The role of underutilized indigenous and traditional food crops in enhancing rural livelihoods and food security in South Africa
South Africa’s agricultural sector faces a deep economic divide, with small-scale and subsistence black-owned farms struggling while white-owned commercial farms are well-resourced. Despite this polarization, rural farming communities have shown remarkable resilience, which can be leveraged to addre...
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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Frontiers Media S.A.
2025-07-01
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| Series: | Frontiers in Sustainable Food Systems |
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| Online Access: | https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fsufs.2025.1605773/full |
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| author | Qinisani Nhlakanipho Qwabe Sussy Munialo Frans Swanepoel |
| author_facet | Qinisani Nhlakanipho Qwabe Sussy Munialo Frans Swanepoel |
| author_sort | Qinisani Nhlakanipho Qwabe |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | South Africa’s agricultural sector faces a deep economic divide, with small-scale and subsistence black-owned farms struggling while white-owned commercial farms are well-resourced. Despite this polarization, rural farming communities have shown remarkable resilience, which can be leveraged to address socioeconomic disparities. However, in this context, there is limited information on the role of indigenous and traditional foods, particularly underutilized indigenous and traditional food crops (UITFCs). Despite their full significance to rural livelihoods, the agricultural policy has yet to incorporate UITFCs. This paper addresses this gap by analyzing themes related to UITFCs, gender, the environment, and rural livelihoods using a mixed-methods approach, including surveys and interviews. The findings confirm that UITFCs play a vital role in rural farming communities, offering readily available and accessible food sources that align with the FAO’s food policy on food security. The cultivation and use of UITFCs are crucial in addressing food security at the household level while preserving dignity. UITFCs are a critical livelihood strategy for many rural people, helping them improve their socioeconomic status. Therefore, there is a need for these crops to be overtly integrated into South Africa’s national agricultural policy. |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj-art-3a9ca3b064a94e1ba33dbdc2e3335f0e |
| institution | Matheson Library |
| issn | 2571-581X |
| language | English |
| publishDate | 2025-07-01 |
| publisher | Frontiers Media S.A. |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Frontiers in Sustainable Food Systems |
| spelling | doaj-art-3a9ca3b064a94e1ba33dbdc2e3335f0e2025-07-09T05:37:07ZengFrontiers Media S.A.Frontiers in Sustainable Food Systems2571-581X2025-07-01910.3389/fsufs.2025.16057731605773The role of underutilized indigenous and traditional food crops in enhancing rural livelihoods and food security in South AfricaQinisani Nhlakanipho Qwabe0Sussy Munialo1Frans Swanepoel2Department of Agricultural Sciences, Faculty of Science, Nelson Mandela University, Port Elizabeth, South AfricaARUA Centre of Excellence in Sustainable Food Systems, University of Pretoria, Pretoria, South AfricaDepartment of Sustainable Food Systems, University of Pretoria, Pretoria, South AfricaSouth Africa’s agricultural sector faces a deep economic divide, with small-scale and subsistence black-owned farms struggling while white-owned commercial farms are well-resourced. Despite this polarization, rural farming communities have shown remarkable resilience, which can be leveraged to address socioeconomic disparities. However, in this context, there is limited information on the role of indigenous and traditional foods, particularly underutilized indigenous and traditional food crops (UITFCs). Despite their full significance to rural livelihoods, the agricultural policy has yet to incorporate UITFCs. This paper addresses this gap by analyzing themes related to UITFCs, gender, the environment, and rural livelihoods using a mixed-methods approach, including surveys and interviews. The findings confirm that UITFCs play a vital role in rural farming communities, offering readily available and accessible food sources that align with the FAO’s food policy on food security. The cultivation and use of UITFCs are crucial in addressing food security at the household level while preserving dignity. UITFCs are a critical livelihood strategy for many rural people, helping them improve their socioeconomic status. Therefore, there is a need for these crops to be overtly integrated into South Africa’s national agricultural policy.https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fsufs.2025.1605773/fullagricultural policyfood securityindigenous cropsrural developmentsustainable agriculture |
| spellingShingle | Qinisani Nhlakanipho Qwabe Sussy Munialo Frans Swanepoel The role of underutilized indigenous and traditional food crops in enhancing rural livelihoods and food security in South Africa Frontiers in Sustainable Food Systems agricultural policy food security indigenous crops rural development sustainable agriculture |
| title | The role of underutilized indigenous and traditional food crops in enhancing rural livelihoods and food security in South Africa |
| title_full | The role of underutilized indigenous and traditional food crops in enhancing rural livelihoods and food security in South Africa |
| title_fullStr | The role of underutilized indigenous and traditional food crops in enhancing rural livelihoods and food security in South Africa |
| title_full_unstemmed | The role of underutilized indigenous and traditional food crops in enhancing rural livelihoods and food security in South Africa |
| title_short | The role of underutilized indigenous and traditional food crops in enhancing rural livelihoods and food security in South Africa |
| title_sort | role of underutilized indigenous and traditional food crops in enhancing rural livelihoods and food security in south africa |
| topic | agricultural policy food security indigenous crops rural development sustainable agriculture |
| url | https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fsufs.2025.1605773/full |
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