Frustrated South Africans call for lower food prices amid rising costs

 

Some frustrated South Africans from low-income communities have called for lower food prices, calling government social grants insufficient to meet their monthly nutritional needs.

Dozens of residents from across Gauteng gathered outside the Shoprite Distribution Park in Centurion, Pretoria, in a protest led by the Union Against Hunger. Demonstrators carried a petition signed by over 20,000 South Africans, highlighting the daily struggles many face amid rising food prices and deepening poverty.

The protest also coincided with World Food Day, with participants denouncing rising poverty in South Africa and globally.

One of the demonstrators, Simangele Ntshembeni, relies on a social relief of distress (SRD) grant for herself and her four children, says it’s nearly impossible to feed her family with the limited funds.

“They must lower their food prices. They need to be considerate towards us in poor communities. Their shops are within our communities so they should be able to see that we are struggling everyday. Many of us are unemployed and our economy is already battling,” says Ntshemebni.

Protestors accused major retailers of putting profits over people, arguing that corporate greed has worsened hunger and deepened inequality.

Many say they are surviving on minimal rations that barely last a week.

The group claimed that South Africa has sufficient land, labour, and food production capacity to ensure national food security — but that poor regulation and profit-driven supply chains are keeping basic food items unaffordable.

They also criticised the food industry for wastefulness, alleging that R62 billion worth of edible food is discarded annually, food that could instead feed those in need.

One protester, Zanele Xhanti, says her monthly earnings are only enough to feed her family for a week.

Union Against Hunger’s National Organizer, Esther Padi, says around 20 million South Africans go to bed hungry each night, urging citizens to stand in solidarity with the movement.

“As the union, today we commemorate World Food Day and our demand is to call on major retailers to drop its food prices. We are calling on that demand because 20 million South African go to bed hungry and can’t even afford to have three meals a day. We also call on government to make food waste illegal and also call on South Africans as well to stand with us as we try to identify who are the criminals allowing South Africans to go to bed hungry,” said Padi.

Amandla.Mobi campaigner and petition leader, Palesa Ramolefo, said South Africa’s hunger crisis needs to be urgently prioritised by government.

She says children are among the hardest hit adding that the social grants many families rely on are simply not enough to meet their basic needs.

“We are loosing around 11 000 children to hunger in South Africa. It’s very sad and I think everyone who is standing here today gets government grants and they essentially cannot buy anything substantial with that money as it is just not enough,” says Ramolefo.

She emphasised that reducing the cost of essential staples — such as bread, rice, eggs, peanut butter, and dried beans — would significantly ease the burden on struggling households.

Shoprite, recently warned that food insecurity in South Africa has reached critical levels, driven by both local and global economic pressures — including policy shifts in the US since President Donald Trump returned to office.

According to the retailer, 21% of South African children under five are already suffering from stunted growth due to chronic malnutrition.

Meanwhile, the South African Food Security Index 2025 shows a slight national improvement in food security levels over the past year — but also reveals severe disparities between provinces and communities, particularly in rural and informal areas.

With inflation continuing to rise, experts warn that prices of basic foods and fresh produce are expected to increase further in the coming months.

At the protest, Claude Sathyanandam, Head of Shoprite’s Inland Supply Chain Division, formally acknowledged receipt of the protesters’ memorandum.

“I am merely a representative of the company, and I acknowledge the memorandum on its behalf. We will follow the appropriate process in terms of how we respond,” said Sathyanandam.

Written by: Odirile Rabalao