Hospitality industry urged to join #67000litres soup drive for Mandela Day

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Now in its sixth year, this national initiative invites professional kitchens, culinary schools, restaurants, hotels, and food producers to come together to rescue food, cook nutritious soup, and feed vulnerable communities.

The 2025 target is to cook over 100,000 litres of soup, providing more than 400,000 meals and raising R1m to sustain Chefs with Compassion’s work over the coming year.

Since launching in 2020, the campaign has prepared 450,259 litres of soup — equivalent to over 1.8 million cups — distributed to communities nationwide.

The poultry industry has historically played a key role, with donations from Quantum Foods (Nulaid), Astral, Rainbow, and Country Bird Holdings (CBH) enhancing the nutritional value of every serving.

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Confirmed supporters for 2025 include well-known chefs and leading culinary institutions such as Capsicum, HTA School of Culinary Art, the International Hotel School, and the Marriott Business Council through its CSI programme.

"#67000litres is proof that collective action works. The hospitality industry has the power to transform not just ingredients, but lives,” says Chef Coo Pillay, president of SA Chefs and founding director of Chefs with Compassion.

"Every kitchen that gets involved, every supplier that donates, and every chef who lends their skill makes a tangible difference to someone going hungry."

Opportunities to participate include:

• Product sponsorships: Donate produce, gas, transport or 20-litre buckets
• Hospitality sponsorships: Cook any volume of soup in your hotel, restaurant or kitchen
• Kitchen sponsorships: Support a participating soup kitchen
• Corporate teambuilding experiences: Cook alongside chefs using rescued ingredients

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Corporate team-building experiences and sponsorship packages are also available, ranging from cooking sessions with chefs to community handover experiences.

Whether it’s two litres from a café or 200 from a hotel kitchen, every contribution makes a difference.

To register or enquire about sponsorship opportunities, email Geraldine Engelman at az.gro.cwc@namlegne.enidlareg.