No. 12: The State of Food Insecurity in Johannesburg

Johannesburg is the economic hub of South Africa and the Southern African region. At the same time, it is a city of extremes which juxtaposes ostentatious wealth and conspicuous consumption with grinding poverty and food insecurity. Not enough is known about the prevalence and nature of food insecurity in the city, making it dif!cult to challenge and plan to reduce the urban food gap. This paper uses AFSUN data from three lower-income areas of the city (Alexandra, Orange Farm and the Inner City) to examine the characteristics and drivers of food insecurity in Johannesburg. Despite high overall levels of food insecurity, the three study areas exhibited important differences. While the proportion of food secure households was similar in each area, the proportion of severely food insecure households was highest in the informal settlement of Orange Farm and lowest in Alexandra. Household food insecurity is directly linked to household income as the vast majority of food consumed is purchased not grown. In general, the poorer the household, the greater the proportion of household income that is spent on food. Households rely signi!cantly on supermarkets and the informal food economy as food sources. Less than ten percent are involved in any form of urban agriculture or receive food transfers directly from rural areas. This paper also shows that food insecurity correlates with poor health outcomes and concludes with a discussion of the policy implications of the AFSUN study

The study and development of pulsed high-field magnets for application in laser-plasma physics

The thesis at hand addresses design, characterization and experimental testing of pulsed high-field magnets for utilization in the field of laser-plasma physics. The central task was to establish a technology platform that allows to manipulate laser-driven ion sources in a way that the accelerated ions can be used in complex application studies, e.g. radiobiological cell or tumor irradiation. Laser-driven ion acceleration in the regime of target normal sheath acceleration (TNSA) offers the unique opportunity to accelerate particles to kinetic energies of few 10MeV on the micrometer scale. The generated bunches are short, intense, show broad exponentially decaying energy spectra and high divergence. In order to efficiently use the generated particles, it is crucial to gain control over their divergence directly after their production. For most applications it additionally is favorable to reduce the energy spread of the beam. This work shows that the developed pulsed high-field magnets, so-called solenoids (cylindrical magnets), can efficiently capture, transport and focus laser-accelerated protons. The chromaticity of the magnetic lens thereby provides for energy selection. Three prototype solenoids, adapted to fit different application scenarios, and associated current pulse drivers have been developed. The magnets generate fields of several 10 T. Pulse durations are of the order of one millisecond and thus the fields can be considered as quasi-static for laser-plasma interaction processes taking place on the ps- to ns-scale. Their high field strength in combination with abandoning magnetic cores make the solenoids compact and light-weight. The presented experiments focus on a solenoid magnet designed for the capture of divergent laser-driven ion beams. They have been carried out at the 6MV tandetron accelerator and the laser acceleration source Draco of Helmholtz-Zentrum Dresden – Rossendorf as well as at the PHELIX laser of GSI Helmholtzzentrum für Schwerionenforschung, Darmstadt

Deflating the fallacy of food deserts: Local food geographies in Orange Farm and inner city Johannesburg

The availability and accessibility of food is constrained by the environments where people live, work and purchase goods, and the pathways which they use to traverse these. This recognition has given rise to innovative conceptual frameworks including “food environments” and “food deserts”. These concepts add a spatial dimension to food security research that could inform food systems governance. Although the concepts have expanded the understanding of food security in the global North, their application to the South African context, and to value chains analysis, is still in its infancy. This paper introduces these frameworks and considers their utility in South African cities. The paper presents recent data emerging from case studies of local food geographies conducted by the African Food Security Urban Network (AFSUN). This research proceeded from recognising the importance of informal retail in South African urban food systems. The case studies mapped formal sector food retail outlets in urban Johannesburg, correlating these with socio-economic data. Informal food processing and trade were also mapped in smaller research areas to explore food prevalence and diversity in the local geography and map the spatial patterns of informal food outlets. These studies reveal that the distribution of supermarkets entrenches spatial inequalities and constrains access to food distributed through formal value chains. The studies also reveal spatial and temporal patterns of informal food retail, which provides diverse food retail outlets clustered around public transport access points, along high traffic pedestrian routes, and distributed throughout residential spaces. Although healthy foods are available, unhealthy foods and risky food environments are pervasive. These findings confirm that the concept of food deserts fails to reflect the diversity of food available and accessible through informal livelihoods and suggests that scalar network models of food geographies offer better conceptual frameworks

