The next time you’re in a grocery store, I want you to pause. Pick up a product, any product, and ask yourself how it got there. I can tell you it’s a far more complex and fragile journey than you can imagine.

Two weeks ago, my phone rang. It was a supplier from Mossel Bay. “I’m panicking,” he said. An unseasonal snap of snow, so cold that 13,000 dairy cows had simply stopped producing milk. For four days. That’s the start of the story, not the end.

The Hidden Complexity of the Food Supply Chain

This is the hidden reality of the food system. You see a carton on a shelf; I see a war against chaos. For us, that four-day milk shortage set off a chain reaction inside what I can only describe as a “perma-crisis”—the constant state of navigating disruption that defines doing business in South Africa today.

A "Perma-Crisis" of Doing Business

On day six of the crisis, we were still waiting for the milk. A team of 80 people at our factory was on overtime, waiting. Our country already has the 13th most expensive labor workforce in the world. As the first trucks finally began their journey, we got another call: the N3 highway was closed. Protesters were burning tires. Day eight. The trucks were rerouted. We were burning through diesel reserves just to keep the factories ready. By midnight, our security team changed the route again due to reports of unrest. Day ten. We’re in a boardroom. The finance minister has just announced a new tax rebate. Immediately, our retail partners call, demanding a piece of the benefit. Legal, technical, marketing, brand—everyone is in the room, trying to make a decision that will affect 23 countries while still wondering if the cows have started producing milk again.

The Disconnect Between Consumer and Reality

And after all that… you, the consumer, get to the shelf on day 14. You look at the carton and see the price is three rand higher. You say, “No, I’m not paying that,” and you put it back. In one week, ten thousand people make that same choice. Now, what do we do with all that milk? This story isn’t unique. It’s our daily reality, a symptom of a much larger, systemic problem where the immense struggle of production is invisible to the person making the final choice.

The Inadequacy of Old Thinking

In this environment, the old way of thinking is no longer enough. Inside a big company, we can get stuck. The “old guards” who have been in the business for decades are focused on stability, on weathering the storm. But we don’t need to just weather it; we need propulsion. We need new energy. We’ve come to realize the solutions to today's problems are not going to come from another internal boardroom meeting.

The Imperative of Youth and Collaboration

That is why Nestlé needs the youth. We can’t solve these problems alone. The solutions to food waste, to sustainable farming, to community health, will not come from us. They will come from young agriculturalists with innovative ideas, from small businesses who think differently because they have to, from entrepreneurs who aren’t burdened by the thought of 13,000 cows. We call our philosophy “Creating Shared Value,” with a special focus on the social impact—the "S" in ESG that is often the most difficult to tackle. We are actively looking for partners who can help us do what we cannot do alone.

A Shift from "Why?" to "Why Not?"

For too long, in business and in life, we have focused on the obstacles. We sit in meetings and list all the reasons why something can’t be done. Why can't we innovate? Why can't we change? We keep asking, “Why?”

I ask each and every one of you-whether you run a business or just want to make a difference-to ask a different question: Why not?

Why not try a new way? Why not take a risk? Sitting in an office in Sandton will not solve the problems of this continent. But if you have an idea, we can definitely do it together.

This article was repurposed from Mota Mota’s original presentation at the 3rd instalment of the Impact Series and the topic therein was; “Making Impact Part of Everyday Business’ which can be found Thinkerneur’s YouTube page - see link here.