Johannesburg - In an effort to implement a food donation policy, former Miss Universe Zozibini Tunzi and leading non-profit food redistribution organisation, FoodForward SA, have put out a call on social media.
They took to Instagram this week to urge the public to sign a petition to convince the South African government to implement a food donations policy.
FoodForward SA explained that South Africa is one of the few countries that does not have a policy to govern food donations, yet more than 10 million tons of good quality, edible surplus food is either lost or wasted throughout the supply chain annually.
This, while nearly 30 million people experience moderate to severe food insecurity regularly each month.
A food donations policy will allow South Africa to recover quality, within-date food from farmers, post-harvest handlers, manufacturers, and retailers, and redistribute this food to improve food security at the household level and end malnutrition, the non-profit said.
“We need 100 000 signatures on a petition to convince the South African government to implement a food donations policy,” Tunzi said. “Please, share your signature by signing the petition and help us get to 100 000,” she added.
FoodForward SA said reducing food loss and waste is the third most effective solution for fighting climate change.
The organisation’s foodbanking model is a cost-effective solution to addressing food insecurity while saving the environment, it said. For every ton of food that FoodForward SA recovers, 4 tons of greenhouse gas emissions are saved.