Du Plessis provides five tips for households battling to afford nutritious meals:
- Change consumption patterns - buy less expensive goods that are not name brands.
- Buy only what you need for a few days at a time so the food does not go to waste.
- Do not buy food on credit. Buy fresh produce that can go further and fill tummies.
- Start a small food garden.
- Barter with neighbours.
Food and Trees for Africa says individuals can make a difference in their communities by:
- Supporting established organisations such as Food and Trees for Africa, which empower local communities to grow their food and earn an income by selling excess produce.
- Finding a community garden and volunteering your time or donating resources. If there are no community gardens in your area, consider starting one.
- Helping educate people on how to grow food and access the resources they need.
- Creating local food-sharing networks where people can donate excess food from home or community gardens to neighbours or local charities. This also reduces waste.
“Empowering people to become food secure rather than creating reliance on food aid requires a focus on sustainable, long-term solutions that build skills, resources, and opportunities for self-sufficiency,” says Ras.
“These ingredients are ideal for providing practical meal ideas. For breakfast, a family could have maize meal porridge with peanut butter for added protein, or boiled eggs, which are filling and nutritious,” says Dudu Maziya, Grow Great’s head of communications.
“Focusing on simple ingredients can help provide nutritious meals for households. Planning meals and buying seasonal fruit and vegetables can help balance affordability and nutrition. Remember, processed foods are costly and less nutritious.”
Grow Great, a DG Murray Trust joint venture aimed at improving maternal and child health, nutrition and early childhood development practices, promotes 10 budget-friendly food items:
- Eggs
- Dried beans and lentils
- Tinned fish
- Fortified maize meal
- Peanut butter
- Rice
- Amasi
- Soya mince
- Lentils
- Full cream milk
Reach out:
Download recipes for affordable, nutritious meals and learn more about budget-friendly food items: Grow Great WhatsApp line 060 073 3333
Registered NPOs can contact a local FoodForward SA beneficiary organisation to provide food support. Go to www.foodforwardsa.org and click on ‘apply’
Apply for school or community food garden support or agribusiness start-up and support from Trees and Food for Africa. Go to www.trees.org.za and click on ‘apply’
