Miss South Africa Top 10 in World Food Day “Pack-Off”.

Cape Town, Thursday, October 14: A ‘Pack-Off’ of meals for hungry and impoverished communities took place today with two teams of Miss South Africa Top 10 contestants competing for victory.

The event took place ahead of this weekend’s United Nations World Food Day which takes place on Saturday, the same day as the Miss South Africa pageant.

Led by current Miss South Africa, Shudufhadzo Musida and joined by Miss Universe South Africa Natasha Joubert and Miss Supranational Thato Mosehle, the 10 young women pledged their support for a day that highlights the plight of the hungry.

They are Bianca Bezuidenhout, Catherine Groenewald, Cheneil Hartzenberg, Jeanni Mulder, Kaylan Matthews, Kgothatso Dithebe, Lalela Mswane, Moratwe Masima, Tiffany Francis and Zimi Mabunzi who are vying to take the Miss South Africa crown on Saturday.

The goal of the ‘pack-off’ was to see which team most quickly packed 120 000 meals, the ingredients of which were donated by Gina Athanassiou, owner of Holonathi, a manufacturer and distributor of nutritional food products.

In a high-energy day, the two teams packed more than 2000 boxes each containing 80 meals. The Holanathi event – which will be live on the the website – was won by Cheneil, Kgothatso, Moratwe, Tiffany and Lalela.

Athanassiou, a Miss South Africa Teen title holder and model, explained that Holonathi specialises in the provision, manufacturing and distribution of fortified staple foods using locally sourced maize.

“This World Food  Day meal donation is in line with our DNA since Holonathi means ‘grow with us’. We grow communities because we source locally; we grow the economy because we invest in human capital. We also boost the economy because the bigger the demand for our fortified staple food product, the more we buy from local farmers. It’s all interlinked,” she explained.

Athanassiou added that through this massive food drive taking place in the Western Cape, she hoped to advocate around the concept of malnutrition and hunger. Helping with the eradication of hunger in the southern African region is one of her life goals.

Holonathi’s special maize-based porridge was produced after intense research into the best fortified food product both internationally acceptable and also palatable to recipients from poor communities.

“Our food is filled with vitamins and nutrients and does not require refrigeration, only clean potable water.”

Athanassiou said it also honoured the South African mielie meal cultural tradition and respected our heritage.

“Donating meals is not just a business decision; giving back and doing my bit to ease the pain of hunger is a deep-rooted passion of mine, and while I am grateful that the business has grown, I have not lost that core passion of wanting to do good.”

She said that she wanted to spread hope and to inspire other food manufacturers, food companies, charities and corporates to participate in this drive to end hunger.

“We all need to work together to make an impact because 120 000 meals might sound like a lot, but it’s a drop in the ocean when compared to the levels of hunger in our country.”

Stephanie Weil, CEO of the Miss South Africa Organisation said:

“We were delighted that the Miss South Africa  contestants could be a part of this wonderful food delivery drive.”

Her view was shared by Miss South Africa Shudufhadzo Musida who said food security has always been a deep passion of hers, adding:

“Prior to being crowned, my foundation distributed food to those in need in Limpopo.”

Miss South Africa 2021 will be crowned on Saturday, October 16, at the Grand Arena, GrandWest in Cape Town. The event will be screened live from 17h00 on M-Net (DStv Channel 101) and Mzansi Magic (DStv Channel 161) and streamed online for an international audience on MissSA.live with extra highlights and exclusive content.

Miss South Africa is presented by Weil Entertainment in association with M-Net, Mzansi Magic, Sun International and the City of Cape Town.

Go to: