المنتدى العالمي المعني بالأمن الغذائي والتغذية

Wenche Barth Eide and Liv Elin Torheim

University of Oslo and Oslo Metropolitan University

FANRPAN has the honor to submit the attached contributions towards the development of the Voluntary Guidelines on Food Systems and Nutrition organized by the Committee on World Food Security (CFS).

Please find attached the Australian Food Sovereignty Alliance's submission to the e-consultation for the CFS policy process on Food Systems and Nutrition.

As noted in our submission, AFSA is a small-scale regenerative farmer-led organisation participating in the CSM through various workstreams. We also hold the CSM Coordination Committee seat for Australasia.

1) Does Chapter 1 adequately reflect the current situation of malnutrition and its related causes and impacts, particularly in line with the goals and targets of the 2030 Agenda? What are the underlying problems that currently hinder food systems to deliver healthy diets?

Now-a-days importance of consumption of wild varieties of vegetables has been lost in the regular diet. In the past few decades the availability of wild fruit has also been lowered down as a result of deforestation. This has been adversely impacting the nutritional status with reduction of no cost food availability. Instead it has been observed that the advertisement of fast food has been tempting the community for consumption thus automatically increasing the demand in the extreme remote rural areas also. The food is ready to cook and cheaper in price. This is also impacting adversely on health status. There is need to promote the locally available foods and their recipes. The studies describing the nutritional status of wild fruits and vegetables are already available.

2) What should be the guiding principles to promote sustainable food systems that improve nutrition and enable healthy diets? What are your comments about the principles outlined in Chapter 2? Are they the most appropriate for your national/regional contexts?

Support should be raised for cultivation of multiple/mixed crops over one fourth acre of land through supply of seeds and cost of cultivation especially for marginal farming community. This one fourth acre of land should be cultivated with adoption of organic farming practices. There should at least 5 wild fruit varieties of plants growing on the bunds of this one fourth acre of land. The food grown over this one fourth acre of land should be consumed by the family and not for sale. Dairy production should also be streamlined in similar way.

3) In consideration of the policy areas identified in Chapter 3 and the enabling factors suggested in paragraph 41 of the Zero Draft, what policy entry points should be covered in Chapter 3, taking into account the need to foster policy coherence and address policy fragmentation?

Empowerment of local community should be priority so that community should understand and begin to adopt holistic approach towards improved nutritional status. Beside national schemes such as MGNREGS should be utilized for maintaining community nutritional (kitchen) gardens at open spaces available under Gram Panchayat. The food grown should be supplied to the landless and resource poor families residing in that particular village.

The region has been experiences low rain fall and frequent draught since last 3 years. The schemes for harvesting roof rainwater by each of the household should be designed and implemented. At village level water harvesting programmes should be carried out to conserve the water.

4) Can you provide specific examples of new policies, interventions, initiatives, alliances and institutional arrangements which should be considered, as well as challenges, constraints, and trade-offs relevant to the three constituent elements of food systems presented in Chapter 3? In your view, what would the “ideal” food system look like, and what targets/metrics can help guide policy-making?

Wardha district is one of the 35 districts in Maharashtra state in western India. This district is part of Nagpur division. Wardha is primarily an agriculture oriented district. Cotton farming and soyabean cultivation in kharif is quite common. Recently the district has been in news because of a number of suicides that have been committed by the farmers owing to the agricultural loans they cannot repay with the major reasons being bad crops, droughts and lack of irrigation facilities in the region.

Kamalnayan Jamnalal Bajaj Foundationin Wardha is doing many activities for rural people's betterment. These activities are aimed at protection of natural resources, agriculture, social progress and providing options of livelihood. Integrated approach of all these activities led to reducing poverty and improving access to safe food in the villages.

The main livelihood support i.e. agriculture should be supplemented with agro processing facilities and support for direct outlet for the farmers to sale their produce. Mono cropping has its own drawback of making the agriculture dependent on middle man driven forward linkages and loss of bargaining power by the farmers. Small and marginal farmers are the most affected. Second most important think is small and marginal farmers do not have storage space to hold the farm produce and wait for profitable market price.

Bajaj Foundation has successfully take up the promotion of multi cropping to minimize the risk of total crop failure as well as making the things easy for farmers to sale the excess of produce after household consumption in weekly markets. Every year Grain Festival has been organized to build direct consumer linkage which has led to opening of permanent outlet at district place where farmers began to sale fresh vegetables, fruits and other agricultural produce. This is improving their profit margins and they regain their bargain power. They need not to wait for season end to earn money. They are earning almost every day and thus relieved from financial distress. On the other hand this has been improving access to safe food for the consumers as well as diversified their food basket Besides Bajaj Foundation is also helping the families to establish small scale processing units for the crops cultivated by them. For example, processing of wheat sorghum into Papad, Chilli and tamarind into Chatani, fruits into pickles, etc. Similarly wild vegetables have been processed into dry forms with traditional methods. This is not only the value addition but also generated employment opportunities for the landless poor families of the village. Further Farmers’ Producer Companies has been promoted for building backward and forward linkages for the farming community growing organic food.

