TOWARDS A JUST TRANSITION IN SOUTH AFRICA’S FOOD SYSTEM

The fact sheet outlines the necessity of a just transition in South Africa's food system to combat land inequality, corporate dominance, and food insecurity. It argues that the current industrial food system contributes approximately 18% of the country's greenhouse gas emissions and is highly vulnerable to climate change. The document proposes a framework based on food sovereignty, focusing on three targets: equitable livelihoods, environmental sustainability through agroecology, and the right to food and nutrition. It identifies several barriers to this transition, including a policy bias toward energy and the market-driven approach established by the Marketing of Agricultural Products Act of 1996.

• The industrial food system in South Africa is a major driver of climate change, accounting for approximately 18% of the country's greenhouse gas emissions and causing water pollution and biodiversity loss through monoculture and chemical use.
• South Africa's food system is characterized by deep social injustice, where a small number of large-scale commercial farmers control most productive land while millions of smallholders, particularly women, lack secure land access.
• Corporate power dominates the food system, with a few large corporations controlling inputs, processing, distribution, and retail, which contributes to the exploitation of workers and the marginalization of approximately 600,000 informal traders.
• Food insecurity affects up to a quarter of South African households, a situation exacerbated by sharp food price inflation and a dependency on the corporate food system.
• A significant barrier to a just transition is the government's prioritization of market-led organization of the food system, reinforced by the Marketing of Agricultural Products Act of 1996, and a general policy bias that focuses on energy rather than food systems.
• A just transition in the food system must achieve three inter-related targets: equitable livelihoods (decent jobs and secure land rights), environmental sustainability (via agroecology to minimize emissions), and the right to food and improved nutrition.
• Labor in the food system is increasingly precarious, with a shift toward informal, casual, and temporary work, and many farm workers earning only the minimum wage, which is insufficient for a recommended nutritional diet.

APA

Institute for Economic Justice (n.d.). TOWARDS A JUST TRANSITION IN SOUTH AFRICA’S FOOD SYSTEM. https://iej.org.za/wp-content/uploads/2023/10/FactS-01-ENG-Towards-a-just-transition_Web.pdf

Chicago

Institute for Economic Justice. TOWARDS A JUST TRANSITION IN SOUTH AFRICA’S FOOD SYSTEM. n.d. https://iej.org.za/wp-content/uploads/2023/10/FactS-01-ENG-Towards-a-just-transition_Web.pdf.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |author=Institute for Economic Justice |title=TOWARDS A JUST TRANSITION IN SOUTH AFRICA’S FOOD SYSTEM |url=https://iej.org.za/wp-content/uploads/2023/10/FactS-01-ENG-Towards-a-just-transition_Web.pdf |access-date=17 August 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{instituteforeconomicjusticendtowards, author = {{Institute for Economic Justice}}, title = {{TOWARDS A JUST TRANSITION IN SOUTH AFRICA’S FOOD SYSTEM}}, institution = {Institute for Economic Justice}, url = {https://iej.org.za/wp-content/uploads/2023/10/FactS-01-ENG-Towards-a-just-transition_Web.pdf}, urldate = {2026-08-17}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }