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In a country fighting a legacy of poverty, a child dies every 15 seconds due to a lack of essential nutrients and being underweight. Against this heart-breaking backdrop it’s clear that more needs to be done to take a stand against this rising pandemic.
This World Hunger Month, KFC Add Hope launches its first-ever TV advert to raise awareness about the difference a nutritious meal makes to the life of a child. This simple, yet impactful story, told by drawings of some of the 100 000 children the initiative feeds every day, brings to life the power a R2 Add Hope donation and the real impact it can have in alleviating hunger.
According to Abby Courtenay, professional dietician, who consults with Afrika Tikkun, children in South Africa experience malnutrition from being over and underweight coupled with various vitamin and mineral deficiencies. The situation is further complicated by the many causes of malnutrition.
Direct factors include inadequate food intake, whilst indirect factors are household food insecurity or lack of resources. “When a child doesn’t get the right nutrients, malnutrition can manifest both mentally and physically. Classic examples would be a decrease in concentration, memory and fatigue as well as delayed or stunted development of muscle and bones,” adds Courtenay.
Educational Psychologist Juliana Mendonça, from Spero Wellness Centre, says that children often express themselves through their drawings, which can help psychologists interpret a child’s level of cognitive development and how they feel about themselves and the world around them. “Children make use of many cognitive processes such as visual memory, attention, scanning, strategic thinking and decision making whilst drawing.
They are able to engage with their imagination and essentially create a physical representation of what they have in mind. When a child doesn’t get the right nutrients and nourishment, the brain doesn’t develop as it should and neither do the gross motor skills, so you will see a drop in concentration ability and memory. These are crucial in learning environments,” she says.
Add Hope’s first-ever TV advert is illustrated solely by over 1 000 drawings created by 250 children from one of Add Hope’s national beneficiaries, Afrika Tikkun. It tells the story of an undernourished, sad and lonely little girl who is handed an Add Hope bowl – and how the simple act of receiving regular, nutritious meals changes her life and the way she sees the world around her, by helping her develop into a thriving, vibrant and hope-filled young child. With her tummy full and her future, bright, she passes an Add Hope bowl onto another young child – showing how regular meals and proper nutrition can change a child’s life.
“This World Hunger Month, we’re telling the story of the difference proper nutrition can make in the lives of children, and how Add Hope brings our customers and KFC together to feed over 100 000 children in South Africa every day. Over the past six years Add Hope has donated over R263 million towards the 103 beneficiaries we support across the country,” says Mike Middleton Chief Marketing Officer, KFC Africa.
Middleton continues to say that the collaboration between KFC and its customers is vital in fighting hunger. “KFC also contributes towards Add Hope. It’s only by doing this that we can make a greater impact and make a fundamental difference to the lives of millions of children in the country.”
The Add Hope TV advert will be on screen on 6 October, and will be supported by in-store information and a social media campaign called ‘Pledge Your Plate’. The campaign calls on South Africans to post a picture of their empty plate to their social media platforms, to help raise awareness of the 11 million South Africans who are affected by hunger, each day.
You can be part of this too by posting to the platform of your choice and tagging #PledgeYourPlate and #AddHope to add your voice to the campaign.
Add Hope runs year round on KFC menu boards and uses the power of a simple R2 donation to help make a difference in the lives of millions of hungry children in South Africa. The initiative has raised over R263 million in the fight against hunger during its six year history, and currently feeds more than 100 000 children across the country every day, helping them learn, grow and thrive.
View the TV Advert below:
For an insight into how KFC brought the story to life from hundreds of the Afrika Tikkun children’s drawings, the behind-the-scenes story of hope can be viewed here.
