HANDS-ON Experience Learning January 2024 | Issue 26
OPPORTUNITY
3
PUTTING ENOUGH FOOD ON THE TABLE: SUSTAINABLE STEPS TO ADDRESS SOUTH AFRICA’S HUNGER CRISIS
Build productive synergies between communities and the environment
OPPORTUNITY
5
Stop nutritional stunting of young children.
South Africa is experiencing a severe food crisis, both in terms of affordability and availability. Loadshedding (planned electricity cuts due to power supply constraints) and disruptions to supply chain systems affect food imports and exports, and therefore, the availability of food and how much it ultimately costs. Supply chain disruptions can result from war, geo-political conflicts, political interventions and pandemics. For instance, Russia’s invasion of the Ukraine in 2022 triggered a global food shortage because it threatened grain exports to the rest of the world. When food prices soar because of supply shortages or inflation, the world’s poor suffer the most. In South Africa, one third of the country’s children are excluded from adequate nutrition.1 We need to change the fact that nutritious food is too expensive and out of reach for poor households because inadequate nutrition can lead to stunting, which is a proxy measure for brain development in children, and this prevents them from reaching their full potential. This learning brief looks at an initiative focused on making nutritious food more affordable for poorer families led by DGMT and Grow Great, as well as projects by the Southern Africa Food Lab (SAFL) and the South African Urban Food & Farming Trust (SAUFFT), which empower poorer communities to grow nutritious food. 1
1
Hall K. 2022. Income poverty, unemployment and social grants, in The South African Child Gauge 2021/22. Available at: https://tinyurl.com/sjzpmvfn
PUTTING ENOUGH FOOD ON THE TABLE: SUSTAINABLE STEPS TO ADDRESS SOUTH AFRICA’S HUNGER CRISIS
Issue 26 /// January 2024
South Africa's food prices were up 14.4% year-on-year in March 2023, the highest rate of food inflation since March 2009; food inflation has since eased to 12%, but the figure nevertheless implies substantial erosion of families’ ability to buy nutritious foods.2 Even though South Africa is technically food secure at national level,3 the country is still food insecure at household level as not all families can afford to consistently put food on the table. The graph below shows the percentage of households that faced hunger in 2021.
Graph 1: Percentage of households experiencing food adequacy or inadequacy by province, 2021 100% 90% 80% percentage
70% 60% 50% 40% 30% 20% 10% 0%
WC
EC
NC
FS
KZN
NW
GP
MP
LP
RSA
Food access severely inadequate
6,9
6,7
10,5
12,2
6,7
8,3
3,5
14,6
1,7
6,4
Food access inadequate
12,6
17,0
25,3
12,2
14,2
22,6
14,9
18,0
4,0
14,6
Food access adequate
80,5
76,3
64,2
75,6
79,1
69,1
81,6
67,4
94,3
79,1
Source: Statistics South Africa (2022). General Household Survey 2021. Statistical Release P0318. Available at: https://www.statssa.gov.za/publications/P0318/P03182021.pdf
Food Basket Costs over R5 000
In November 2023, the average cost of a household food basket was R5 314,63 which reflected an increase of R17,05 (0,3%) from R5 297,58 in October 2023. The average cost of the Household Food Basket increased by R478,67 (9,9%), from R4 835,96 in November 2022.4
2
Lings K. 2023. Food price inflation is easing in the rest of the world – but not in SA, in Standpoint, published by Stanlib. Available at: https://tinyurl.com/22dkx4ca
3
Stats SA. May 2019. The extent of food security in South Africa. Available at: https://www.statssa.gov.za/?p=12135
GOAL 1 /// An innovative and inclusive society.
4
November 2023 Household Affordability Index compiled by the Pietermaritzburg Economic Justice and Dignity (PMBEJD) group. Available here: http://tinyurl.com/vmmnxdbu
OPPORTUNITY 3 /// Build productive synergies between communities and the environment.
