The contribution of community gardens to food security in the Maphephetheni uplands

Abstract

Although community gardens are widely promoted, very little empirical evidence exists of their contribution to food security. This study evaluated the contribution of community gardens to alleviating food insecurity for 53 community gardeners in Maphephetheni, KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa. Using the Household Food Insecurity Access Scale, it was found that 89% of these households were anxious about food supplies, consumed insufficient food and were severely food insecure. In addition, 72% consumed poor quality food. Community gardens were unable to solve the problem of food insecurity, but their contribution to consumption cannot be entirely ignored. Improved productivity and appropriate agricultural and nutritional advice are necessary. Land availability needs to be addressed through community and other redress systems to grant communities access to less marginal and more accessible productive land close to water. Programmes to support non-farm income are needed and could provide incentives for increased production.

Keywords:

• food security
• community gardens
• food consumption
• Household Food Insecurity Access Scale (HFIAS)

Notes

¹Households facing food shortages alter their food consumption, production or income patterns in fairly predictable ways. The term ‘coping strategy’ is commonly used in the food security literature to mean the actions taken by households when they do not have enough food (Maxwell et al., 2003), even though such behaviour is usually indicative of not coping.