Great Fruit Adventure

Max MacGillivray explains to the kids – that he is a ‘not so ancient’ Briton

Global health issues; childhood obesity, Type 2 diabetes, and businesses selling sugary drinks and snacks to an ever-younger audience, have urged two Britons to start an adventure, and in the process educate children and their families about the importance of fresh produce.

Max MacGillivray and Gareth Jones motorbiked all the way from London through Africa, to raise awareness for their campaign.

“UK children think fresh produce comes from the back of a supermarket truck, and we want to change that,” says Max.

“When we go back to the UK we will have road shows and information sessions at schools, to tell them about all the great farmers, growers and people we met on our journey through Africa. It is important that European children understand where the peaches or plums they eat come from.”

Sitting on a motorbike for three months, 15 000 kilometres through wind, rain and extreme heat is no easy feat. Not to mention border crossings, wild animals, roads that lead to nowhere, local cuisine and other adventure hazards.

HORTGRO joined Max and Gareth on their adventure near Grabouw and asked the two to help hand out books for the Help a South African School Project.

The 200 children from Arieskraal Primary were overjoyed when the dusty, ‘spacemen’ on their booming motorbikes drove into the school yard. Pretty soon all the children were busy reading their new books. “Books are really important,” says Gareth. “When I was a kid I read books about Africa, and that’s where the seeds were planted to come on this adventure.”

Gareth and Max will arrive at the Waterfront in Cape Town on the 1^st of February, where Dr Konanani Liphadzi, CEO from FruitSA, will welcome them.

• Watch out for a HORTGRO/Grootplaas insert on kykNET about Max and Gareth.

See more photo’s on the HORTGRO Facebook page.

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