In celebration of Mandela Day over 300 chefs in ten cities stood proudly behind their stoves and cooked more than the earmarked 67 000 litres of soup to feed hungry people all over the country.
77 455 litres of soup was cooked, allowing for 309 820 cups of soup to be served to those in need.
The initiative was made possible by a collaboration between two not-for-profit organisations, Chefs with Compassion and SA Harvest.
In a statement, operations manager of SA Harvest, Ozzy Nel said that the success of this initiative comes down to collaboration, and they welcome all opportunities to work together with other rescue organisations.
"Through the collective involvement of two rescue organisations, over 300 chefs in ten cities, at least twenty partners and sponsors, and over 80 beneficiary organisations, the seemingly impossible target was reached,” said Nel.
Commenting on the participation of chefs in ten cities, whose labour resulted in delicious, nutritious soup being served around the country, national project manager of Chefs with Compassion, Coo Pillay said that there is no doubt that the competitive spirit of the chefs came into play, as the 'big four' cities fought to not only exceed their target, but also to beat the other cities in the count of litres cooked and, most importantly, lives impacted.
According to the statement, it was Johannesburg who won bragging rights for their incredible the volume of 22 092 litres prepared by 36 kitchens, followed by Cape Town with 18 850 litres cooked by 16 kitchens, Pretoria with 14 838 litres prepared by 17 kitchens, and Durban with 11 285 litres cooked by 17 kitchens, and the city with the highest average was Rustenburg, with 4 200 litres from one kitchen.