What’s on your plate?: Seven meals show what food insecurity looks like in SA

Seven photographed meals in South Africa reveal the challenges of food insecurity, with each dish showcasing the limited dietary variety and nutritional quality that many families struggle to provide. For some, a simple meal of pap and spinach sustains them, while others must rely on protein-rich meals like chicken and bread to feed large households.

Dietitian Helen Donkin analyzed the meals, noting that while energy-dense foods are essential, they often lack the necessary vitamins, minerals, and dietary diversity for optimal health.

In Lenasia South, single mother Zinzi sells chicken feet on the street to make ends meet, sometimes turning to sex work when her income is insufficient. Her meals of pap and spinach provide energy but are lacking in essential nutrients. Zinzi's malnourished daughter stayed at hospital for a week after experiencing similar hardships.

In Ga-Motodi village, Sekhwele Mnisi earns R50 a day to feed his family of eight, with limited access to running water, electricity, and essential cooking resources. His plate of pap and bread may fill their bellies, but it fails to meet their nutritional needs. Proper nutrition is particularly critical during the first 1,000 days of life, as inadequate nourishment can have lasting negative impacts on growth and development.

In Emaxelegwini informal settlement, grandmother Toti shares her home with five adult children and six grandchildren, sacrificing her own meals to ensure her younger family members have enough to eat. This meal of chicken and bread offers protein and carbohydrates, yet lacks vegetables, fruit, legumes, and dairy, which are crucial for a balanced diet.

For unemployed Nokulunga Nkabinde in Embo, collecting discarded aluminium cans provides a means to support her seven-person household. Her plate of rice, scrambled eggs, and vegetables includes more dietary variety than some other meals, featuring three vegetables and an animal protein source. However, without fruit, legumes, or dairy, the meal still lacks the diversity necessary for optimal health.

In Tsetse Village, the Reabetswe Food Stokvel pools its resources to buy food in bulk, helping families like Mapiti Seleka's survive through the challenging winter months and into the new year. Their festive-season meal features chicken, bread, and other ingredients, but it still falls short of providing the diverse range of nutrients required for a healthy diet.

Donkin emphasizes that food insecurity's triple burden of malnutrition – undernutrition, obesity, and vitamin and mineral deficiencies – affects households worldwide, particularly those with limited financial resources and access to proper nutrition.