Speaking about building democratic food systems, I recently took part in a podcast series called “Rod Revolution” (Danish for “Root Revolution”). Many thanks and best wishes to Kirsi Tilk for a lovely time in the studio.
Amongst other things, we talked about public procurement – offentlige indkøb – which for me is an emerging research stream on which I will be working for the next three years as part of an EU research project that launches in May. More in that in a later post. It relates closely to my work on funding agroecology.
There’s some exciting new understandings and interpretations of how and why to leverage public budgets – i.e. tax payers’ money – to support food system transformation, especially with a view to strengthen local regenerative agroecology and the health profile of people, protect water supplies and the wider environment surrounding us, which is, surprise, surprise, our habitat 🙂
Concerning Building Democratic Food Systems
Rhetorically, we might ask: Why would the state, which is our own collective will and agency, actively support economic activities that undermine public health and damage our habitat?
Indeed, should we not as a minimum demand that any public engagement with the food system should be within biodiversity enhancing and environmentally enriching actors, since we do know that it is (i) possible to produce food and leave a better environment as a consequence; and (ii) that many innovative actors in that field struggle to survive vis-a-vis market conditions and structural constraints?
Rod Revolution is a specifically themed part of “Inequality Talks”, which “…is a podcast from the volunteers at Mellemfolkeligt Samvirke, Aarhus. Through discussion, debate, and interview, each episode explores a different concept, problem, or idea relating to issues of inequality (economic, gendered, racial, or otherwise). Each episode aims to offer an overview for the uninitiated before diving into the significance of current events, the complexities of what a given idea might mean, and what alternatives to the current status quo might look like in practice.”.
Find the podcast here: Rod Revolution : Building Democratic Food Systems: https://www.podbean.com/media/share/pb-7dpyf-185f9c8
Join us for our second episode of Rod Revolution, where we talk to Nina Isabella Møller, a social scientist at SDU, about her work on food system change and agroecology in the context of Denmark and beyond.
We will hear about how municipalities can become key players in supporting agroecological farming through public procurement, the first Danish food council in Kolding, a movement for social security for food in France, and how this could be translated to Denmark.
We will also learn about the situation of food insecurity in Denmark, food deserts, and the strength of community initiatives to challenge the status quo.
Thank you, Nina!
This podcast was produced thanks to funding from the European Union and we have to let you know that the content of it is the responsibility of Mellemfolkeligt Samvirke and does not necessarily represent the views of the EU!
Music, sound production – Kirsi Tilk
When it comes to food insecurity in Denmark – which we touched upon in our talk in the studio – it is a bit of a blindspot, if not a taboo. Colleagues in other Scandinavian and Nordic countries tell me that it is a shared challenge in this region where the respective countries tend to appear top of the list in rankings of happiest, most well functioning, rules-based and non-corrupt societies.
Self-perception is of course always an element in surveys associated with relevant studies on such themes, meaning that in the world’s happiest country there is obviously no food insecurity, But there is. My colleague Lotte Holm at Department of Food and Resource Economics, University of Copenhagen (see below) has done research on that and I hope to contribute further to that in the future.
If you have stories or interests in either food insecurity in Scandinavia or new ways of leveraging public budgets to support agroecological transformation of the food system, do get in touch!
“Food insecurity in Denmark—socio-demographic determinants and associations with eating- and health-related variables“
European Journal of Public Health, Volume 28, Issue 2, April 2018, Pages 283–288, https://doi.org/10.1093/eurpub/ckx121
Background: Food insecurity and its consequences have not received much attention in the Nordic, social-democratic welfare states. This study reports the prevalence of low and very low food security in Denmark, identifies its socio-demographic determinants and examines its associations with eating-related and health-related outcomes.
Methods: A cross-sectional survey with a mixed-mode response format (telephone interviewing or Internet). A disproportional stratified random sampling design was employed (N = 1877). Main measure was the 6-item gradient food security construct adapted from the US.
Results: Prevalence of low and very low food security was 6.0% (95% CI:5.4–8.5%) and 2.4% (95% CI:1.3–3.3%), respectively. Prevalence was highest in households with disposable income below OECD’s poverty threshold, households receiving benefits or disability pensions, and single-parent households. After socio-demographic adjustment, adults from low/very low food secure households had a higher probability of eating an unhealthy diet (women: adj.RR 2.82 P < 0.001; men: adj.RR 2.15 P < 0.01). Adults from low/very low food secure households had lower life satisfaction (women: adj.RR 0.49, P < 0.05; men: adj.RR 0.09 P < 0.001) and higher risk of psychological distress (women: adj.RR 2.42 P < 0.05; men: adj.RR 8.95 P < 0.001). Obesity was more prevalent in low/very low food secure women (RR 2.44 P < 0.05), but not after socio-demographic adjustment.
Conclusion: Food insecurity in Denmark is associated with adverse factors such as unhealthy diet, obesity, life satisfaction, and psychological distress. It is important to widen food insecurity research to non-liberal welfare states since low/very low food security is negatively associated with unhealthy eating and other health indicators, even in a social-democratic welfare state.
Topic: obesity; diet; adult; demography; denmark; food; income; internet; pensions; single parent; social welfare; telephone; eating; poverty; disability; food insecurity