2
HOW OUR CHILDREN ARE AFFECTED According to Statistics SA, more than half a million (683 221) households with children aged five years or younger reported experiencing hunger in 2021.5 Children who do not have adequate nutritious food cannot develop as they should and are at higher risk of acute malnutrition. This can lead to stunting, which affects both physical and cognitive development in malnourished children. Nutritional stunting is a (largely preventable) condition where young children are too short for their age and do not reach their full growth potential because their brains and bodies are not getting the nutrients and energy needed for proper growth and development. Stunting places a child at a disadvantage from an early age, which continues well into adulthood. It is associated with lifelong cognitive defects, educational and employment challenges, an increased risk of chronic diseases in adulthood and cycles of inter-generational poverty. Stunting is the main reason why South Africa ranks 88th out of 130 countries on the World Bank Human Capital Index, which measures the amount of human capital that a child born today can expect to attain by age 18.6 According to the World Bank, high stunting rates are one of the main reasons for South Africa’s dismal economic growth because the country does not have a sufficient human capital pipeline to drive productivity.
"If we ensured that all children had enough food, our long-term economic prospects would be radically different." David Harrison, DGMT Chief Executive Officer
3
5
Statistics SA. 2023. Focus on food inadequacy and hunger in South Africa in 2021. Available at: https://www.statssa.gov.za/?p=16235
6
Kraay, A. 2018. Methodology for a World Bank Human Capital Index. Policy Research Working Paper 8593. Available at: https://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers.cfm?abstract_ id=3255311
7
Parliamentary Monitoring Group. 2022. Differences between the Child Support Grant Top-Up and Foster Care Grant, DSD briefing with Minister. Available at: https://pmg.org. za/committee-meeting/35369/
8 9
SASSA. 2023. SASSA Child Support Grant. Available at: https://tinyurl.com/58bbfd6c Statistics SA. 2023. National Poverty Lines. Accessed here: https://www.statssa.gov. za/publications/P03101/P031012023.pdf
Over 13 million children in South Africa receive the Child Support Grant (CSG).7 The grant provides essential social protection, but the amount per child is not enough.
There is a 33% shortfall between the cost of the food children need to grow well and what their parents can afford to buy with the monthly grant. As of October 2023, the value of the basic CSG is R510 per child per month8, well below the food poverty line of R663, which was adjusted for inflation in 2023 to R760.9 But there are also many children in need who do not receive it. The uptake of the CSG has plateaued and even declined slightly over the past five years. Disconcertingly, the caregivers of almost half (48.3%) of children under the age of one say that they do not receive it. Add to this the fact that around 400 000 children are not eligible for grants among the estimated 2.4 million immigrants in South Africa10, and it becomes evident that roughly one in six children in need of support receives no form of social grant. Evidence shows that this group – eligible non-recipients of the CSG and children of foreign nationals – is even more likely to suffer from hunger11 and die from acute malnutrition.12
10 Statistics SA. 2023. Census 2022. Statistical Release No. PO301.4. https://census.
statssa.gov.za/assets/documents/2022/P03014_Census_2022_Statistical_Release. pdf
11
Hall, K., Proudlock, P. and Budlender, D. 2023. Reducing Child Poverty: A review of child poverty and the value of the Child Support Grant. Department of Social Development, Republic of South Africa. https://www.researchgate.net/publication/374618161_ Reducing_Child_Poverty_A_review_of_child_poverty_and_the_value_of_the_ Child_Support_Grant
12 Thomas, A., Engelbrecht, A. and Slogrove, A. 2022. Severe acute malnutrition
outcomes for children of South African compared to foreign-born parents admitted to a rural regional hospital in South Africa: a retrospective cohort study. Available at: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/36350713/
PUTTING ENOUGH FOOD ON THE TABLE: SUSTAINABLE STEPS TO ADDRESS SOUTH AFRICA’S HUNGER CRISIS
Issue 26 /// January 2024
What is the food poverty line?
The food poverty line represents the minimum amount of money needed to meet the basic energy intake of a person (2 100 kCals per day). While very young children have lower energy needs (1-6 year olds need about 1 800 kCals), this threshold does not consider the higher cost of proteins, which are especially required for child growth (about 0,9 g/kg/day). It also does not include other essential costs such as transport or cooking fuel. For these reasons, the food poverty level is a reasonable measure of the absolute minimum requirement for child nutrition.
CLOSING THE FOOD GAP In the second half of 2023, the DG Murray Trust (DGMT) and Grow Great, a national zero-stunting organisation, launched a national advocacy campaign involving over 300 billboards to call for immediate action to reduce the cost of basic nutritious food. The goal of the billboards is to get people to support a bold new idea that DGMT and Grow Great championed early in 2023. The idea calls for food producers, retailers and the government to work together to cut the price of 10 healthy foods by at least 30%. These items include: eggs, dried beans and lentils, tinned fish, fortified maize meal, peanut butter, rice, amasi, soya mince, 4-in-1 soup mix, and powdered full cream milk, which are staple foods in most South African households. These “10 best buys” are largely protein-rich dry products. The bulk of these products are bought by low-income households, with the notable exception of eggs, which are bought across income groups. Eggs are viewed as a superfood for young children, so critical for brain development that they cannot be left out of a list of best-buy foods. The proposal involves retailers and food manufacturers agreeing to waive the mark-ups of at least one product label of each of the “10 best buys”. Government would then show its support by agreeing to provide a rebate to retailers and manufacturers. This would provide a double discount, augmenting the child support grant to close the food gap for those who get it and providing some buying power for those who don’t. Over the medium term, the nutritious food supply chain must be improved, and ways to increase the accessibility of nutritious foods in the “food deserts” of informal settlements must be identified. GOAL 2 /// All children on track by Grade 4
OPPORTUNITY 5 /// Stop nutritional stunting of young children.
4
10
Grow Great’s 10 double-discounted best-buy food items Note: a balanced diet would require fresh fruit and vegetables too.
5
PUTTING ENOUGH FOOD ON THE TABLE: SUSTAINABLE STEPS TO ADDRESS SOUTH AFRICA’S HUNGER CRISIS
Issue 26 /// January 2024
LESSONS FROM THE FOOD GAP CAMPAIGN The billboard campaign and resultant media exposure, combined with DGMT’s behind-the-scenes policy discussions with government officials, resulted in a flurry of activity in the early days of the campaign. The National Economic Development and Labour Council (NEDLAC) initiated a committee to review the viability of implementing the double-discounted “10 best buys” proposal. The proposal has also been included in the government’s draft Accelerated Poverty Alleviation Plan 2024-2030, and some political parties have since voiced support for public interventions that would mitigate the impact of soaring food prices in the run up to the 2024 general elections. To build on the campaign’s early wins, DGMT and Grow Great are continuing to drive public awareness about, and demand for, the "10 best buys". Beyond the billboards, Grow Great is focused on getting nutritional information into the hands of caregivers at community clinics through printed leaflets. The organisation is also working on getting the "10 best buys" endorsed by credible experts and the Department of Health.
MAKING FRESH FRUIT AND VEGETABLES ACCESSIBLE AND AFFORDABLE While closing the “food gap” can help poorer families afford a select basket of nutritious foods that include non-perishable products, eggs and amasi, a balanced diet requires fresh fruit and vegetables too. According to the Southern Africa Food Lab (SAFL), the diet in most vulnerable households is high in starch, consisting mainly of pap, with little protein, fruit or vegetables. The organisation is working with the eThekwini Metropolitan Municipality to improve the potential for good nutrition in the metro, where approximately 200 000 households in over 300 informal settlements suffer from hunger due to soaring unemployment.13 The organisation’s programme focuses on increasing access to and consumption of healthy, nutritious food in communities near agroecological hubs. The hubs have been established as training and resource centres in Northdene, Newlands, Inchanga, Mariannridge, Cliffdale, Umbumbulu and Hambanathi. These are situated in strategic points across the municipality, supporting seven main (agricultural) zones.
13 Pillay, V. A look at how these 30 farmers are trying to feed their communities, published in IOL Business, September 21, 2023. Available at: https://tinyurl.com/272ff282
GOAL 1 /// An innovative and inclusive society.
OPPORTUNITY 3 /// Build productive synergies between communities and the environment.
6
WOZA NAMI In 2020, the Woza Nami (‘come with me’ in IsiZulu) project was launched in Inchanga, a large peri-urban settlement between Durban and Pietermaritzburg. Woza Nami aims to scale farming in surrounding peri-urban areas based on agroecological practices and principles. This entails farming in harmony with the natural environment, without wasting water or using harsh chemicals and pesticides. The Inchanga Agroecology Hub is Woza Nami’s flagship demonstration site and serves as a working farm with crop planting, soil rehabilitation programmes, chickens and different types of composting methods. Farmers from surrounding areas are trained here in agroecological methods and municipal agricultural extension officers go out to local farms to provide support. It is close to a clinic (Fredville), which is important as the project is jointly about healthy food production and nutrition.
“Woza Nami has helped me to better understand organic farming, as well as techniques to mitigate, and adapt to, climate change. I developed skills to design the farm according to weather conditions.” Nontobeko Khanyile, KwaXimba Village, Cato Ridge
The project supports a range of farmers, predominantly women. Woza Nami currently works with 10 co-operatives (approximately 110 individuals), with between five and 10 farmers intensively farming vegetables on almost a hectare of land. All types of vegetables are grown, including wild crops such as amadumbe and bambara groundnuts (part of traditional diets in KwaZulu-Natal), as well as maize, carrots, spinach, onions, pumpkins, green peppers and lettuce. These farmers are directly supported by the eThekwini Agroecology Unit. It also works with 25 “One Home One Garden” farmers, who are growing backyard vegetable gardens that supplement household diets with vegetables, especially leafy greens. Since the inception of the project, these farmers have faced immense challenges ranging from COVID-19 and the resultant lockdown, to riots that impacted industries in the area, and floods that washed away many of their crops.
7
PUTTING ENOUGH FOOD ON THE TABLE: SUSTAINABLE STEPS TO ADDRESS SOUTH AFRICA’S HUNGER CRISIS
Issue 26 /// January 2024
A team from Stellenbosch University, the Medical Research Council and the University of KwaZulu-Natal, have also been working with neighbouring communities around the Inchanga Hub to better understand food consumption patterns, particularly the intake of vegetables, fruits and legumes. Their research has given rise to a community-focused nutrition awareness campaign that helps people learn what a healthy diet looks like and how to access foods that make up a nutrient-packed diet. Woza Nami is currently working to establish connections with Early Childhood Development (ECD) centres and schools near the Inchanga Hub so they can provide fresh produce to feed young children. The hub is also trying to encourage farmers to view ECD centres as potential markets so that ECD centres can tap into existing networks of small farmers. Ultimately Woza Nami aims to grow their farmers’ markets.
“The smallholder sector is a key point of entry to bring about more sustainable food systems in South Africa, both because these farmers support the most vulnerable populations through informal markets, and because they employ operations most suitable for the development of sustainable, agroecological and local food systems.” Professor Scott Drimie, SAFL Director
LESSONS FROM WOZA NAMI URBAN AGRICULTURE CAN SUCCEED WITH SUSTAINED SUPPORT AND SCALING “When we don’t know what to do about the question of hunger or food security, stakeholders, particularly government, say ‘OK, let’s build some urban gardens.’ By and large, they fail, often because there is not sustained support, but also because there is not that sustained real deep scaling at the beginning to really establish those systems,” explains Professor Scott Drimie, SAFL Director. In the past few years, different approaches have meant that urban farming gardens are becoming more self-sufficient. This can be attributed in part to the pandemic encouraging people to become more resilient, and it can also be attributed to the fact that more sustained support and scaling have been provided by government and civil society organisations.
GOAL 2 /// All children on track by Grade 4
IDENTIFY COMMUNITY NEEDS TO INFORM SUPPLY
Through the research partnership mentioned earlier, SAFL was able to identify potential nutrition deficits and use this information to inform supply. Results from the research findings are used to engage smallholder farmers on what to grow beyond the standard cabbages and carrots, like wild crops such as amadumbe and bambara groundnuts. Drimie says the aim is to encourage crop diversification, which makes food systems more resilient and stable in the face of climate change. Planting plans have also become much more diverse and chickens were introduced as a way of demonstrating the interconnection between small livestock and growing fruit and vegetables. Small livestock such as pigs or chickens are an important component of agroecological practice.
NURSES CHAMPION THE CAUSE
In Inchanga, malnutrition is commonplace; while most cases are mild, others are severe, and many health issues are related to vitamin deficiencies. Yet vitamin A, iron, zinc, and iodine are found in green, orange and yellow fruits and vegetables. Healthcare practitioners believe that the Woza Nami project has strengthened their outreach programme. For instance, Sister Shabangu heading the local clinic is a strong advocate of home food gardens, having seen the improved health outcomes of better nutrition first-hand.
