THE 12th Mapungubwe Arts Culture and Heritage Festival is NOW on!
The Limpopo festival presents various activities such as music, arts, indigenous food, runs and walks, and a pop-up gym.
This year, they added the indigenous culinary festival to the line-up where the MEC for Sport, Arts and Culture, Onicca Moloi – or Chef TP1 as she’s known – and Chef Siba Mtongana will share tips and advice on their cooking methods.
They will show various indigenous foods that are not only delicious but also excellent for personal health on Monday, at Jack Botes Gardens, from 11am to 5pm.
These health-oriented activities aim to encourage people to be healthier. According to the Heart and Stroke Foundation SA, Mzansi has the highest overweight and obesity rate in sub-Saharan Africa, with up to 70% of women and a third of men classified as overweight or obese.
It also points to the fact than one in four girls and one in five boys between the ages of two to 14 years are overweight or obese.
Experts argue that while there are many reasons behind the obesity epidemic in our country, lifestyles are largely to blame.
The Heart and Stroke Foundation CEO Dr Vash Mungal-Singh has been quoted as saying Mzansi has been going through a nutrition transition.
The bulk of the population has moved from being physically active, eating a diet high in fibre including indigenous vegetables, low in animal protein and refined carbs, to a less active urban westernised lifestyles with a diet that is high in unhealthy fats, sugar and salt.
Mapungubwe Arts Festival responsibly steps in to make a meaningful contribution in the battle against the disintegrating quality of life, especially in cities, and encourage a return to the source of excellent living.
Research conducted by Xikombiso Mbhenyane, whose findings are published in a book titled Indilinga-African Journal of Indigenous Knowledge Systems, shows that indigenous foods contain phytochemicals that are linked to protection against the development of diseases such as cancer, diabetes and hypertension.
Such foods include Mormodica balsamina – known as Mokhutsega in Northern Sotho, Nkaka in Xitsonga and Tshibavhi in Tshivenda – that is used to treat and prevent hypertension and diabetes. So, the Night of the Chef is definitely one of the not-to-be-missed dates at Mapungubwe Arts Fest ending on 15 December.