Food trade and investment in South Africa: Improving coherence between economic policy, nutrition and food security
Date
2017-12Author
Thow, Anne Marie
Greenberg, Stephen
Hara, Mafa
Friel, Sharon
du Toit, Andries
Sanders, David
Metadata
Show full item recordAbstract
South Africa must address a rising burden of diet-related chronic disease while also
continuing to combat persistent food insecurity and undernutrition (Muzigaba et al.
2016). The prevalence of stunting among children in South Africa remains around 25%
(Said-Mohamed et al. 2015). At the same time, the prevalence of obesity has risen to
39% among women and 11% among men, and diabetes in the adult population to 10%
(Shisana et al. 2014). Addressing this double burden of malnutrition will require a
comprehensive policy approach that supports demand for healthy food (including
financial access) and its supply. In this paper, we focus on supply side interventions –
and particularly, the need for policy across sectors to support availability of affordable,
healthy food (Republic of South Africa Department of Health 2013; Government of
South Africa 2014).
However, growing trade and Foreign Direct Investment (FDI), supported by binding
international commitments, present governments with a challenge as they seek to
intervene in the food supply to improve diets and health. Government action to regulate
the food supply to reduce consumption of unhealthy foods and increase access to
healthy foods becomes subject 1) to the influence of powerful investors and other
industry actors, and 2) to commitments made in international trade and investment
agreements (Baker et al. 2014, Thow and McGrady 2014, Schram et al. 2015, Thow et al.
2015a, Thow et al. 2015b).