Eighth International Conference on Food Studies

Abstract

South Africa’s development agenda focuses on radical transformation which includes initiatives to addressing the right to food. Through a number of legislative initiatives since 2002, the government has provided opportunities to address the disproportionate burden of food insecurity among poor households and individuals. Yet, the prevalence of food and nutrition insecurity is relatively high for a middle income country. This study reviews, food and nutrition security policy initiatives to examine their implications for production, access and treatment of food insecurity. Policies that were made between 2002 and 2017 were retrieved from government department websites and grey literature. The data were thematically analysed. The analysis was informed by Ericksen’s conceptual model of food systems. The results show that policy has aided production through the provision of inputs (e.g. Land, irrigation equipment, seeds and fertilizers) and capacity building. Access to food has been aided through tax, school feeding programs, social grants and breastfeeding campaigns. Micronutrient supplementation and food fortification are some of the treatment interventions. Food and nutrition insecurity resulted from the absence and contradictions in the delivery of production, access and treatment initiatives. It was also caused by the lack of coordination, cooperation and co-creation in the implementation of these initiatives. To improve food and nutrition security, government must better understand and engage with ideas about how to address these absences and contradictions and concerns about program coordination, cooperation and co-creation.