Though the challenges we face regarding eradicating hunger and realising the right to food are immense, through our collective expertise and commitment, we can forge a path towards a South Africa where the justice of eating becomes a social justice in that it is equitably...
Prof Kennedy Dzama, Vice-Dean for Research, Postgraduate Studies and Innovation in the Faculty of AgriSciences at Stellenbosch University, has been appointed Chair of the Southern Africa Food Lab....
The 5th International Social Justice Conference and 6th Social Justice Summit ended on a high note with participants pledging to undertake united, coordinated and accelerated global and domestic action to end hunger by 2030. The pledges and resolutions were the outcome of a three-day combination of events...
While millions of South Africans are going hungry, tonnes of food are wasted annually. The country needs to move beyond the notion of “charity", to the constitutionally enshrined right to food when dealing with people facing hunger and nutrition insecurity. This was one of the...
A recent Daily Maverick article draws attention to a new South African study that reveals that ultra-processed foods make up nearly 40% of daily energy intake among low-income adults. The research, published in January 2024, examined over 2,500 participants from low-income areas in the Western...
Gareth Haysom argues that the future of any young child conceived today in one of the under-serviced areas of a South African city demands that we act on food insecurity now, and act with urgency and initiative seldom seen in our governance structures. Despite claims...
The Stockholm Resilience Centre at Stockholm University is offering two PhD posts for the TRANSMOD project...
A recent study published in Sustainability Science highlights the successes and challenges faced by community-based adaptation projects, providing valuable insights into how these initiatives can enhance resilience against climate-related risks. The study examines the growing use of neglected and underutilized species - traditional, locally-adapted plants...
Adequate investment in early childhood development (ECD) is the most effective action a country can take to break cycles of intergenerational poverty. This means ensuring children attend quality early learning programmes, are safe, cared for and have access to nutritious food so that their bodies...
More than a quarter of our children have a deep and chronic lack of protein that undermines their potential and is a ball-and-chain around the ankles of economic productivity and long-term growth....
The Institute for Economic Justice and East Cape Agricultural Research Project have released an important working paper into cattle and beef production, which provides a useful case study to examine food system just transition questions because of its notable intersections with climate change and jobs...
Across the world, over 800 million people spend their days hungry. More than 2 billion have limited access to food. Yet today’s global food system produces enough to feed every person on the planet....
How can we move towards less poverty and a more equitable food landscape as a step towards increased human health, economic development and a more realistic notion of freedom of choice?...
By month end, South Africa will have a new Minister of Health. Ufrieda Ho asked some academics and activists what qualities that person should have to tackle the key health issues the country faces....
The three worlds that South Africans simultaneously occupy in one country seriously impede food security on a household level for all citizens. It is a given that their respective access to assets or capital greatly influences the level of food security that citizens will experience....
In four short years, Prof Mvu Ngcoya and Linda Lazarczyková, stirred by passion and commitment, have turned an inhospitable farm plot in rural KZN into a model of transformation and delicious, nutritious food. Be in charge of your plate, be in charge of your freedom?...
GroundUp staff asked the ANC, DA, EFF, IFP, FF Plus, ActionSA, PA, MK Party, and Rise Mzansi on 13 March and sent follow-up queries to those who did not respond regarding the issue of food security. ...
South Africa’s growing obesity epidemic won’t be reversed by preaching healthier eating habits and exercise alone; there’s a growing realisation that the food industry needs to change....
In October 2020 the South African government launched a collection of public employment programmes, initially intended as a response to the COVID-19 pandemic. The initiative, called the Presidential Employment Stimulus, has been extended since then. The total budget allocation to March 2024 was R42 billion...
In South Africa, 31% of men and 68% of women are obese. The National Health and Nutrition Survey shows a 13% obesity rate among children aged one to five – twice the global average of 6.1%....