Further details are available on the web site : www.bajajfoundation.org

The National Dairy Council (NDC) appreciates the opportunity to submit responses regarding the Committee on World Food Security (CFS) zero draft of Policy Process on the Development of the Voluntary Guidelines on Food Systems and Nutrition.

NDC, a non-profit organization founded by United States dairy farmers, is committed to research and education about dairy’s role in healthy dietary patterns and sustainable food systems. Established in 1915, NDC comprises a staff of registered dietitians, nutrition scientists, food safety researchers, environmental scientists, and communications experts across the US. NDC provides science-based dairy nutrition, food safety, and environmental research information in collaboration with a variety of stakeholders committed to fostering a healthier nation, including healthy professionals, educators, school nutrition directors, academia, and industry.

The attached responses are offered regarding the zero draft and highlight three main topics of importance within food systems and nutrition:

1. Dietary patterns containing nutrient-dense foods, from a variety of animal and plant sources, contribute value for health and sustainability
2. Dietary and nutrient needs of populations will vary by region, culture, health priorities, preferences, etc., thus will not be met through a single dietary solution
3. Science-based solutions and the involvement of multiple stakeholders are essential components for informing the policy-making process

Dear FSN Forum Team,

Thank you very much for this opportunity to provide feedback and input for the development of these important Voluntary Guidelines. Please find attached CARE’s contribution.

Best regards,

Christine Campeau

With thanks to CFS for seeking input on the Zero Draft, please find comments attached for your consideration.  We look forward to continued dialogue.

From this situation, there is a strong North-South inequality. Indeed, the North has better assets and adequate means to meet the needs of its people while the South is the part of the world that has the most difficulty in meeting its most basic needs. The problems faced by these populations are due to poor nutrition, resulting in malnutrition.

Malnutrition is broken down partly by undernutrition, which causes the death of 25,000 people per day, and partly by over-nutrition, which is not a lack but a surplus of food and / or poor quality that leads to for example, obesity. We must act permanently to deal with this scourge and for that I think it would be essential to:

1. Unlock and allocate pledges and focus investments on the most vulnerable countries.

2. Promptly implement measures to assist children and families at risk of malnutrition: cash transfers, food supplement distributions and promotion of breastfeeding.

3. Provide support to small producers and marginalized people over the long term to help them cope with shocks and improve their productivity and access to markets.

4. Invest in agricultural programs designed to combat malnutrition.

Non communicable diseases is a major global health risk. We need to recognize the fact that a family member cooks food for the well-being of the family while a business cooks food for the profit motive. This change in role of food preparation has huge implication on the health of the family and the society. In the process of food preparation the businesses resort to food design/formulation to tickle food consumption in humans. In the long run inducing food consumption through ajinomoto, saccharine, thickeners, flavor enhancers, glazing agents, coloring agents, quantity discounts, price offers etc result in overeating that causes obesity and other non communicable diseases. Children & young adolescent have very little ability to distinguish between the food consumption for hunger and the onsumption for the sake of consumption experience. An attachment to consumption experience is called addiction. Considering the wellbeing of the Children & young people, the relationship between food business and children should be well regulated to prevent food related health harm.

Does Chapter 1 adequately reflect the current situation of malnutrition and its related causes and impacts, particularly in line with the goals and targets of the 2030 Agenda? What are the underlying problems that currently hinder food systems to deliver healthy diets?

It perfectly reflects the current situation of malnutrition, however, we believe (point 9) that it would be necessary to say that, in addition to the  food choice, consumer's behaviour is key when it comes to reducing household food waste.

On the other hand, we believe that point (10) should mention the importance of promoting food environments with less pressure and exposure to unhealthy foods (low price policies, commercial offers and advertising), especially in groups with low income  and lower educational level and health and food literacy.

Among the underlying problems that currently prevent food systems to deliver healthy diets, there are the high capacity of the food industry to influence consumers' food and beverage choices, the low profile of governments in implementing comprehensive food policies as regard consumers protection such as regulations to limit access to unhealthy food in school, workplace or health settings; the application of financial incentives and disincentives in food choice; the implementation of front of pack labelling systems to facilitate healthy foods choices; initiatives to improve consumer food literacy; agricultural policies that prioritize environment and health as well as economic sustainability; inclusion of more nutrition and dietetic professionals in multidisciplinary health teams; and policies to promote small farms production.  

What should be the guiding principles to promote sustainable food systems that improve nutrition and enable healthy diets? What are your comments about the principles outlined in Chapter 2? Are they the most appropriate for your national/regional contexts?

