Category Archives: Festivals

Food for Thought: Food Indaba 2024 Sparks Fresh Dialogues

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Good or bad, delicious or bitter, the kitchen table is where food, economics and politics often meet – and for the past ten years, Food Dialogues has been exploring this in our complex food system in unconventional, educational and fun ways. This year, with a new name reflective of its roots and group dynamic, Food Indaba 2024 is taking place from Monday 22 July to Sunday 04 August with various events at venues across Cape Town, including the V&A Waterfront precinct, Mowbray, Langa, Philippi, Lynedoch and Stellenbosch.

Food Indaba features a range of events, both ticketed and free. Many are open to the public, while some, which are geared more toward academic and industry audiences, are by invitation only. One of the informative free events for all to attend is the Pan African Webinar hosted by Afrifoodlinks. The online webinar titled Power and Hunger is a significant discussion about the weaponising of hunger. The annual in person conference with the same title, for the first time this year, will be a full day affair and will see the D-School (UCT’s design school) creating a Design-Dash, which is a design thinking problem solving toolkit around the solutions to food issues.

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Amex Tennis Town at Montecasino

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Following the announcement of their multi-year partnership in March 2024, Tennis South Africa (TSA) and American Express are pleased to host the Amex Tennis Town, a fan park during The Championships, Wimbledon 2024.

The Amex Tennis Town will be held from 5 to 14 July 2024 (from 1 pm to around 10 pm) at Montecasino and will host up to 1500 people per day.

The Amex Tennis Town aims to create a comprehensive fan zone that reimagines the traditional viewing experience by combining live Wimbledon screenings with a range of engaging activities and a food village which will provide a wide range of culinary delights including traditional favourites like strawberries and cream.

An interactive activation area will allow guests to engage with tennis-related activities. Attendees will be able to capture unforgettable moments with photo booths, dive into virtual reality tennis activations, and challenge friends at tennis gaming stations. Tennis enthusiasts will also be able to showcase their skills on a full-size tennis court with interactive coaching lessons.

The Amex Tennis Town will also feature live entertainment from DJs during breaks in play, providing a memorable and entertaining experience.

American Express Card Members will enjoy a 50% discount for entry to the Amex Tennis Town, priority seating at the front of the main viewing screen, 20% off at the Wimbledon Shop, 10% off on food and beverage, and other benefits such as branded gift packs.

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South Africa Celebrates A Cultural Treasure As The 50th National Arts Festival Begins

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PICTURE: MARK WESSELS

Drums rolled and choirs sang out as Makanda celebrated the opening of the 50th National Arts Festival. A contagious sense of national and regional pride resounded from the dignitaries who attended the milestone Festival ceremony held in the very same auditorium where the Festival was first launched in 1974.

The Festival’s home town of Makhanda is also the childhood home of the National Arts Festival’s Deputy Chair, writer and academic, Dr Siphiwo Mahala. He remarked on the journey of the Festival from a gathering founded to preserve British language and culture to “one of the most inclusive and diverse arts festival’s in the world.” Mahala said this was possible in part because of the shared values and enduring partnership of the Festival’s partners.

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Inaugural Mzansi Food & Drink Show

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Set to become one of South Africa’s biggest culinary extravaganzas, the inaugural Mzansi Food & Drink Show will rock the Kyalami International Convention Centre from 15 to 17 June 2024.

This is the brainchild of RX Africa, the company behind some of the country’s premiere events, including Decorex, Comic Con Africa, Africa Travel Week and FAME Week Africa, and the Ring of Fire Chilli Festival.

The three-day event will incorporate two previous independently held events, the popular Fire & Feast Meat Festival and the successful Coffee & Chocolate Expo, as well as three new additions – the Fine Food & Wine Show, the Bar & Good Spirits Showcase and the Mzansi Food Market.


Says Hanli Goncalves, Portfolio Director of the Mzansi Food & Drink Show: “As a foodie nation with vastly different dishes and tastes in the melting pot, South Africans are ready for a food and drink show of this stature and we will be serving up the biggest and the best culinary show on the African continent.”

