The Wellington-based non-profit company, Outside The Bowl, has launched its Hunger Campaign to the public – in doing its part to help combat childhood hunger globally.

Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, there are now approximately 6,000 to 12,000 people dying of hunger every day and the world’s children are suffering the most.

According to Outside The Bowl Managing Director, Mark Maingard, they aim to manufacture and provide 500 000 ambient, nutritional meals per day by 2025 and they hope to eradicate hunger by 2030.

“The growing pandemic now sees 7 million people can’t afford to feed themselves daily. This is a crisis and an outrage, and we all need to join forces to fight the hunger pandemic with its vaccine: food,” shares Maingard.

Mark Maingard said the non-profit company’s mission is to help Communities in the Drakenstein Valley of the Western Cape. Vulnerable people in the Western Cape as well as vulnerable people and communities in other areas of South Africa, Africa, and the world.

OTB Africa is a full-profit food production company that specializes in developing and producing food that is high in nutrition to feed the neediest in our communities.

Outside Bowl Africa is the NPC, which receives 100% of the profits made by OTB Africa. With this money, Outside the Bowl Africa can feed the hungry.

The journey started with the 2nd Harvest NPC in 2016, where after Mark met Jae Evans from OTB Global – their vision is a world in which people are physically and spiritually nourished. From this meeting, OTB Africa was born and 2nd Harvest became Outside the Bowl Africa.

It became the company’s vision to feed 500,000 people daily, not only with a nutritional meal, but also spiritually, and for this reason, we have joined hands with the Community of Abundance.

Outside The Bowl’s three food manufacturing facilities are located in Wellington, South Africa, serving ECD centers, crèches, soup kitchens, faith-based organizations, ministries, municipalities, government institutions, and needy communities.  These facilities and our partnerships with large food corporations enable us to procure essential food services at reasonable prices.

In the past two years, they have distributed their products to various countries in Africa and the world and aim to reach many more.  Outside The Bowl Africa is working towards building more kitchens in communities around Southern Africa, that need it most.

“Childhood hunger traps children in a cycle of poverty and indigence and we would like to call on other institutions to assist us with funding and support to provide these children with the vital nutrition they need to break this cycle. We aim to provide as many people as possible with a daily nutritional meal, to ensure that they reach their potential and take our nation into the future,” says Maingard.

These kitchens will not only feed the disadvantaged communities with nutritious meals, but they will create employment opportunities for the youth. 

Outside The Bowl Africa provides training in various areas to impart the knowledge and skills necessary for employment and any entrepreneurial endeavors that they may embark on. These include life skills and hospitality training. OTB Africa also partners with other NPCs to provide products and donations across the African continent.

Hunger Hero

South Africans can help join Outside The Bowl Africa’s fight to eradicate poverty in the country by donating R50 a month to their Hunger Campaign. 

This will ensure a child receives a Vitakidz meal every day for a month. This provides 80% of the nutrition a child needs to survive.

According to statistics and research, it is forecasted that a further 100 million people may die of hunger worldwide due to the Covid 19 pandemic. 

Organizations struggle to operate and afford feeding programs, people learn on empty stomachs, not receiving regular or nutritious meals.

“Our dream is slowly becoming a reality, however, we need the support and assistance from potential funders, corporates, and individuals to help us achieve our goals,” explains Maingard.

Become a HUNGER HERO and help us reach the goal of #zerohunger2030

OTB Africa/Outside the Bowl Africa Links

• Website Outside the Bowl Africa: https://outsidethebowlafrica.org/
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/outsidethebowlafrica.org
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/otbafricafeeding/
• Event Video: https://www.facebook.com/events/537384357660179

More About Outside the Bowl Africa

• Mark Maingard and Marais Greyling had been working together for a few years. Mark had a dream to feed the hungry and Marais to train disadvantaged youth in hospitality.
• Combined with their many years in the catering, food, and hospitality industry, they joined forces in 2016.
• Mark Maingard was ‘called’ to feed the hungry and Marais Greyling to train disadvantaged youth in hospitality. This was not by chance. It was an intervention and plan that was inevitable. Their journey began on 29 May 2016, starting with renovating and equipping a derelict facility in Paarl. On 29 July 2016, the first batch of 200 meals was delivered to Magda’s Soup Kitchen.