The guiding principles are adequate and relevant, we just need to mention the term "food literacy" in the principle "Knowledge and awareness on nutrition", since it is a broader and more comprehensive term than "nutrition education", and because it takes into consideration aspects that affect food systems more clearly.

On the other hand, although there is no consensus on the definition of a "healthy diet", it is important to consider key aspects such as "contribute to promote, preserve or restore health at all stages and physiological situations throughout the life span", "It must be based on safe food mainly fresh and minimally processed, with little or no presence of other highly processed low nutritional quality" and "must be sustainable, adjusted to the culture of the people, affordable and tasty."

In consideration of the policy areas identified in Chapter 3 and the enabling factors suggested in paragraph 41 of the Zero Draft, what policy entry points should be covered in Chapter 3, taking into account the need to foster policy coherence and address policy fragmentation?

We believe that the identified policy areas are adequate, but we consider it important that some aspects are collected:

PART 1: FOOD SUPPLY CHAINS

Production systems - 43, section f: we believe that linking farms to schools is positive, but they should also be linked to the community by promoting short food chains so that access to food produced in the closest geographical environment is easier, while contributing to a lower impact on the environment reducing transport and promoting and protecting small producers value chains.

Handling, storage and distribution - 44 -, section a: Until such time as social measures are in place to ensure that food banks are not required we , we believe food donation in production and distribution settings should be encouraged, as well as facilitating the task of the Food Banks to receive and distribute safe and nutritious foods that are of low commercial quality, as well as study fiscal measures and / or incentives to the food donation.

Processing and packaging - 45 - We believe it is important to differentiate the terms "sugar and sugars" from "free sugars" and suggest that "free sugars" be mentioned instead of "sugar or sugars" as a substance to be limited together with industrially produced trans fats, saturated fats and salt.

On the other hand, in section a, national or regional policies conducive to the reformulation of products and recipes high in free sugars, satured and trans fats y/or salt should take into consideration the difficulty of most small and medium-sized enterprises to develop and implement measures to reformulate their products, compared to large food and beverage operators. An idea would be to have some funds or initiatives from sectoral associations to be invested in reformulation projects of SMEs.,

Likewise, we suggest a new policy-relevant area associated with packaging that guides front of pack labelling systems to facilitate healthier choices and/or alerting to those food and beverages that can contribute to an excessive consumption of salt, saturated and trans fats, and free sugars. The use of colour code schemes such as traffic lithg, nutriscore, etc., or symbols as keyhole, or alert octagons, all of them based in accurate nutrient profiling can help consumers to quickly compare the nutrient content of a given nutrient or the nutritional value as a whole of any food in the same category.

Retail and markets - 46, section b: in addition to policies to restrict the marketing of products with a high content of fat, sugar and salt, subsidies should be promoted which would facilitate the marketing and access to healthy food, especially those produced in the closest geographic environments.

PART 2: FOOD ENVIRONMENTS

Economic access - 49, section d: we believe that it is important to facilitate, from the legal and regulatory point of view, the donation of food in the different phases of the food value chain, as well as to facilitate the task to the Food Banks to receive and distribute safe and nutritious foods that have reduced commercial quality, as well as assess the application of fiscal measures and / or incentives for food donation. However, we believe that food banks should be a temporary measure until such time as governments introduce adequate social funding to ensure that people can purchase their own food.

Promotion and publicity. 51, section a: We believe that in addition to improving the school food environment, regulations and policies should be established to avoid food swamps in the immediate vicinity of schools.

On the other hand, we suggest a new policy-relevant area related to food waste, to review in depth the labelling rules that govern the use of “preferred consumption date” and “expiration date” as well as make an effort to train consumers in its correct interpretation in order to improve food safety and reduce food waste.

Quality and safety - 52, section b: national or regional policies conducive to the reformulation of products and recipes high in free sugars, satured and trans fats y/or salt should take into consideration the difficulty of most small and medium-sized enterprises to develop and implement measures to reformulate their products. Larger operators can more easily apply changes in the composition of food and beverages.An idea would be to have some funds or initiatives from sectoral associations to be invested in reformulation projects of SMEs.,

ART 3: CONSUMER BEHAVIOR

Education and information on food and nutrition - 55. In addition to nutrition training for health professionals and others involved in the provision of health services, it is essential that health systems have professionals with specific training in nutrition and dietetics, within the framework of multidisciplinary teams, since it has been proven to be cost-efficient. Dietitians are the key health professional to translate the science of nutrition and dietetics into practice, providing people with the most appropriate choice for their health and well-being, considering their culture socio-economic status and education.

Likewise, as mentioned above, it is important to incorporate the term "food literacy" as a key element in training consumers to make responsible health decisions associated with food consumption. Dietitians are key players in the food literacy of the people as well as in the development and implementation of public policies that facilitate access to healthy foods and ensure sustainable food systems.

