South Africa’s leading food redistribution organisation, FoodForward SA (FFSA), united hundreds of citizens, corporate partners, and community organisations across three major cities to mark World Food Day 2025, highlighting the growing urgency of coordinated efforts to tackle hunger and food waste.
Under the global theme “Hand in Hand for Better Food and a Better Future,” FFSA hosted large-scale food packing events in Cape Town, Johannesburg, and Durban, mobilising close to 300 volunteers from across the food value chain — including manufacturers, retailers, logistics firms, and NGOs. Together, they packed 1,500 boxes of staple and nutritious food, destined for the organisation’s network of beneficiary partners that collectively reach more than 935,000 people daily.
The initiative served as both a practical intervention and a demonstration of how partnerships across sectors can yield measurable results in addressing food insecurity. Among the corporate participants were Kellanova, SPAR, Quantum Foods, Mars Foods, Rhodes Food Group, Marriott International, Ardagh Glass Packing, Oceana Group, TFG, CHEP, RGA America, Capitec, and Compendium Insurance Brokers — all contributing resources, manpower, and logistics support.
Volunteers participated in hands-on activities that mirrored FFSA’s daily operations: sorting and packing surplus food for redistribution, preparing meals from rescued ingredients, and engaging directly with beneficiary organisations that shared stories of resilience and community impact. The atmosphere, organisers said, reflected both the scale of South Africa’s hunger crisis and the strength of a shared response.
“Hunger is a challenge no single organisation can solve alone,” said Andy du Plessis, Managing Director of FoodForward SA. “Today’s nationwide effort shows what can happen when we work collectively. Together, we are feeding people, but also building a more sustainable and equitable food system.”
According to the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), more than 582 million people globally are expected to face chronic undernourishment by 2030 — with over half living in Africa. In South Africa, one in five households experience hunger while nearly a third of all food produced goes to waste. FFSA’s work targets both crises simultaneously: reducing food loss while redirecting quality surplus food to vulnerable communities.
The World Food Day activations form part of FFSA’s national strategy to build resilience within the food system through multi-sector collaboration. Over the past decade, the organisation has become a key player in aligning business, government, and civil society around the dual goals of waste reduction and food security.
Observers say the initiative underscores a growing trend in South Africa’s food landscape — where corporate social investment, logistics innovation, and citizen engagement are merging into a cohesive anti-hunger movement. The success of FFSA’s events, they argue, demonstrates that effective responses to food insecurity must operate at the intersection of community action and systemic reform.
As South Africa faces rising food costs, supply chain disruptions, and the lingering effects of inequality, FoodForward SA’s model — grounded in partnership and sustainability — offers a blueprint for how collective effort can turn compassion into impact.
The message from World Food Day 2025 was clear: fighting hunger is not charity — it’s collaboration.
