Lara Mare van Niekerk
Having grown up on a farm she appreciates the importance of real, ‘home-grown’ foods and is passionate about providing farmers (who incur so much of the risk) greater access to the market. When one considers that between 20-50% of post-harvest produce, depending on the crop, goes to waste in South Africa and that 34.6% of premature deaths and diseases globally are linked to poor diets she believes we should all be conscious of what we eat and where we source it. Education is ineffective if the food environment is against you and so her goal is to in some small way influence policy makers, retailers and food manufacturers to consider their role in creating a food chain that is better for people and better for the planet. Whilst spending a number of years in Banking and Strategy Consulting she studied both Psychology and Perinatal Health, Fitness and Nutrition where she drew even greater links between nutrition and one’s overall health and wellbeing and uses those daily at Rush Nutrition which looks to pioneer innovative functional food and beverages solutions.