INDIGENOUS FOODS COULD STRENGTHEN FOOD SECURITY AND CLIMATE RESILIENCE

Amabele, intyabontyi, imifino and other indigenous crops should reclaim their place on South Africans' plates if the country is to improve food security, according to researcher Dr Monde Rapiya from the North West Department of Agriculture.

Rapiya spoke at the South African Society for Agricultural Extension (SASAE) Conference, held in partnership with Walter Sisulu from 29 June to 2 July 2026.

The production scientist presented a research study title “The Potential of Legumes as Green Manure for Enhancing the Productivity of Indigenous and Traditional Crops.”

His study advocated for the promotion of indigenous food crops as a means of improving food security and climate resilience.

Rapiya argued that many indigenous foods had been regarded by South Africans as symbols of poverty, with consumers mainly opting for store bought, highly processed foods.

“They have been neglected because they have long been associated with poor people. Crops like imifino normally grow without people even planting them, yet we don't value them. One of the things I want to do with this study is promote these crops, so they become part of the country's food chain," said Rapiya.

Rapiya further stated that changing public perceptions alone was not enough.

He challenged researchers, agricultural extension practitioners and policymakers to educate communities about the nutritional value of indigenous foods while creating markets that encourage their production and consumption.

"If we as researchers and extension officers educate people about the importance and nutritive value of these crops, we can also influence government to create some sort of a space for those traditional crops," Rapiya stated.

Beyond promoting indigenous crops, Rapiya also examined how legumes, which are natural sources of nitrogen, can improve their productivity while reducing agriculture's environmental impact.

"One of the components of my study was legumes, which naturally produce nitrogen. Most people are using synthetic fertilisers, which are damaging our ecosystem and our soils. We found that they are also not helping when it comes to addressing the issue of climate change," he said.

Rapiya asserted that while South Africa may be considered food secure at a national level, many provincial and local communities continued to experience food insecurity.

“We need to move away from believing that everything must come from outside. These traditional crops have always been there, but they have been neglected and no one has taken care of them. We need to start at the lower level, in our home gardens, and then scale them up because they are scalable," said Rapiya.

By Yanga Ziwele