About half of SA’s population is facing hunger come 2025

At least 49% of South Africans will battle food hunger come 2025 and those living in Limpopo, KwaZulu-Natal, the North West and the Northern Cape are expected to feel the worst of it.

This is according to a Shoprite-commissioned study seeking to bring awareness to the country’s looming food insecurity.

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It is worth noting that the country’s prospects have improved since 2020 when food insecurity was expected to affect 52% of the population by 2025.

However, according to the JSE-listed retail giant’s Food Index 2023 released on Monday, approximately 21.18% of children in the country face stunted growth in the next two years as a result of food insecurity.

Largely rural provinces are expected to bear most of the burden with expectations that they will remain above the national average.

Limpopo is expected to suffer the worst levels of food insecurity, with estimates placing 54% of the province’s population in the food-insecure category. KwaZulu-Natal (53%), North West (53%) and the Northern Cape (52%) follow, with more than half of their populations at risk.

Prospects are slightly better in the Western Cape – the country’s international tourism hub – and its economic hub Gauteng, with expectations of a food insecurity threat to 41% and 47% of their respective populations.

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“The numbers in the Food Index are unacceptably high and the trickle of people escaping food insecurity too low,” Shoprite’s head of sustainability and CSI Sanjeev Raghubir said in a statement.

“To deal with the problem we need to better understand it and the Food Index provides us with some insight. Although the modelling shows an improvement by 2025 the reality is that in two years’ time, just under half the population will still be struggling with hunger.

“That’s why we must urgently escalate the rate of people escaping food insecurity. Doing so will improve not only their prospects but that of the country.”

High food prices

Shoprite’s insights come as the country faces high food prices with the latest Statistics SA data for August showing food inflation at 8%, higher than overall headline inflation of 4.8% that month.

The Pietermaritzburg Economic Justice and Dignity Group, in its Household Affordability Index for September, reports that the average cost of the household food basket has increased by R349.91 year-on-year to R5 155.77 – with increases in certain grain items like rice and flour, as well as some fruit and vegetable items. The price of a 10kg bag of frozen chicken pieces reportedly dropped from R392.35 in September 2022 to R390.97 last month.

-South Africa is battling the deadliest outbreak of the highly pathogenic avian influenza, which has seen millions of chickens slaughtered and eggs crushed. The threat to the industry – which supplies consumers with one of the cheapest sources of protein – may result in significant short-term increases in the price of poultry products as food producers and retailers struggle to secure supply to meet demand.

This week the nation will get an update on the inflation numbers for September.

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Listen to Jimmy Moyaha’s interview with Sanjeev Raghubir, head of sustainability and CSI at Shoprite Group:

You can also listen to this podcast on iono.fm here.