THE SOUTH AFRICAN FOOD SYSTEM AND THE NEED FOR A JUST TRANSITION

This fact sheet by the Institute for Economic Justice describes the South African food system as an unsustainable, corporate-industrial model characterized by concentrated ownership, food insecurity, and environmental damage. It advocates for a 'just transition' toward agroecology and a system that treats food as a public good to ensure the right to food for all citizens.

• The South African food system is characterized by concentrated ownership and control, particularly within formal retail, food manufacturing, cattle feedlots, grain storage, and agricultural inputs. This system is further influenced by government policies that favor the corporate sector and the sale of large companies to foreign buyers.
• Food insecurity is prevalent in South Africa, with at least 20% of households regularly experiencing it. This is driven by market-determined food access, low wages, and unemployment, with the most severe impacts felt by inhabitants of informal settlements, rural areas, and Black women.
• Trade policies and the World Trade Organisation (WTO) have forced markets open, leading to the import of cheap, subsidized food of poor nutritional quality. This undermines South African domestic production by forcing local producers to compete with artificially low prices, creating a cycle of dependency on imports.
• The current industrial food system contributes to malnutrition, where obesity, diabetes, and hunger coexist. This is attributed to the high cost of nutritious food and the prevalence of cheap, highly processed foods—such as sugar and maize meal—which are high in carbohydrates but low in nutritional value.
• Large-scale commercial agriculture causes significant environmental damage, including toxic chemical use and excessive water consumption, and is highly vulnerable to climate change. In contrast, a transition to agroecology is proposed as an integrated response to biodiversity loss, soil and water pollution, and climate change, aiming for a circular economy with zero waste.

APA

Institute for Economic Justice (n.d.). THE SOUTH AFRICAN FOOD SYSTEM AND THE NEED FOR A JUST TRANSITION. https://iej.org.za/wp-content/uploads/2023/10/FactS-02-ENG-SA-food-system-just-transition_Web_fin.pdf

Chicago

Institute for Economic Justice. THE SOUTH AFRICAN FOOD SYSTEM AND THE NEED FOR A JUST TRANSITION. n.d. https://iej.org.za/wp-content/uploads/2023/10/FactS-02-ENG-SA-food-system-just-transition_Web_fin.pdf.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |author=Institute for Economic Justice |title=THE SOUTH AFRICAN FOOD SYSTEM AND THE NEED FOR A JUST TRANSITION |url=https://iej.org.za/wp-content/uploads/2023/10/FactS-02-ENG-SA-food-system-just-transition_Web_fin.pdf |access-date=17 August 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{instituteforeconomicjusticendsouth, author = {{Institute for Economic Justice}}, title = {{THE SOUTH AFRICAN FOOD SYSTEM AND THE NEED FOR A JUST TRANSITION}}, institution = {Institute for Economic Justice}, url = {https://iej.org.za/wp-content/uploads/2023/10/FactS-02-ENG-SA-food-system-just-transition_Web_fin.pdf}, urldate = {2026-08-17}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }