FoodBank South Africa (FBSA) is increasingly cultivating relationships with farmers in a bid to source more fresh produce – and to acquire food directly from growers.
After a recent spell of heavy rain in the Marble Hall district, Jan van der Walt, who is the food sourcing coordinator at FoodBank Johannesburg, called on farmers in the area. There he met Danie Terblanche of Vredenhof Boerdery, who farms broccoli among other things. Danie had just had some of his broccoli rejected by the market because of brown spots on the heads, apparently caused by excessive rain. Spots aside, the broccoli was fresh and perfectly good to eat. But without a market, it was destined to be dumped.
When Jan explained to Danie the benefits of donating his produce to FBSA, a deal was struck and the broccoli – 3 000 heads weighing ± 1.5 tons – was swiftly transported to Johannesburg for distribution to the hungry.
"FoodBank SA offers business solutions to many of the business problems that farmers typically face,” says Jan. “Often times the market or retailers will reject produce because of aesthetic reasons – the fruit or vegetable might not be the ‘right’ colour or size or it may have specks on it, though there is nothing at all wrong with it. “Or a farmer may have an oversupply of produce due to a price fall, leaving him or her with a glut of produce and no one to buy it."
Enter FoodBank.
"As a registered public benefit organisation, FBSA may issue section 18A tax certificates to donors for all donations received. This entitles the donor to deduct from their taxable income the amount donated or the value of the service or product donated. It’s a win-win situation. Farmers and growers recover some of their losses and FoodBank gets fresh produce to distribute to its agencies. The beneficiaries receive food that would otherwise have gone to waste."
Farmers wanting to contact Jan can reach him on +27 (0)82 866 4206 or at FoodBank Johannesburg on +27 (0)11 613 5552. Or email This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it
