South Africa’s food crisis is often discussed in terms of rising prices, unemployment and mounting pressure on struggling households. Yet beneath these challenges lies a less visible reality: informal traders and migrant entrepreneurs quietly help keep food accessible and affordable for millions of people.
In a recent Daily Maverick opinion piece, academic Marc Wegerif highlighted research showing that immigrants make a significant contribution to South Africa’s food security through their participation in informal food systems, particularly spaza shops and street vending networks.
His argument draws attention to a growing body of food security research demonstrating that informal food economies remain central to ensuring access to food, especially in low-income communities.
While migration is frequently debated in political terms, daily life in many townships and informal settlements reflects a more practical reality, one shaped by affordability, proximity and the constant struggle for survival.
Informal traders bring food closer to communities
Across South Africa’s townships and informal settlements, access to food is often determined not by major supermarket chains, but by small spaza shops, street vendors and local wholesalers.
These traders sell food in smaller, more affordable quantities, operate within walking distance of households and often provide flexible purchasing arrangements that align with the irregular income patterns of many families.
Food security research shows that informal trading networks play an important role in improving access to staple foods such as maize meal, vegetables and other essential goods. For many households, these networks provide convenient and affordable access to food without the additional costs associated with transport or bulk purchasing.
A significant proportion of these traders are migrants from elsewhere in Africa and beyond, many of whom have established livelihoods within township economies and become part of everyday community life.
Migrant voices on food resilience
In interviews conducted by One Nation Media (ONM), Malawian nationals living and working in South Africa reflected on the importance of building food resilience within households and communities.
Several interviewees stressed the value of self-sufficiency, particularly through household food production and small-scale agriculture.
“If you do your garden, you plant moroho, even maize… it will do better than just sitting waiting for the government,” one interviewee said, highlighting the role that household gardening can play in supplementing family food supplies.
Their reflections point to a broader culture of resilience in which households supplement purchased food through backyard gardens and local food production as part of everyday survival strategies.
Islam and food security
Religious institutions also play an important role in supporting vulnerable communities. At Al Falah Mosque in Hillbrow, Johannesburg, feeding programmes serve both South Africans and migrants, regardless of nationality or faith.
“So we feed everyone, Muslim and non-Muslim,” Sheikh Issa Tshabalala, Ameer of Al Falah Mosque, told ONM.
“Our Prophet Rasool (SAW) taught us to take care of our neighbour. You cannot have food and your neighbour is hungry, which is not good.”
Sheikh Issa said the mosque’s outreach is rooted in Islamic teachings that emphasise caring for those living nearby, particularly the poor and vulnerable.
“We think about our neighbour. We cannot just have food and our neighbour is hungry, which is not Islamically allowed,” he said.
Beyond feeding programmes, the mosque also operates a crèche for between 15 and 20 children from impoverished migrant families who cannot afford school fees.
“We realise that around here, a lot of Muslims come from all over Africa,” Sheikh Issa explained, adding that many families struggle to provide their children with both early education and Islamic learning.
The initiative reflects a broader Islamic ethic of compassion, neighbourliness and social responsibility that continues to support vulnerable communities across South Africa.
Informal trade and everyday food access
In many low-income communities, migrant-run spaza shops and street vending networks form an essential part of local food distribution systems.
By bringing food closer to where people live, these businesses reduce the need for costly travel and allow households to make smaller, more frequent purchases that suit constrained budgets.
Over time, this informal system has become an integral component of township economies, complementing formal retail channels and helping ensure that essential goods remain within reach for many families.
A food system shaped by resilience
South Africa’s food system is not defined by a single structure. Rather, it consists of a complex mix of formal retailers, informal traders, small-scale producers and household food strategies.
Within this ecosystem, informal trading networks play a crucial role in improving accessibility and ensuring that food reaches communities in practical and affordable ways.
Migrants form part of this broader system, contributing to local food economies through informal trade, entrepreneurship and small business activity.
Their participation reflects a wider reality: in many parts of South Africa, food access depends heavily on flexible, community-based systems operating close to where people live.
Local solutions remain vital
South Africa’s food system is deeply shaped by everyday networks of trade, production and household effort.
Informal traders, including many migrants, contribute to keeping food physically close and practically accessible for communities across the country.
Alongside household gardening and small-scale food production, these systems reflect a broader culture of resilience and adaptation in the face of economic hardship.
In many communities, food security is not determined solely by large-scale supply chains, but also by local solutions, everyday trade and the efforts of households, faith institutions and small businesses working to keep food within reach.
For many Muslims, these efforts are rooted in Islamic teachings that place caring for one’s neighbour and feeding the hungry at the centre of communal life.
