Activists urge government to mandate land sharing by farm owners.
Activists at the Food Indaba hosted by the Union Against Hunger on Wednesday called on the government to take decisive action and compel farm owners to allocate unused agricultural land to workers. The call forms part of a broader effort to address growing food insecurity and inequality in South Africa.
The mini-indaba, held in Cape Town in observance of World Hunger Day, brought together activists, farmworkers, grassroots organisations, civil society groups, and community leaders. The gathering served as a platform to reaffirm the constitutional right to food and to discuss long-term solutions to South Africa’s hunger crisis.
According to the Union Against Hunger, over 15 million people in the country suffer from hunger, despite Section 27 of the Constitution affirming everyone’s right to sufficient food and water. The organisation argued that this disconnect between legal rights and daily realities reflects the failure of government and industry to address systemic inequality—particularly in the agricultural sector.
Speakers at the event highlighted that land ownership remains highly concentrated, with a small elite—mainly white male commercial farmers—controlling vast areas of fertile land. Meanwhile, the farmworkers who plant and harvest South Africa’s food remain landless, poorly paid, and food insecure themselves.
Cape Town activists urge land access to fight hunger.
Colette Solomons, an activists with the organisation Women on Farms, delivered a powerful message about the urgent need for redistributive land reform. She focused particularly on the plight of seasonal women farmworkers, many of whom live in poverty despite decades of labour in the agricultural sector.
“It really boggles the mind that there is so much land lying unused,” Solomons said. “At the same time, the very workers on those farms would love to have access to that land so they can grow their own vegetables and feed their families.”
She added that the existing system, activists argue, perpetuates historical injustices rooted in colonialism and apartheid. “If you go to Stellenbosch today, or Paarl, you will see that the land is still in the hands of white male farmers,” Solomons said. “Meanwhile, the people who are still working that land—the ones planting, harvesting, and maintaining it—are poor black workers who remain landless and hungry.”
Solomons argued that meaningful transformation of the agricultural sector has yet to take place in any substantive way. While land reform and redistribution have been part of South Africa’s policy discourse for decades, implementation has been slow and largely ineffective, with many rural communities seeing little benefit.
The Food Indaba offered an alternative vision—one rooted in justice, community empowerment, and food sovereignty. Activists and several speakers echoed the call for structural reform, including fair wages, support for small-scale farming, and investment in sustainable agriculture that serves local needs rather than export markets.
Attendees also criticised the government’s reliance on short-term food relief measures, arguing that these do little to address the root causes of hunger. Instead, they called for policy shifts that would allow communities to take ownership of food production through access to land, resources, and training.
The Union Against Hunger said the Cape Town event was part of a national series of community-led engagements designed to raise awareness and mobilize action around food justice. The aim is to build pressure on the state to fulfil its constitutional obligations and to push for inclusive policies that prioritise the rights of the poor and marginalised.
Land access, speakers stressed, is not only about farming. It is also about dignity, autonomy, and the ability to live a life free from hunger. The lack of access to land continues to entrench inequality and undermine the food system’s resilience.
In closing remarks, Solomons urged government officials, particularly those in the departments of agriculture and land reform, to engage directly with affected communities. “You cannot speak of food justice while workers remain landless, underpaid, and unable to feed their families,” she said.
The Food Indaba ended with a unified call to action: activists emphasized that the fight against hunger in South Africa must go beyond food aid and charity. It must involve the redistribution of land, the recognition of farmworkers’ contributions, and the transformation of a food system that, as it stands, leaves millions hungry while fertile land remains under-utilised.
