of food.

In terms of another indicator in the survey, the Household Hunger Score (HHS), just under 80% of households reported that they experienced little to no hunger, while 15.3% experienced moderate hunger and 5.6% severe hunger.

Amongst the HSRC’s recommendations were:

  • promoting domestic food production at household level
  • focused investment into agrifood processing centres to create an enabling environment for commercial food production
  • investment in food markets and food banks at produce markets strategically located close to vulnerable households
  • rezoning efforts for land under traditional authorities so that some can be reserved for agricultural production
Source: www.engineeringnews.co.za/article/steenhuisen-vows-more-targeted-approach-to-resolving-food-security-2024-10-10

Further reference:

  • Find the national monthly Household Affordability Index by the Pietermaritzburg Economic Justice and Dignity Group at https://pmbejd.org.za
  • Find the Quarterly Food Price Monitor at www.namc.co.za.
  • The Bureau for Food and Agricultural Policy (BFAP) compiles a monthly Food Inflation Brief. Find these at www.bfap.co.za.
  • Statistics South Africa (Stats SA)’s most recent General Household Survey (GHS) can be read at www.statssa.gov.za.

National strategy and government contact

The national policy framework includes the Constitution (sections 27, 28 and 35) and the National Development Plan which identified food security and nutrition as a consequence of poverty and inequality as well as a cause. The Department of Agriculture is working on a National Food and Nutrition Security Plan (NFNSP) 2024-2029.

South Africa’s proposed food losses and waste strategy is a comprehensive plan which is one of the key interventions of the National Waste Management Strategy. Find the blog “Unpacking South Africa’s Draft Strategy To Combat Food Losses And Waste” (October 2023).

Department of Agriculture, Land Reform and Rural Development (DALRRD) www.dalrrd.gov.za

The successful production of food cuts across other government department areas too. Some examples follow:

The Department of Science and Innovation-National Research Foundation Centre of Excellence (CoE) in Food Security www.foodsecurity.ac.za The CoE is co-hosted by the University of the Western Cape and the University of Pretoria.

Department of Basic Education www.education.gov.za The National School Nutrition Programme (NSNP) is run.

The Department of Trade, Industry and Competition (the dtic) is involved in several aspects of food security e.g. agro-processing, import and export. Visit www.thedtic.gov.za.

The Department of Public Works and Infrastructure runs the Expanded Public Works Programme through which household food security is boosted. See www.publicworks.gov.za.

Department of Social Development www.dsd.gov.za The DSD is responsible for the South African Social Security Agency (SASSA) and social grants. Almost 17 million people are reached through social grants. Visit www.sassa.gov.za. Details of district offices are available on the website.

Competition Commission www.compcom.co.za Theoretically, competition keeps prices down (because the client can go elsewhere if she or he does not like your prices). Price fixing between players in the food industry is bad news for food security.

Role players

Note: Click to expand the headings below. To get a free listing on our website like the ones below, visit here for more information or place your order here. Disclaimer: The role player listings are not vetted by this website.

 
Victoria Yards – www.victoriayards.co.za
Tshikululu Social Investments – https://tshikululu.org.za Uses Corporate Social Investment (CSI) funds to invest in food security.
Backsaver Farming Equipment – www.backsaver.co.za Hand-held planters, sprayers and fertilisers for subsistence or small scale farmers.
Millhouse International – https://localvillagefoods.com Micronutrient and vitamin blends

Agricultural Business Chamber (Agbiz) – www.agbiz.co.za

 Training, Consulting & Research Service Providers
Cape Peninsular University of Technology (CPUT) Department of Consumer Sciences: food and nutrition – www.cput.ac.za
Sustainability Institute – www.sustainabilityinstitute.net
Studies in Poverty and Inequality Institute (SPII) – https://spii.org.za
Soil For Life – https://soilforlife.co.za
Khuthaza Foundation – https://khuthazafoundation.co.za
Southern African Food Lab (SAFL) – www.southernafricafoodlab.org
Operation Hunger – https://operationhunger.org.za
Soil For Life – https://soilforlife.co.za

Further reference:

  • Agricultural Colleges working with the Provincial Departments of Agriculture offer basic training courses in food security. Find their details on the “Agricultural education and training” page.
  • Agricultural Research Council (ARC)  The need for “sufficient, safe and nutritious food” permeates the strategic imperatives of government and therefore the goals of the ARC. Its core activities are all related to food security in some way. See www.arc.agric.za.