Community nutrition research undertaken by Stellenbosch University revealed that upwards of 70% of Inchanga residents surveyed view nurses as their primary source of nutrition information (far more than media, doctors, teachers or family). COLLABORATE AND CONNECT WITH EXPERIENCE
A clear lesson that emerged from this project is: Don’t start from scratch. A key focus of Woza Nami has been to connect and collaborate with those experienced in farming. Drimie believes that for these projects to be successful and sustainable, it’s essential that they form an alliance between local government, local farmers, local consumers and local non-government organisations. “We should strengthen government, not work in opposition to or adjacent to it.” Woza Nami offers a scalable model for other urban centres to follow. It’s an opportunity to tackle local and national food security through sustainable farming practices, hectare by hectare.
OPPORTUNITY 5 /// Stop nutritional stunting of young children.
8
DEVELOPING STRONGER COMMUNITIES IN THE WESTERN CAPE THROUGH FOOD AND FARMING The South African Urban Food & Farming Trust (SAUFFT) works to develop stronger communities through food and farming. This section of the brief will look at three urban food garden projects in the Western Cape. It’s important to note that urban food gardens are not a solution to national food insecurity because they are too small to yield the produce that an average household needs to survive. Instead, food gardens provide supplemental nutrition. And, by growing their own food, people have a little extra money in their monthly budgets to spend on other household necessities.
MITCHELLS PLAIN AGRIHUB The food gardens in Mitchells Plain, Cape Town, have coalesced around three nodes that fulfil the same agrihub role, but one of those has been challenged due to safety and security, so only two are now operational at a basic level. The focus of these agrihubs has been to work with school eco-clubs, coordinate bulk supply of inputs, and establish spaces where growers can take up allotments. While it has a network of 318 active growers, the agrihub in Mitchells Plain remains a work in progress.
KHAYELITSHA AGRIHUB SAUFFT is also working with a group of nearly 400 wellestablished growers in 84 food gardens across Khayelitsha, Cape Town. These growers are generally more commercially minded, but they suddenly lost their access to their usual market in 2022. SAUFFT stepped in to help them with logistics and infrastructure support by establishing an agrihub and partnered with the NGO, Abalimi Bezekhaya15, which is helping to re-establish market access.
LANGA AGRI/FOODHUB Since 2021 SAUFFT has been working with a local non-profit, the Masakhe Foundation14, to establish an agrihub for 33 food gardens run by an informal network of up to 160 farmers in Langa, Cape Town. The project site, owned by the Red Cross Society, is in the heart of Langa, adjacent to the Lerotholi Food Garden. The project aims to establish local supporting infrastructure, farming inputs and services (the agrihub) to assist existing and new growers, and also supporting infrastructure and services for market access (the foodhub) to local consumers. The goals are to strengthen existing urban small-scale farmers, micro-farmers and community gardens, increase the availability of locally-grown produce, increase the chances for small farmers to expand into commercial farming, improve household nutrition and food security in Langa, and strengthen social cohesion. SAUFFT provides strategic and planning support, implementation support, and ongoing mentoring as needed, which is anticipated to taper off over time.
14 The Masakhe Foundation, started by Thulani Fesi and Mpilo Ngcukana, supports some 30 gardens across Langa.
15 Abalimi Bezekhaya means farmers of the home in isiXhosa and was established in
1982. It is a non-profit organisation (NPO and PBO) that supports micro-farmers in the Cape Flats townships to grow vegetables organically. More information available here: https://abalimibezekhaya.org.za/
9
LESSONS FROM FOOD GARDENS RESILIENT COMMUNITY FOOD GARDENS MAKE FOR RESILIENT COMMUNITIES Food gardens and urban farming strengthen the ties that bind communities together, contributing to social cohesion, resilience and agency. Thobeka Gacula, a member of the Langa agrifood hub, says she found comfort and companionship in connecting with other smallholder female farmers, a form of connectedness unique to this type of network. For her, agriculture and social work are related, and her farm is a form of social work in itself. “My passion is helping other women, to show them there’s more life in hope, just like there is in plants,” she says. Kurt Ackermann, SAUFFT Chief Executive Officer, shares an example of these resilient networks of urban farmers helping their communities during a taxi strike in Cape Town in 2023. “They were making sure that everyone had food, people were looked after and that people who hadn’t been heard from, people were able to go and see them and make sure everything was OK.” Urban farming communities have access to produce they grow themselves, thus their food will typically be free from industrial pesticides used in large-scale commercial farming and genetically modified organisms.
