South Africa produces enough food, yet millions go hungry while edible surplus is lost. This is not a supply issue. It is a systems failure.

The recent inquiry led by the South African Human Rights Commission (SAHRC), as part of its Right to Food campaign, places a necessary spotlight on how the food system functions and where it falls short.

FoodForward SA contributed to this process, bringing practical insight from across the food supply chain. As Managing Director, Andy Du Plessis notes:

“Food systems are the bedrock of social and economic stability, yet they are increasingly exposed to systemic shocks that deepen inequality and hit the most vulnerable the hardest.”

At the centre of the issue is a legal and regulatory environment that unintentionally works against food donation.

In collaboration with the Legal Resources Centre, FoodForward SA’s submission highlights how existing laws are misaligned. Businesses face uncertainty around liability, limited incentives, and compliance frameworks that were never designed with food recovery in mind.

The result is simple. Donating surplus food is often harder than disposing of it.

This has real consequences. Good food goes to waste while households struggle, and inefficiencies in the system contribute to higher food costs.

Yet the solution is within reach.

“Reducing food loss and waste is one of the most immediate opportunities to strengthen food systems,” says Du Plessis. “It improves efficiency, helps stabilise prices, and delivers meaningful climate benefits.”

The submission does not call for new laws, but for better alignment of what already exists. This includes removing disincentives, clarifying compliance requirements, and recognising food recovery as a practical, scalable solution.

Food recovery is already working. What is missing is an enabling environment that allows it to reach its full potential. The SAHRC inquiry creates a clear opportunity to move from fragmented efforts to coordinated action, and to ensure that surplus food becomes part of the solution, not part of the problem.

South Africa does not need to reinvent its food system. It needs to fix the gaps within it.

Because when the system works, everyone benefits:

• Businesses operate more efficiently
• Vulnerable communities gain access to nutritious food
• Environmental impact is reduced
• The constitutional right to sufficient food moves closer to being realised