Artificial Intelligence is no longer a distant concept, it’s already reshaping the way we live, work, eat, and grow. At the same time, across AfriFOODlinks and related work in African urban food systems, deep questions about knowledge, who holds it, how it is generated, and which forms are valued, have emerged as central. From 7 to 20 July, Food Indaba 2025 turns a spotlight on these issues, offering a timely platform to explore how AI intersects with the ethics, politics, and power of knowledge. Can the knowledge generated by African food initiatives be used to train AI? Should it? And what do current AI models really “know” about Africa, when less than 5% of global training data relates to the continent, and under 3% of that comes from within Africa?
This year’s theme, Artificial Intelligence and the Food System, is an invitation to look deeper. The focus is not only on innovation, but on critical conversations: Will AI deepen existing inequalities, or can it help create more just, resilient food systems rooted in African knowledge?
The Food Indaba also asks what happens when African knowledge is translated from local African languages into languages AI systems understand, and what gets lost in the process. We’ll explore how African languages carry meaning and shape understanding, and how they are often overlooked in AI training data. The goal is to help us all engage with greater clarity and capacity as we consider the role AI can, and should, play in shaping our food futures.
These questions will come to the fore in two major events.
On Wednesday 9 July, the AI, Knowledge & African Food Systems online conference will be live-streamed from Cape Town TV studios. This free session brings together a range of voices to ask: How can AI be shaped to serve African food systems? What risks does it pose to indigenous knowledge? Topics include representation in AI models, ethical questions about ownership and attribution, and tools to identify bias and misinformation. Everyone is welcome to register and take part.
Then, on Friday 18 July, the AI and the Food System Conference takes place in person at Maker’s Landing, V&A Waterfront. This full-day gathering features leading thinkers and practitioners from across the continent, including the Centre of Excellence in Food Security’s Innovation Lab, the University of Pretoria’s Data Science for Social Impact group, Deep Learning Indaba, and the Global Centre on AI Governance. The morning will explore global and African AI trends; the afternoon turns to how AI is being used across food production, supply chains, consumption, and access.
The wider programme offers something for everyone, including walking tours, public talks, cooking workshops for children, art exhibitions, community meals, and storytelling sessions with farmers. Events take place in Langa, Bellville, Oranjezicht, and the city centre, with many free or low-cost options. This will broaden the multi-stakeholder participation and ensure a diverse range of voices are heard as we work towards a healthier, more sustainable and just food system.
Whether you’re in Cape Town or joining online, it’s easy to get involved. Visit foodindaba.org/fi25 to register, sign up for updates, and follow Food Indaba on Instagram, Facebook, and LinkedIn.
Food Indaba is hosted by the SA Urban Food & Farming Trust with co-host and sponsor SOLVE@Waterfront. It is co-sponsored by the DSI-NRF Centre of Excellence in Food Security and AfriFOODlinks (funded by the European Union). Partners include the UNESCO Chair in Science and Education for African Food Systems, African Centre for Cities, ICLEI Africa, City of Cape Town, Western Cape Government, Greater Tygerberg Partnership, University of Pretoria, Data Science for Social Impact Research Group, Cape Town TV, Daily Maverick: Food Justice, SA Chef Magazine, A Table in the Corner, and Derrick Integrated Communications.