PUTTING ENOUGH FOOD ON THE TABLE: SUSTAINABLE STEPS TO ADDRESS SOUTH AFRICA’S HUNGER CRISIS
Issue 26 /// January 2024
“There is a lot of knowledge among farmers in the network about how to use certain plants, whether they are culinary or medicinal herbs to manage their health a bit better. So, for people who can’t afford to buy over-thecounter medicines, or get to a clinic or so on, there is knowledge about dietary practices that can help people maintain their health, or address illness.” Kurt Ackermann, CEO of SAUFFT
GOAL 1 /// An innovative and inclusive society.
URBAN FARMING NETWORKS HAVE MORE LEVERAGE SAUFFT supports urban growers to buy in bulk directly from suppliers so they can source cheaper inputs and compost. Ackermann explains: “We have shown that farmers can save typically 67-80% on their input costs, so what they are spending on seeds, seedlings and compost, they can get three to five times as much for the same amount of money when they do it through an agrihub.” SAUFFT’s main objective is to help growers develop and explore their power to improve the running of agrihubs at a community scale, in terms of growing, selling and buying. This will fundamentally strengthen the agency of the growers and give them more resources to work with so they are less vulnerable to shocks such as drought, their community is also less vulnerable, and they have a resource base that they can work with.
OPPORTUNITY 3 /// Build productive synergies between communities and the environment.
10
NO ONE-SIZE-FITS-ALL MODEL These three agrihubs now operate as part of a broader network. For example, the Langa farmers can send their produce to the Khayelitsha agrihub and tap into that market, too. In September 2023, for the first time, 100 representatives from all three hubs came together, representing 644 growers and 132 sites. They shared their stories, exchanged knowledge through masterclasses, and explored ideas for strengthening their collective. Together they discussed how to open up new markets, share tools and vehicles, and use their buying power to lower costs even further. Ackermann expands: “But they also saw the opportunity to add their voice to policy debates on urban land use for agriculture, to work on community-level problems with ward councillors and sub-councils and tackle other issues that contribute to the vulnerability of their communities. They know full well that being resilient is about more than just food security, and that if they stick together, they might be able to do something about it.”
The three hubs mentioned in this brief have faced common challenges: a pandemic, drought, floods, loadshedding, and taxi strikes. But they also have their own distinct challenges. For example, the Langa gardeners are in a high-density area where it is relatively easy to get around on foot with a wheelbarrow. Mitchells Plain is more built up and it’s less practical to get around on foot. A mobile cold room and trucks with trailers for moving manure and compost had to be brought in so that movement and distribution of resources and harvests could be managed more effectively. There appears to be less social cohesion in Mitchells Plain and more issues with gangsterism and violence. “Understanding these challenges is good for the overall sustainability of our agrihub initiative, because we are learning about adapting to different contexts,” explains Ackermann. SAUFFT plans to develop an open-source methodology so that organisations in other communities can adapt the programme to their own needs.
WHAT'S NEXT? We need a robust and holistic approach to address household food insecurity at policy and implementation level. This brief shows just how civil society is innovating in addressing the challenge. But civil society organisations need support and investment from government and the private sector. We need to get behind policy proposals that seek to make nutritious food cheaper for poorer families, urban farming initiatives that demonstrate longevity and sustainability, and environmentally friendly farming practices that reap benefits for communities in synergy with nature.
Learning brief developed by Daniella Horwitz, and edited by Rahima Essop and Cornè Kritzinger. This brief was based on contributions from Grow Great, Southern Africa Food Lab (SAFL) and the South African Urban Food & Farming Trust (SAUFFT).
Th i s i s t h e l e a r n i n g ex p e r i e n c e of :
GOAL 2 /// All children on track by Grade 4
OPPORTUNITY 5 /// Stop nutritional stunting of young children.
12