Foodways of the poor in South Africa: How poor people get food, what they eat, and how this shapes our food system

Foodways are the set of strategies shaping what food people choose as well as how and where they access and consume it. Informed by culture and social context, the foodways of the poor simultaneously respond to and influence food systems change. South African food systems are in a process of change. These changes are caused by many factors, including urbanisation, consolidation and concentration in food value chains, and changing dietary patterns. These transitions have important consequences for the nature of poverty and food insecurity. However, poor people are not simply passive victims of food systems transition. They make concrete and deliberate decisions about what foods they eat, where they get the food they want and need, and how to deal with the difficulties this involves. These strategies are often complex and are informed by local knowledge, cultural preference, economic considerations and many other factors. In addition to responding to price and convenience, foodways express peoples' aspirations, their sense of identity and belonging. These foodways play a role in influencing the strategies of ‘Big Food’ - powerful food corporations which are transforming food environments

Foodways of the poor in South Africa: How value-chain consolidation, poverty & cultures of consumption feed each other

South African food systems are in a dynamic process of transition due to changes in food value chain regimes which have major impacts on the poor. However, these transitions are also shaped by demandside drivers emerging from the 'foodways of the poor' - the ways poor people access food, what kinds of food they purchase, how they are consumed, and the culturally-conditioned meanings ascribed to food and eating. To explore these demand-side influences, this paper first considers contrasting current understandings of what poverty is, and who and where the poor are in South Africa. The paper then considers recent research findings that cast light on what poor people eat and where they get food, and how this contrasts with the foodways of better-off people. The emerging patterns – a predilection for cheap grain staples, sugar, soft drinks and chicken frequently sourced through informal channels - suggest that, next to structural determinants such as price and convenience, the symbolic and aspirational domain of food aesthetics and the social functions of visible consumption as symbols of wealth are key forces shaping the foodways of the poor. The provisioning strategies and preferences of the poor – about half of the South African population - emerge as powerful forces rippling back up value chains, and contributing to key trends in the food system such as consolidating and concentrating core value chains such as maize, wheat, poultry and dairy, with social, environmental and health impacts. In contrast to a top-down cascade imposing poverty and hunger, this perspective suggests complex feedback loops between the upstream nodes of food value chains, and the culturally conditioned agency of the poor. This exploration highlights a paucity of research on the links between the foodways of poor people and other aspects of the food system, including poverty narratives, food geographies, informality, and feedback loops in specific value chains. Innovative and trans-disciplinary research approaches and inclusive frameworks are needed to address knowledge gaps and inform transitions towards more transparent and equitable food systems

No. 12: The State of Food Insecurity in Johannesburg

Johannesburg is the economic hub of South Africa and the Southern African region. At the same time, it is a city of extremes which juxtaposes ostentatious wealth and conspicuous consumption with grinding poverty and food insecurity. Not enough is known about the prevalence and nature of food insecurity in the city, making it dif!cult to challenge and plan to reduce the urban food gap. This paper uses AFSUN data from three lower-income areas of the city (Alexandra, Orange Farm and the Inner City) to examine the characteristics and drivers of food insecurity in Johannesburg. Despite high overall levels of food insecurity, the three study areas exhibited important differences. While the proportion of food secure households was similar in each area, the proportion of severely food insecure households was highest in the informal settlement of Orange Farm and lowest in Alexandra. Household food insecurity is directly linked to household income as the vast majority of food consumed is purchased not grown. In general, the poorer the household, the greater the proportion of household income that is spent on food. Households rely signi!cantly on supermarkets and the informal food economy as food sources. Less than ten percent are involved in any form of urban agriculture or receive food transfers directly from rural areas. This paper also shows that food insecurity correlates with poor health outcomes and concludes with a discussion of the policy implications of the AFSUN study

