Gauteng Smallholder December/ January 2018 | Page 11

#SAFoodCrisis
SA’s food crisis in summary
T
o anybody who has
been following our
series of articles over
the past five months under
the #SAFoodCrisis hashtag it
should be obvious that South
Africa is sitting with an
unregulated, unjust train-
smash food industry which
could very well result in
destructive rioting if not dealt
with. On the other hand, it
should also have become
apparent to readers that the
issues and problems embod-
ied in the food crisis are so
great and diverse that no
single politician is likely to
want to tackle them, beyond
issuing reassuring statements
about “taking steps to ensure
food security,” etc.
For those readers, therefore,
who may have missed parts of
our series here, “samevat-
tend”, (as Riaan Cruywagen
used to say) is the crisis
South Africa is sitting with an unregulated,
unjust train-smash food industry which
could very well result in destructive rioting
if not dealt with. Do our politicians have the
stomach for dealing with the crisis?
corporates in the food
production, distribution and
retailing chain have conspired
to maximise their profits by
pushing off-farm prices down
at the production end while
outlined.
commodities, for example,
pushing consumer prices as
butter shortages.
high as possible at the
Starting with the production
consumption end.
side it is clear from figures
Meanwhile, however,
available that the commercial government is starting to
The food industry is also
farming sector is in decline, at introduce the concept of
adept at promoting “value-
least so far as farmer numbers smallholder farming, settling
added” prepared foods under
are concerned. A number of
previously disadvantaged
the guise of convenience ~
factors are driving farmers off families on small parcels of
foods that may be laden with
the land, including crime,
land in the hope that they will unhealthy quantities of
drought, insecurity of tenure
become productive farmers
undesirable ingredients such
in the face of possible land
and contribute, if not to
as trans fat, salt and sugar.
claims and, most of all, low
national food security, then at While some markets have
prices paid for their produce. least to family and regional
programmes to encourage
food security, through the
The decline in commercial
small traders and hawkers,
production and sale of small
farmer numbers is a real
the municipal/commercial
quantities of a wide variety of market system is designed to
threat to national food
security ~ the ongoing ability commodities and livestock.
benefit buyers by driving
of the country to feed its
Because the agricultural
prices as low as possible, even
citizens, and already shortages industry is no longer regulated to the extent of unprofitability
and price spikes are being
by control boards, subsidies
for the producer/farmer.
experienced in certain
or price control mechanisms,
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