Our Wilderness food philosophy

Enjoy sustainable dining on your safari

So what is sustainable dining? For us it’s about including more local ingredients on our menu, offering dishes that are authentic to the region you are visiting, introducing tastes and smells that are unique to a specific place, and actively working on reducing our “foodprint”. That means we try our utmost to source everything within the countries we operate, and even better, from the local communities which surround our protected areas. This means fewer air miles generated in getting the food to your plate, increased employment opportunities, better tasting (and smelling) food for you, our guests, and income generation for our resident partners.

For instance, in the early 60s, Botswana was known for cattle farming, with a large portion of the country’s income derived from this industry. However, the consumption of animal products has changed in recent years, with a switch to plant-based diets. This is largely because, with support from the government, farmers are now able to grow a variety of vegetables locally rather than importing them from neighbouring countries such as South Africa. Wilderness is also supporting the local farmers, mainly in the Okavango Community Trust villages, in a variety of ways, from drilling boreholes to providing easier access to water for farming, assisting with the creation of community farms that can be better protected from wildlife, procuring farming equipment, and providing tractors during the ploughing season. Many of the crops grown on these community farms are in turn purchased by Wilderness and used as ingredients in our kitchens.

In fact, ask Wilderness Mombo Executive Chef Tonderai Chipfupi about his favourite ingredient and he’ll not say some expensive, exotic protein but humble millet – a gluten-free ancient grain, high in protein and fibre with a slightly sweet taste and nutty fragrance. “As well as being an antioxidant, millet is very versatile. I use it in our healthy breakfast bowl and it can also be ground into a flour, which we use for our early morning porridge served with peanut butter and toasted, spiced pumpkin seeds”.

These opportunities extend beyond food to every ingredient in our African kitchens. Alfred Muswaka, Wilderness Mombo Sommelier says, “I always look forward to sharing my carefully curated wine selection with our guests, as our cellar comprises some of the best wines to come out of South Africa. Our ethos as a conservation company plays a significant role in the selection criteria, which is why I focus on boutique Fair Trade producers who farm sustainably, and who are socially, as well as environmentally, responsible in their practices.