If the way to get food is to buy it, problems result when the country has a constant unemployment rate of just over 25%. For this reason, any effort to empower food gardens at home are encouraged. Visit websites of role players like www.operationhunger.co.za and www.reelgardening.co.za.

Websites and publications

  • The websites mentioned earlier on this page.
  • Find the latest Global Network against Food Crises reports at www.fightfoodcrises.net.
  • Find out about the Global Food Security journal at www.sciencedirect.com/journal/global-food-security
  • Okole, B., Gordon, G., Brown, B., Pillay, B., Schoeman, C. and Godfrey, L. 2022. Improved food security in South Africa through a more circular agricultural sector. CSIR Report Number: CSIR/AAFH/AGRPR/IR/2022/0001/A. CSIR: Pretoria.
  • International Food Policy Research Institute (IFPRI). 2024. 2024 Global Food Policy Report. Available at www.ifpri.org/global-food-policy-report-2024.
  • Gassner A, Harris D, Mausch K, Terheggen A, Lopes C, Finlayson RF, Dobie P. 2019. Poverty eradication and food security through agriculture in Africa: Rethinking objectives and entry points. Outlook on Agriculture 21 Nov 2019. https://doi.org/10.1177/0030727019888513.
  • Wise TA. 2019. Eating Tomorrow: Agribusiness, Family Farmers, and the Battle for the Future of Food. New York: New Press.
  • Gassner A, Harris D, Mausch K, Terheggen A, Lopes C, Finlayson RF, Dobie P. 2019. Poverty eradication and food security through agriculture in Africa: Rethinking objectives and entry points. Outlook on Agriculture 21 Nov 2019. https://doi.org/10.1177/0030727019888513.
  • “A third of all food in South Africa is not consumed, but wasted, while millions of South Africans go to bed hungry every night. Find the report “Food loss and waste: facts and futures” compiled by WWF SA at http://awsassets.wwf.org.za/downloads/WWF_Food_Loss_and_Waste_WEB.pdf
  • Hall K., Richter L., Mokomane Z. & Lake L. (eds). 2018. South African Child Gauge 2018. Cape Town: Children’s Institute, University of Cape Town. Available at www.ci.uct.ac.za/ci/child-gauge/2018
  • Neves, M.F. 2017. Future of The Food Business: The FACTS The IMPACTS The ACTS. 2nd Edition. New Jersey: World Scientific. Visit www.favaneves.org.
  • Maziya, M., Mudhara, M. & Chitja, J. 2017. What factors determine household food security among smallholder farmers?: insights from Msinga, KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa. Available at www.hsrc.ac.za/en/research-data/view/8525
  • Find the comprehensive guide on how to start a straw bale garden in 30 days. It is over 10,000 words and includes many practical tips and advice. It can be read at www.jenreviews.com/straw-bale-garden.
  • At www.dalrrd.gov.za find many publications like “Vegetables – Create a peace garden” and “Vegetables – Plan and prepare your garden”.
  • Watch the South African Food Lab presentation The Future of Food: 2015-2030 in English, isiXhosa and Afrikaans on Youtube. See also Profiling Smallholder Farmers in South Africa – A Toolkit developed by the SAFL and NAMC.
  • Find the latest Agricultural Outlook, done by the FAO and OECD, at www.agri-outlook.org.
  • The annual BFAP Baselines include a look at food availability and affordability. Find the document at www.bfap.co.za.
  • Hear the TED talks on Youtube about food waste. These include “A recipe for cutting food waste” by Peter Lehner and “A war on food waste” by Patrizia La Trecchia.
  • The latest State of Food Insecurity in the World (download it at www.fao.org) looks at countries, regions and at the world as a whole.
  • A book Surviving the global food jungle – Realities, options and strategies for South Africa was published in 2012 in collaboration with the Agricultural Business Chamber (Agbiz). In it, Prof Marcos Fava Neves explores the global business of food and agriculture in relation to food value chains.
  • Department of Basic Education. 2011. Horticulture Manual for Schools: A guide to establish and sustain food gardens. The publication was authored by staff at ARC-VOP.
  • Find the reports and publications at https://champions123.org/publications/

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