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MTN SHIFT Gaming Experience

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Get ready for another exhilarating display of gaming prowess, MTN SHIFT Gaming Experience is back. Now in its second year, it is the largest national mall-based gaming tournament ever held in the country. This groundbreaking event will feature a series of eight qualifier events held at Hyprop Malls across the nation over the next four months, culminating in an epic National Final taking place at Canal Walk in Cape Town this September.

Christie Stanbridge, Hyprop’s Brand and Campaigns Marketing Manager, remarked, “The goal of our national gaming tournament is to create a vehicle for making esports accessible to everyone, breaking down barriers and removing the stigma that gaming is only for a certain age group. We aim to ensure that people from all walks of life can come together to play games and participate in the thrilling world of esports.”

Jason Probert, General Manager: Digital Services at MTN South Africa, expressed his excitement about the partnership with Hyprop on this landmark tournament: “We are thrilled to partner with Hyprop to bring this tournament to life. This event is a testament to the growing gaming culture in South Africa, and we are proud to support an initiative that not only showcases incredible talent but also brings communities together through the power of gaming. MTN is committed to driving digital innovation and creating unique experiences for gamers across the country.”

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Plans Announced for Singularity Summit 2024

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I attended the media launch of Singularity South Africa the other day, and true to its promise to bring business leaders the latest innovations and bleeding edge breakthroughs in exponential technologies, Singularity South Africa has announced the plans for the upcoming Summit, that will return in physical format this year, in collaboration with Old Mutual. With over 1 500 delegates expected, the popular summit will take place on Monday 21 and Tuesday 22 October 2024 at the Sandton Convention Centre in Johannesburg.

Continuing its strategic focus to future proof Africa and leverage the latest innovations to solve the global challenges, the first ten international and local speakers have been announced.

World-renowned cybersecurity expert, Jaya Baloo will return to the stage to share insights on guarding the digital frontier. The genius behind Stable Diffusion, Emad Mostaque, Founder of Stability AI, will address the future of decentralized and democratized AI. The food scientist, Arturo Elizondo who has made it his life’s mission to improve the global nutrition system, will tackle the future of protein in a plant-based ecosystem. Cathy Hackl, founder of Spatial Dynamics (USA) will deliver a keynote on immersion in the spatial web.

Jaya Baloo

Arturo Elizondo
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Woolworths Partners with the Good Life Show to Drive Sustainable Food Choices

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Woolworths is delighted to announce its partnership with The Good Life show.

The show brings together four dynamic events under one roof:

·         The Plant Powered Show – [Africa’s premier plant-based food, drink, and conscious living event]

·         Natural & Organic Show – [Powered by Nature]

·         The Free-from Show – [Embrace the alternatives]

·         SustainEx – [Live and love the sustainable life]

Recognising the global movement towards sustainability, environmental awareness, and the desire for making more informed decisions, The Good Life Show pioneered a fresh initiative and created a symposium which brings together a group of experts from the health, fitness, and wellness fields. This platform provides for all-encompassing information sharing session, featuring live demonstrations and interactive masterclasses, as well expert guidance on new and innovative product choices to suit a conscientious lifestyle.

As a responsible retailer, Woolworths makes it their business to understand the intricate link between what we consume and the health of our planet. The importance of making responsible and conscientious food choices, combined with sustainable business practices and the thoughtfully developed products on their shelves aligns perfectly with the objectives of the Good Life Show, so the partnership was born from a foundation of shared values.

“We are really excited to collaborate with the Good Life Show on what we believe is hugely important and stimulating subject matter when it comes to food, the planet and our people,” says Elizka Ferreira, Woolworths Head of Brand Communications for Foods. “At Woolworths we are always looking for new and interesting ways to improve on our offering, be it our processes or our products, and we’re sure this event will offer up some thoughtful ideas and ground-breaking practices for customers and businesses alike”.

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