Following National Nutrition Week, Iwisa No.1 and Pick n Pay are encouraging consumers to help create healthier food environments for children through the Share More Meals campaign. The initiative brings together a trusted neighbourhood retailer, a trusted household brand and local communities around a shared goal: helping children access the support, nutrition and opportunities they need to thrive.
This year’s National Nutrition Week theme,” Creating Healthy Food Environments for Better Nutrition”, recognises that nutrition extends beyond the food on a plate. A child’s health, wellbeing and ability to learn are shaped by the environment around them, including their home, school and wider community. Schools play a particularly important role, often serving as centres of learning, care, nutrition and community support.
The need for stronger food environments remains significant. Statistics South Africa’s General Household Survey 2025 found that 22% of South African households have inadequate or severely inadequate access to food, leaving more than 9.4 million people vulnerable to hunger. The Human Sciences Research Council’s National Food and Nutrition Security Survey further found that 63.5% of households experience some form of food insecurity, while 28.8% of children under five are stunted, indicating long-term undernutrition.
For many children, school provides the most dependable meal of the day. Through the National School Nutrition Programme, more than 9.9 million learners across almost 20,000 schools receive meals daily, with 78.2% of public-school learners benefiting from a school nutrition programme.
Against this backdrop, the Share More Meals campaign offers consumers a practical opportunity to make a meaningful difference in their own communities.
The campaign is built on a simple belief: healthy food environments are created when communities come together around schools. Through trusted neighbourhood Pick n Pay stores and trusted household brands like Iwisa No.1, local shoppers can play a direct role in supporting children in their own communities.
Through this initiative, consumers purchasing participating Iwisa No.1 products at Pick n Pay stores across five South African provinces contribute towards supporting local schools that are beneficiaries of Feed the Nation, Pick n Pay’s non-profit organisation.
The beneficiary schools include Mzingisi Junior Primary School in the Eastern Cape, Moriting Primary School in Gauteng, Sawela Primary School in KwaZulu-Natal, Thorisong Primary School in Mpumalanga and Walter Teka Primary School in the Western Cape.
“National Nutrition Week asks all of us who is responsible for the food environment around a child. At Premier we believe we all are,” says Sibongile Mooko, Premier Marketing Executive: Milling and Group Insights.
“Healthy food environments are created when communities come together around their schools. For generations, Iwisa No.1 has provided the nourishment and fill that South African families rely on every day. Through Share More Meals, we are extending that role beyond the home by helping communities support the schools that play such an important role in children’s wellbeing. When trusted household brands, retailers and shoppers come together around a shared purpose, we can create meaningful impact where it matters most. This is how we can fill more than bowls together.”
Each of the five beneficiary schools has identified specific needs to help create healthier learning environments. Moriting Primary School in Tembisa, Gauteng, which serves 1,505 learners, requires a larger kitchen, dining area, classroom repairs and support for its vegetable garden. Mzingisi Junior Primary School in Mdantsane, Eastern Cape, needs classroom and sanitation upgrades, a deep freezer for its nutrition programme and a school food garden. Sawela Primary School in Umlazi, KwaZulu-Natal, has prioritised classroom and roof repairs, dedicated kitchen facilities, improved sanitation and upgraded sports and play areas. Thorisong Primary School in eMbalenhle, Mpumalanga, requires building repairs, nutrition programme support, improved sanitation, educational technology and sports facilities, while Walter Teka Primary School in Nyanga, Western Cape, needs classroom upgrades, reliable running water, improved sanitation and digital learning resources. Together, these needs highlight the importance of providing not only nutritious meals, but also safe, supportive school environments where children can learn, grow and thrive.
“As a retailer serving communities across South Africa, we see first-hand the important role schools play in shaping brighter futures for children,” says Anwar Mooideen, Pick n Pay Corporate Social Investment Manager.
“Healthy food environments are built through everyday actions and shared responsibility. Through trusted neighbourhood Pick n Pay stores and trusted household brands like Iwisa No.1, shoppers can play a direct role in supporting children in their own communities. Our footprint and the reach of Feed the Nation enable us to bring support to communities that might otherwise be difficult to reach. This partnership demonstrates how small actions, repeated every day, can come together to create lasting impact.”
Unlike a traditional corporate social investment initiative, the contribution generated through Share More Meals is built by consumers themselves. Contributions accumulate throughout the campaign period, are independently audited and will be publicly announced at the beneficiary school, ensuring transparency and allowing communities to see the impact they have created together.
The campaign forms part of a broader partnership between Premier , Pick n Pay’s Feed the Nation initiative and the Pick n Pay School Club, with beneficiary schools identified and supported in collaboration with the Department of Basic Education.
As Iwisa No.1 celebrates seven decades in South African homes, Share More Meals reflects the brand’s enduring belief that nourishment extends beyond the food we eat.
“For more than three generations, families have trusted us to fill their homes and the tummies of their loved ones,” adds Sibongile Mooko.
“A bowl of porridge is never just a bowl of porridge. It is concentration in a classroom. It is confidence in a learner. It is the opportunity for a brighter future. Through Share More Meals, we are turning an everyday purchase into meaningful support for children and the schools that support them. Because when we nourish a child, we strengthen a family, and when we strengthen families, we grow a nation. Let’s share more meals.”