On the day Luleka Gqumeta’s baby died, she says she was in the streets begging for food for her and her children. It was October 2020, amid COVID-19-related social restrictions and Gqumeta – unemployed with three other school-going children – was struggling to feed her...
In a Jacana ‘Don’t Shut Up’ conversation with Maverick Citizen editor Mark Heywood, author Tracy Ledger explains the direct link between malnutrition and a propensity for violence. From abused farmworkers to a lack of coordination at all levels of government, the food system not only...
In South Africa, more than nine million children live in food-insecure households, and according to findings of a local survey, South Africans count the fear of food shortages and loss of income a close second to the fear of contracting the coronavirus. "The novel coronavirus...
By Lelona Mxesibe - 27 August 2020 The Covid-19 pandemic has thrown the spotlight on the importance of the informal economy as a means of survival for South Africa’s 2.9 million citizens without access to formal employment – as well as their resulting vulnerability. This is another...
Through the past 5 months, Food Flow have spent over R1.6 Million in purchases from small scale farmers, fishers and producers supporting more than 400 livelihoods all while getting food into more than 30 communities in 3 provinces. The organisation's Impact Report tells the story of...
Obesity increases the risk of dying of Covid-19 by nearly 50% and may make vaccines against the disease less effective, according to a comprehensive study using global data. The findings, which the lead researcher described as “scary”, show that the risks for people with obesity are greater...
Yesterday (19 August 2020) the Food Lab together with Community Chest co-hosted a webinar considering the link between human and planetary health. Marcelle Mentor (from Columbia University) highlighted the critical importance of education when it comes to nutrition and noted that food insecurity is not...
Ihsaan Bassier, Refiloe Joala and Thando Vilakazi COVID-19 has wrought havoc on poor households in countries across the world. In South Africa, more and more people are facing hunger resulting from mass job losses and small, poorly implemented supplementary cash grants. On top of this the pandemic has put...
Nutrition is fundamental to health and wellbeing and as such dietitians remain committed to serve and protect the nutrition agenda of South Africa. Be honest. If you think about dietitians, you think about salads and weight-loss, right? It’s okay, we don’t blame you. Dietitians do want...
COVID-19 has shown how damaging ill-health can be for the economy. But it has also shown how measures that benefit health (lockdowns) can be seen as bad economic prosperity. A similar paradox is at the heart of promoting better diets. Poor diet is the world’s leading cause...