An estimated 20 million people go to bed hungry every night in South Africa. 

“In South Africa, we’ve got two major problems. We have high food wastage and at the same time, we have millions of people who are food insecure,” said Chef Coo Pillay. 

These issues were further exacerbated during the Covid-19 lockdown, which is when Chefs with Compassion started delivering meals to vulnerable communities. The non-profit organisation works in collaboration with partners — either individuals, companies, or organisations to rescue surplus food that would go to waste, donate it to kitchens where it is cooked and then fed to the growing number of food insecure and hungry individuals in vulnerable areas. Pillay explains that the current food issues plaguing the country were made even more severe during the lockdown as people became destitute almost overnight. “Our ultimate goal is reducing food waste and ensuring that food insecurity is demolished in the country,” he said. 

Chefs with Compassion is at the coalface of rescuing food that would otherwise go to waste and cooking it for hungry people through a network of volunteer cooks, chefs and community organisations. Pictured above are volunteers serving soup at Orlando Communal Hall in Soweto, Johannesburg. (Photo: Chefs with Compassion)

How it works 

Chefs with Compassion works with a three-value system of rescue, cook and feed. The rescue part entails going out to manufacturers, producers, farms, and markets to rescue produce, says Pillay. 

“When we say rescue, a lot of people think we are rescuing food out of the bin or food that is not fit for human consumption. It is actually good quality produce that really has nowhere to go, and unfortunately, manufacturers, farmers, and the market ultimately throw it away and that’s how it ends up going to the landfill,” he explains. It is typically good produce that is going to waste on a daily basis, he adds. 

The rescued food is then brought to the share house where a network of volunteers prepares the ingredients. 

“The ingredients are then taken to our kitchen hubs located around the greater Gauteng area and that is where the cook value comes in,” he says. 

There are numerous chefs ready to cook hearty and nutritional meals at these hubs. “The meals that are cooked, ensure that a well-balanced diet is maintained so that we ensure that the people we feed get the correct nutrients and proteins that are required,” he explains.  The final part entails going out to the various communities and distributing the food to those who are in need, he says. 

Understanding food waste 

More than 10 million tonnes of food are wasted annually, costing the country about R64-billion. 

The CSIR says because South Africa is a net exporter of food, the losses and waste are equivalent to 45% of the available food supply in the country, which suggests high levels of inefficiency throughout the food value chain. To date, Chefs with compassion have rescued 1,443 million kilograms of food. 

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Pillay notes that there is a high supply but low demand. In an economy where basic commodities have now become almost unaffordable for the majority of Africans, it is no surprise that there is an overproduction of supply but not enough demand, he says. “When it comes to fresh produce that is extra reliant on the environment and it’s reliant on nature, a farmer cannot tell a plant to stop producing unfortunately,” he explains. 

Chefs with Compassion also make a concentrated effort to educate communities on food waste. 

“We have also embarked on a project to educate our industry that we operate in [hospitality industry]. We’ve already started projects within the hotel and restaurant sector specifically, to also educate our restaurants and hotel kitchens, on the importance of food wastage, and the impact that it has on the environment,” he explains. 

Numerous corporates are embarking on a more sustainable outlook on everything from packaging to the food we eat and to the food we serve, he adds. While this bodes well and is a step in the right direction, there is still a significant amount of work that must be done. “This is not a subject that is going to be fixed overnight, it is an ongoing initiative,” Pillay says. 

Chefs with Compassion has delivered nearly five million meals to food-vulnerable communities since May 2020. This is done through an expansive network of roughly 30 organizations, mainly consisting of volunteers. Pictured is Mpho Mmasechaba at SwaraganoNPO in Alexander, Johannesburg. SwaraganoNPO is one of over 30 organisations that rely on Chefs with Compassion to provide ingredients to cook for the hungry in their community. (Photo: Chefs with Compassion)

Five million meal milestone 

Since its inception, the organisation has served nearly 5 million meals to communities across the country and its daily operation yields 3,978,852 meals. The organisation also mobilised some local chefs within the KwaZulu-Natal region following the civil unrest and major flooding. Over the years, they have run a very successful Mandela Day campaign of making 67,000 liters of soup, and have surpassed their target.  

Pillay explains that while they are proud of what they have achieved, it is more about the sustainability of keeping up their work. “In order for us to continue we are asking corporate South Africa, as well as everyday South Africans to get involved, be it supporting us with services, supporting us with volunteers, and ultimately supporting us with sponsorship because running an organisation like this is costly,” he explained. 

The ever-increasing fuel price is a challenge for the organisation that is quite reliant on fuel. “The fuel enables us to go to various sources for us to rescue the produce as well as deliver the food when it’s cooked,” he explained. 

As the organisation is purely volunteer-based, they have tried to help out their volunteers with a stipend in order for them to travel to the various locations and assist with the process. All the rescued produce is stored in what is called a share-house that has utilities that need to be paid for, he added. “We are very grateful for all the support that we have received for the last few years, no donation is ever too big or small as it all goes a long way to ensuring that we help those who need it,” he added.” 

South Africa has nearly 6.5 million people who are food insecure. Chefs with Compassion works to reduce those numbers through a network of volunteers, rescuing food, and donations from corporate organisations, the private sector, and civil society. (Photo: Chefs with Compassion)

What can you do

While Chefs with Compassion is at the coalface of the fight against hunger and food waste, the organisation does not receive any funding or support from the government. For Chefs with Compassion to continue their work, the organisation is appealing to corporate organisations, the private sector, and civil society to assist through a monthly donation. 

“If we can secure 10 monthly donors of R10,000 or 20 donors of R5,000, we will be able to continue rescuing food, and cooking and feeding those in desperate need”, says Pillay. 

Members of the public who would like to support Chefs with Compassion, either through a once-off or recurring monthly donation, can do so via their website at https://cwc.org.za/donate  or via EFT to Chefs with Compassion, FNB account number 62852995269. For more information on how to get involved or support Chefs with Compassion email info@cwc.org.za.

“We need the support from all South Africans in order for us to achieve the goal of reducing food waste but also enabling those 20 million people to become food secure,” says Pillay. DM/MC