JUL.-DEC. 2023
it provides played an important role in the
building of relationships and trust between
farmers, SFTG and customers.
At the same time, SFTG took this opportunity
to raise awareness among their customer
base of injustices within the mainstream food
system. Such an approach may, the study
showed, catalyse increased engagement
and commitment to transformation of the
industrial food system. Farmers remarked that
the emphasis on relationships within SFTG
made them feel recognised for their important
contribution and customers commented that
engaging with SFTG affirmed for them that an
alternative mode of food provision was not
only possible, but preferable to going to the
supermarket, as it was more aligned with their
social and ecological values. In some cases,
customers became more active in SFTG than
just as consumers, such as volunteering on box
packing days and providing organisational
support. SFTG team members engaged
with nearby food relief initiatives and other
community activities, demonstrating how
initiatives like SFTG can encourage civic
engagement at a wider level.
In a society still so divided socially and
economically, food initiatives are just one
thread in a tapestry of approaches to
transitioning to a more equitable and just
society. However, they require constant
critical reflection, lest they fall into the
trap of perpetuating the inequity of the
industrial food system. As one of the research
participants
commented,
Siyabonga
Mngoma (Abundance Wholesome Foods),
an agroecological entrepreneur herself, if
such organisations were to flourish, it “would
be sort of the healing that the South African
person needs, because it's easy to engage
around food. I mean, food is there when
people are celebrating, when people are
performing rituals or people are sad, food is
always there.”
SFTG team members engaged with
nearby food relief initiatives and other
community activities, demonstrating
how initiatives like SFTG can encourage
civic engagement at a wider level.