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Cape Town, March 8: Against the backdrop of climate change, the global food crisis, and rising input costs, PepsiCo South Africa, and the Department of Agriculture have engaged various stakeholders on potential solutions to address these challenges.

On 8 February 2023, the heads of the FAO, IMF, World Bank Group, WFP, and WTO released a joint statement calling for a mitigation of the worsening of the food and nutrition security crisis and added that countries should balance short-term urgent interventions with longer term resilience efforts¹.

The keynote speaker at a high-level roundtable event held in Cape Town on Tuesday 7 March, Minister Thoko Didiza of the Department of Agriculture, Land Reform and Rural Development used the opportunity to explain how important it is to create space and opportunity for dialogue amongst key stakeholders across the food value chain: “You cannot talk about nutrition without looking at all the food systems that feed into the value chain”.

Also speaking at the event, Eugene Willemsen, the CEO of PepsiCo Africa, Middle East and South Asia, explained the food and beverage company’s determination to enhance planet and people: “As part of our PepsiCo positive transformation, we have set a food security goal to increase access to nutritious food for 50 million people globally by 2030, through our Food for Good security program and the expansion of our affordable nutrition offerings”.

PepsiCo also supports the Zero Hunger Private Sector Pledge, which emerged from the UN Food Systems Summit, pledging $100 million in positive agriculture and food security initiatives by 2030 across Africa, Asia, Latin America, including South Africa. It covers initiatives such as training farmers and helping strengthen agricultural production with plans to increase crop yields and help ensure more resilient food supply.

 

A sustainable food system is one that delivers food security and nutrition for all in such a way that the economic, social and environmental bases to generate food security and nutrition for future generation is not compromised. This means that it is profitable throughout, ensuring economic sustainability, it has broad-based benefits for society, securing social sustainability, and that it has a positive or neutral impact on the natural resource environment, safeguarding the sustainability of the environment.

“We are working collectively across sectors within the value chain as well as with public and private partnerships to drive meaningful change in agriculture as well as in agro-processing. The aim is to drive access to nutrition and help leverage our global capabilities in collaboration with local partners in new ways. But this is just one step in a long journey toward realising zero hunger and ensuring a sustainable future for all,” added Willemsen.

Willemsen said that geopolitical issues have exacerbated the food price crisis, bringing to the fore the need for resilience of food supply chains. The soaring food prices combined with the impacts of climate-induced droughts and floods could create an even grimmer outlook for food security in coming years.

Minister Didiza agrees and adds that education is one of the key workstreams required to tackle inaccessibility of nutrition in South Africa: “We have a significant challenge on our hands, but one of the factors within our control is to reach out through all available channels and drive consumer education about how best to access nutrition that is affordable to individuals”.

“A resilient agricultural supply chain is critical to the future of our industry and creating a more sustainable agriculture system is key to PepsiCo’s business as we recognise that our company, communities and planet are all inextricably linked. We have a critical role to play in realizing a more equitable and just food system to ensure the communities we serve are free from hunger and malnutrition. This is at the very heart of our accessible nutrition efforts,” concludes Willemsen.

ENDS/…

¹Source: https://www.worldbank.org/en/topic/agriculture/brief/food-security-update

QUOTES FROM PANELISTS:

A panel of experts tackled some of the key issues facing the agriculture and agro-processing value chain:

Prof John R Taylor, Food Scientist & Professor in the Department of Consumer and Food Sciences, University of Pretoria:

“When it comes to being able to access good nutrition, we need to start by asking ordinary working Moms what would make a difference to them and their families”.

Nasele Mehlomakulu, Deputy DG: Food Security at Agrarian Reform, Dept of Agriculture, Land Reform and Rural Development.

“This roundtable demonstrates that for our Agriculture and Agro-processing Master Plan to work, all stakeholders have to work together and find an implementation approach to ensure that it works in its aim to ensure inclusive growth”.

Sello Hatang, CEO, Nelson Mandela Foundation

“We are at war – war against hunger, against poverty and against inequality. If we don’t implement a wartime-mentality to tackle these issues, then we will never overcome them. If we accept we are at war, then there will be an urgency, and an insistence on winning against these issues”.

Nonie Mokose, Agricultural professional, specialising in rural development, agricultural food systems, agricultural enterprise development and empowerment

“According to The International Food Policy Research Institute, the United Nations SDG Goal 2 addressing Zero hunger and eliminating global malnutrition by 2030 faces huge challenges.”

“The complexity of factors, including food and nutrition insufficiency, poor water and sanitation quality, climatic vagaries, the Covid-19 pandemic and global wars, are impacting the food system’s resilience and continue to cause global disruptions having affected vulnerable individuals and communities the hardest.”

“Women are key and are primary actors in the agricultural sector, but we need to pay more attention to them. Mostly they are involved at a labour level, but in fact they have the capacity to be involved in many other levels”.

CD Glin, President of PepsiCo Foundation

“We are committed to be a positive force for good in the communities where we operate, and the complexity of the issues under discussion calls for a multi-faceted approach. We aim to be local, leading and lasting in everything we do, as the PepsiCo Foundation.  A holistic approach is required to address the issues of climate change, of food insecurity and food systems.”

Christo van Rheede, CEO of Agri SA

“In order to sustain our Commercial farmers in South Africa, we need to emphasise the need for and importance of Regenerative Agriculture, so that farmers can maintain their livelihood in a sustainable manner”.

“It’s not land that produces food, it’s expertise!”

Marianne ‘O Shea, VP, Nutrition Science at PepsiCo

“Circumstances should never be a barrier to good nutrition, we [nutrition experts regardless of their sector industry, policy, government] have a responsibility to remove barriers to ensure consumers can access appropriate nutrition and are empowered with the knowledge to make good nutrition choices for themselves and their families”

“It is critical for business to invest in Consumer education. Nutrition has become so complex. Convenience has trumped the ‘kitchen logic’ our grandmothers used to have. There is a big opportunity for education and food and beverage manufacturers are well-placed to do this. However Regulatory policy can make this difficult”.

ENDS/…

About PepsiCo

PepsiCo products are enjoyed by consumers more than one billion times a day in more than 200 countries and territories around the world. PepsiCo generated more than $86 billion in net revenue in 2022, driven by a complementary beverage and convenient foods portfolio that includes Lay's, Doritos, Cheetos, Gatorade, Pepsi-Cola, Mountain Dew, Quaker, and SodaStream.

In South Africa the company’s brands include Weet-Bix, Simba, Liqui Fruit, Lay’s, SASKO and White Star.

PepsiCo's product portfolio includes a wide range of enjoyable foods and beverages, including many iconic brands that generate more than $1 billion each in estimated annual retail sales.

 Guiding PepsiCo is our vision to Be the Global Leader in Beverages and Convenient Foods by Winning with pep+ (PepsiCo Positive). pep+ is our strategic end-to-end transformation that puts sustainability and human capital at the center of how we will create value and growth by operating within planetary boundaries and inspiring positive change for planet and people. For more information, visit https://www.sa.pepsico.africa/ and follow on Twitter, Instagram, Facebook, and LinkedIn @PepsiCo.