Pizza with a conscience?

Liz Clarke finds a man on a mission to bring health to the fast food realm

THINK of pizza, think of healthy eating. If you think the two don’t go together, you need to catch up with former Drakensberg Boys’ Choir and Kearsney College pupil 29-year-old Marcus Benians.

“I love Italian-style pizzas and I love making them, but I am also passionate about healthy eating and saving the environment,” says this budding fast food entrepreneur.

“People often ask me how I manage to combine pizzas with healthy nutrition. I say very easily as long as you remain true to your beliefs and don’t deviate from your mission.”

Relaxing in Benians’s rustically quaint garden pizzeria tucked away in the grounds of the Assagay Garden Centre off Kassier Road, Hillcrest, it’s evident that the chatter of weavers building their nests above his container storeroom, and the scent of jasmine wafting up from the garden centre below are all part of his “pizza with a purpose” venture.

“I have come to realise that creating a successful business has to go hand in hand with caring for the environment and sharing your skills.”

It is exactly why his Hole in the Wall pizzeria doesn’t have all the usual big signage offering two-forone deals and specials.

Instead the leaf-green walls are decorated with larger-than-life wildlife paintings of rhino and sunbirds, as well as planet caring awareness messages. They tell quite a story. Benians admits his life journey hasn’t been the easiest.

“I wasn’t a good student. I was diagnosed early with attention and hyperactivity problems, which affected my studies.”

Those issues, he says, made it difficult to create a good career environment for himself.

“Believe me, I gave my family and friends many grey hairs in my early twenties,” he says with a knowing smile.

His wake-up call came on a visit to Coffee Bay in the former Transkei.

“Early one morning, I went down to the beach on my own and watched the sun’s rays shine through the Hole in the Wall. I had seen pictures of it, but had never realised the awesome beauty of this natural wonder.”

It was an image, he says, that changed his life. A painting of the same scene hangs on an inside wall, the oval shape reflected in the wood burning clay oven that produces the piping hot endproduct.

“I am sure it had something to do with connecting with my soul, probably for the first time in my life.

“Changing my bad habits wasn’t easy, but I desperately wanted a real purpose in life and for me there was no going back. I decided to give up my job in the building industry and concentrate on my commitment to a cleaner and healthier environment.”

Today those difficult days are a dim memory, with a passion for the planet being translated into a business venture with a purpose.

“My father taught me the Kiss principle, short for keep it simple, stupid, and that’s what I stick to.”

So back to those pizzas, which Benians explains, start – and end – with preservative-free stone ground flour.

It’s important, he says, to use locally grown fruit and vegetables whenever possible and meat products from quality sources.

More “adventurous” pizzas are gaining in popularity, he says, including ones with ingredients like cranberry reductions, rocket and Camembert.

Although he doesn’t want to give away too many of his cooking secrets, he says the two essential elements of a good pizza are a wafer-thin crisp base and a Napolitano sauce made with fresh ingredients.

Equally important, he believes, is reducing wastage and litter, a message that comes out loud and clear on his eco-focused non-profit website.

Waste

“These are huge issues for our country and the planet, so I strive for minimal waste.”

For Benians, that means using as little plastic as possible.

Anti-litter dos and don’ts are prominent, so too are posters highlighting the plight of endangered wildlife.

“You can’t be totally green, but I believe that every business, however small, should have an environment policy that everyone can buy into.”

Restaurants and takeaways like his, he believes, have a responsibility to reduce their waste.

“Recycling has to be a priority for all of us, like keeping the peelings for compost and trying to keep plastic and tin containers to a minimum.”

His childhood learning problems have also had an impact on his business ethic.

“When I was young, people did not realise the effect that preservatives, food colourants, added sugar, salt and chemicals, were having on children. So, for me, ensuring our pizzas are as nutritious as possible has been the number one priority.”

Popular soft drinks, which he believes could have been the root cause of many of his childhood problems, are not part of his offering.

“When I told my family and friends I was opening a pizza restaurant and takeaway, but not selling the cold drinks that usually go with pizzas, they were sceptical.”

The glass bottles on his takeaway counter filled with pickles and sauces contain no preservatives, and his selection of fresh fruit and vegetable juices suggest the environment-friendly song he is singing could be the right one.

• For more information on Benians’s environmental antilitter campaign, go to www. wildernessboyz.co.za

lizclarke4@gmail.com