South Africa’s meat consumption patterns are deeply entwined with the country’s history of colonisation and evolving food systems. From the era of European settler rule through apartheid, external forces reshaped indigenous foodways by introducing new livestock, imported foods, and industrial farming practices. These changes established a food system that “from its inception under settler-colonialism and later industrialisation during apartheid, disproportionately harmed Black South Africans’ health.”[1] Even after the political freedom attained in 1994 when South Africa held its first post-Apartheid national elections, many of these colonial-era dietary structures persist, raising questions about how “free” South Africa’s plate is in a post-colonial context.
Meat holds profound cultural significance in South Africa, symbolising community, status, and tradition. The “braai (barbecue) is celebrated as a unifying national ritual”[2] in the post-apartheid era, transcending racial and class divisions as people gather around the grill. Historically, however, access to meat was stratified. Under colonial and apartheid regimes, economic and racial hierarchies dictated who could afford or access quality meat, mirroring broader power imbalances. Anthropological evidence shows that “differential access to meat often reflects and reinforces wealth and status distinctions.”[3] In many African communities, meat has traditionally been reserved for special occasions and communal feasting, which affirmed social bonds and respect for ancestral customs. This dual role of meat – as both a cherished heritage food and a marker of inequality – frames the complex backdrop against which contemporary dietary shifts unfold.
In the decades since apartheid, “global corporate food systems have effectively continued the work of colonisation on South Africa’s plate.”[4]. Multi-national food corporations and trade policies have flooded the market with inexpensive processed meats and fast foods, often displacing local food traditions. These corporate-driven systems are “driven by money and power, not by health and nutrition”[5] and are seen as extending colonial domination through control of diets. Critics argue that modern food corporations wield outsized influence over what people eat, echoing colonial power dynamics by prioritizing profit over public well-being. As a result, South Africa’s “culinary culture and food sovereignty remain constrained by global forces.”[6]
South Africa observes Heritage Day on September 24, a public holiday dedicated to recognising and celebrating the nation’s rich cultural diversity. This day allows South Africans to honour their unique traditions, communities, and collective heritage, fostering a greater appreciation for the country’s multifaceted identity. In 2005, the media introduced a significant initiative aimed at renaming the day to ‘National Braai Day,’ celebrating a cherished tradition intended to be a symbol of unity through food and culture. “Archbishop Emeritus Desmond Tutu became the national spokesperson for National Braai Day in 2007, and the name was changed to ‘Braai4Heritage’ – still unofficially referred to as ‘Braai Day.’[7]
National Braai Day in South Africa remains a major national holiday. The challenge with the celebration and observation of National Braai Day is the fact that, as Daniel Opoku Mensah et al. points out, South Africans’ relationship with meat is layered, and that “...the complexity of factors driving meat-eating behaviour and the deep-seated role meat plays in the diets of the cultures” means that “a multi-level and multidisciplinary approach may be successful at changing dietary behaviour”[8] (2022,7). Another possible layer we could consider, as a community, is colonisation.
Grigson et al. (in Erasmus and Hoffman 2017, 71) state that “it was only during the 17th century that colonisation and immigration started having an influence on the indigenous South African cuisine.”[9] While it is commonly believed that daily meat consumption is inherently African, it is crucial to recognise and understand the historical impact of colonisation on food systems and to reclaim traditional culinary practices.
Considering the influence on the African way of life and the connection with the Divine, I will examine the concept of coloniality in the food consumption of Black South Africans. In seeking solutions to reduce meat consumption, we must review all aspects of our lives, including our relationship with food. However, this effort requires recognising and acknowledging the role of South Africa’s National Braai Day, which this paper argues is exploited by corporate South Africa to position meat consumption as central to the South African plate. This, in turn, reinforces the narrative of daily meat consumption as a component of the cultural heritage of Black South Africans prior to colonisation.
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[1] Chelsie Yount-André , and Yanga Zembe. ‘Consuming Inequities: Vegetarianism, Climate Crisis, and Political Upheaval in South Africa’. Anthropology of Food, no. 17 (6 January 2023). https://doi.org/10.4000/aof.14021, (Accessed September 2024).
[2] Ibid.
[3] Ibid.
[4] Liesl Stewart, “How Corporations Determine the Food We Eat — CreatureKind,” CreatureKind, last modified January 26, 2023, https://www.becreaturekind.org/blog-posts/2023/1/25/how-corporations-determine-the-food-we-eat#:~:text=The%20globalizing%2C%20corporate%20food%20systems,violence%20against%20peoples%2C%20animals%2C%20and, (Accessed: March 8, 2025).
[5] Ibid.
[6] Ibid.
[7] Crush, “Heritage Day in South Africa and What It Means,” Crush Mag Online, last modified September 20, 2023, https://crushmag-online.com/heritage-day-in-south-africa-and-what-it-means/#:~:text=Heritage%20Day%20and%20Braai%20Day,we%20are%20a%20fantastic%20nation%E2%80%9D, (Accessed: March 8, 2025).
[8] Daniel Opoku Mensah et al., “We’re Meat, so We Need to Eat Meat to Be Who We Are”: Understanding Motivations That Increase or Decrease Meat Consumption among Emerging Adults in the University of Ghana Food Environment. Meat Science 193 (November 2022): 108927, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.meatsci.2022.108927, (Accessed September 2024).
[9] Sara Wilhelmina Erasmus and Louwrens Christiaan Hoffman, ‘What Is Meat in South Africa?’, Animal Frontiers 7, no. 4 (1 October 2017): 71–75, https://doi.org/10.2527/af.2017.0449, (Accessed September 2024).
Not Yet Uhuru: The Colonised South Africa Plate: Meat holds profound cultural significance in South Africa, symbolising community, status, and tradition. The “braai (barbecue) is celebrated as a unifying national ritual” in the post-apartheid era, transcending racial and class divisions as people gather around the grill. In seeking solutions to reduce meat consumption, we must review all aspects of our lives, including our relationship with food. However, this effort requires recognising and acknowledging the role of South Africa’s National Braai Day, which this paper argues is exploited by corporate South Africa to position meat consumption as central to the South African plate. This, in turn, reinforces the narrative of daily meat consumption as a component of the cultural heritage of Black South Africans prior to colonisation.