More South Africans experienced deeper food insecurity last year, compared to any other year between 2012 and 2023, with child hunger a critical issue that needs attention.
This is according to the South African Food Security Index, developed by Stellenbosch university economists Prof Dieter von Fintel and Dr Anja Smith, which states food security is at its lowest point in more than a decade.
The research found 11.8% of households said they were consuming a lower variety of food than usual given economic constraints, and food availability declined from a peak of 2.8 tonnes of raw food per person per year in 2017 to 2.6 tonnes in 2022.
“One of most concerning observations drawn from the index is that child hunger remains a major issue. As many as one in four children are growth stunted — a number which is especially alarming given the country’s overall level of economic development,” said Sanjeev Raghubir, chief sustainability officer for the Shoprite Group, which commissioned the index.
Proposals for concrete steps to reduce food insecurity include prioritising nutrition interventions during the first 1,000 days of children’s lives.
“To achieve this, stakeholders need to be mobilised at multiple levels (national, meso-level and local level). Ultimately, very targeted interventions are needed to support the nutrition of young children, to prevent stunting and other illnesses.
“This should include the provision of appropriate protein-rich food at early childhood development centres, as well as at early learning programmes,” according to the index, as well as the establishment of household food gardens.
The National Treasury was urged to zero rate VAT on more protein-rich items used by lower income households.
“There is currently a process under way to reconsider the food items which are VAT-exempt and to potentially expand the zero rated VAT list. Multiple stakeholders have argued for adding affordable protein sources to this list — which is supported by the meat and poultry industry. This needs to be urgently considered and put into action considering both the hunger and nutrition problem in South Africa,” the report states.
Stunting rates reflect inadequate nutrition during essential growth periods. The research states that of the more affordable and accessible foods that have been identified as easy options that can be provided to children by caregivers to help avoid stunting are: chicken liver; small-tinned fish such as sardines; eggs, chicken, or peanut butter; milk, maas, or plain unsweetened yoghurt; dark green leafy vegetables such as spinach or indigenous green leaves; and yellow, orange and deep red vegetables and fruit, such as carrot, tomato, pumpkin, orange-flesh sweet potato, apricot, or mango.
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