Lockdown, resilience and emergency statecraft in the Cape Town food system

Well before the Covid-19 pandemic, rapidly growing cities of the global South were at the epicenter of multiple converging crises affecting food systems. Globally, government lockdown responses to the disease triggered shocks which cascaded unevenly through urban food systems, exacerbating food insecurity. Cities worldwide developed strategies to mitigate shocks, but research on statecraft enabling food systems resilience is sparse. Addressing this gap, we analyse the case of the African metropolis of Cape Town, where lockdown disrupted livelihoods, mobility and food provision, deepening food insecurity. Employing a vital systems security lens, we show how civil society and state networks mobilised to mitigate and adapt to lockdown impacts. Building on preceding institutional transformations, civil society and state collaborated to deliver emergency food aid, while advocacy networks raised food on the political agenda, formulated proposals, and navigated these through a widened policy window. Emergency statecraft assembled networks and regulatory instruments to secure food systems, enhance preparedness for future disruptions and present opportunities for transition towards more sustainable food systems. However, current food systems configuration enabled powerful actors to resist deeper transformation while devolving impacts to community networks. Despite resilient vested interests and power disparities, advocacy coalitions can anticipate and leverage crises to incrementally advance transformational, pro-poor statecraft

Dietary patterns, food insecurity, and their relationships with food sources and social determinants in two small island developing states

Small Island Developing States (SIDS) have high burdens of nutrition-related chronic diseases. This has been associated with lack of access to adequate and affordable nutritious foods and increasing reliance on imported foods. Our aim in this study was to investigate dietary patterns and food insecurity and assess their associations with socio-demographic characteristics and food sources. We recruited individuals aged 15 years and above from rural and urban areas in Fiji (n = 186) and St. Vincent and the Grenadines (SVG) (n = 147). Data collection included a 24 h diet recall, food source questionnaire and the Food Insecurity Experience Scale. We conducted latent class analysis to identify dietary patterns, and multivariable regression to investigate independent associations with dietary patterns

Digital storytelling for policy impact: Perspectives from co-producing knowledge for food system governance in South Africa

Post-positivist critics of the linear-rational understanding of the role of knowledge in decision making have long argued the need for the construction of socially robust knowledge to illuminate policy problems from a variety of perspectives, including lived experiences. This article charts the attempts of researchers to employ a creative method, digital storytelling, alongside more traditional scientific data in stakeholder deliberations to inform local food governance in South Africa

Fostering communities of practice for improved food democracy : experiences and learning from South Africa

The highly concentrated formal agri-food sector holds enormous power in the governance of the food system in South Africa. Yet the concept of food democracy holds that all people should have an equal opportunity to participate in (re)shaping their food system. To contribute to decision making, however, stakeholders not only need access to knowledge about the food system, but should also be able to inform what is considered relevant knowledge. Communities of practice—groups of people who share a common interest or concern and who deepen their knowledge and expertise in this area by interacting on an ongoing basis—provide novel spaces for stakeholder involvement in food governance. This article sets out the process of establishing and maintaining a community of (food) practice in the Western Cape province of South Africa. Through participant observation, analysis of unpublished documents, as well as in depth interviews, the core elements of the community of practice are charted over its 3 yr history. The article demonstrates the informal and evolving nature of communities of practice as social learning structures that can gain credibility and potentially develop into more formal democratic institutions over.The DSI-NRF Centre of Excellence in Food Security, South Africahttps://wileyonlinelibrary.com/journal/uar2hj2022Political Science