Section b, on food-based dietary guidelines: - sustainability should be a criterion to be considered when establishing food-based dietary guidelines, not only for the promotion of consumption of food with a lower ecological, water, carbon and environmental footprint, such as fresh plant foods especially highlighting fruits, vegetables and pulses, but also incorporating tools to reduce household food waste.

Social norms, values ​​and traditions - 56, section b: - traditional food culture should be the backbone of the development of food-based dietary guidelines, so as to promote traditional diets, popular gastronomy and to encourage the recovery of traditional varieties of foods which have lost market share to more commercial varieties

Can you provide specific examples of new policies, interventions, initiatives, alliances and institutional arrangements which should be considered, as well as challenges, constraints, and trade-offs relevant to the three constituent elements of food systems presented in Chapter 3? In your view, what would the “ideal” food system look like, and what targets/metrics can help guide policy-making?

Some examples of initiatives to facilitate compliance with the proposed policies:

• Civil society movements promoting food system based on new relations between consumers, small local food producers and rural communities, such as Slow Food.
• Urban farming initiatives integrated in most of the main municipalities’ strategic actions.
• Actions to improve soil health incentivizing the involvement of small farmers using soil-conservation agriculture methods.
• Awareness of food retailers and wholesalers to reduce GHG by promoting local products, improving access to organics, reducing plastics and promoting buying in bulk, providing eco and fair-trade food stuffs, etc.  
• Making food chain shorter by promoting street markets where local farmers can sell their products.
• Reducing food waste and losses - Donation of food surpluses to social supermarkets to be given to people in need or selling them at low prices to general population, APPs to share food or selling "ugly foods" at affordable prices.
• Provision of sustainable diets by using green public procurement for school meals programs or hospital food services.
• Integrating sustainability as transversal topic in food based dietary guidelines as the Swedish Government does.
• National regulations to make food systems healthier, fairer and more sustainable, such as the newly French Food Bill also known as Egalim Bill which establishes comprehensive objectives for achieving sustainable food systems, including ambitious targets for the provision of organic food in public canteens, reducing plastics, a more robust legislation on animal welfare and regulation of the minimum prices and limiting mass-discount promotions in supermarkets, to avoid large distributors of foods setting prices that penalize producers.

Although many actions are currently carried out in order to lead us forward to a healthier and more sustainable eating, making a step forward is needed:

• There are many actions that are in our hands as reducing food waste, adopting healthier diets or supporting businesses with sustainable practices.
• There is robust evidence to integrate sustainability in national food based dietary guidelines. This could nudge governments to play a more active role to implement sustainable and greener public procurement, which have a strong power.
• Policymakers and government should be bold when introducing integrate sectoral policies that affect food production, processing, distribution, and consumption. They should regulate food systems not only to halt its impact on the environment but also to prevent obesity and other NCDs.
• Investing in Agri Technology is necessary to address climate changes and make farming viable for the next generations.

Consumer have the power to change food systems and dietitians are key agents to help and lead them towards a healthier diet and a more sustainable eating pattern by raising food literacy among population.

Ideal sustainable food system:

• Important aspects are the reduction in non-communicable diseases and financial burden of health care, protection of the environment, animal welfare and food security of the people, which will revert on the economy, equity and protection of culture, including food culture, especially of the minority and most vulnerable groups . The food sovereignty of the people is assured.
• In the environment, the use of renewable energies and the protection and recovery of the quality and safety of soil, water and air should guide actions in all policies, including infrastructure
• In health, it is important to focus on a diet based on fresh and no/ minimally processed vegetable foods, where foods of animal origin are incorporated considering their well-being. The reduction of food waste is a key pillar to ensure food security and food sovereignty.
• Equity is important in society to ensure the well-being through access to fair, environmentally friendly and healthy food systems. It should highlight the democratic participation of people in the social, economic and political system. Consumers have the ability and capability to change the food systems and they should be empowered to do it.
• The necessary infrastructure must be ensured for the welfare of people and access to healthy foods and health services, regardless of their economic and educational level. Infrastructures should facilitate global trade, but it is very important that the food systems have a local / regional approach, as this will be more aligned with the reduction of greenhouse gas emissions, the protection of local / regional economies and the maintenance of the food culture.
• The cultures and traditions of the peoples of the world in all their religious, food, gastronomy, etc., diversity, must be respected, even in a globalized world.
• Regarding health, the level of food processing should be considered as a key point directly related to the nutritional quality of food as well as equity in the economy and protection of the environment.

We do not believe that the focus of a sustainable food system should be the production of organic foods, since much more can be achieved by changing the food habits of consumers towards more moderate diets and based mainly on fresh and no/minimally processed vegetables foods, reducing consumption of meats and animal foods and reducing waste food. While it is true that food production systems must seek a balance between productive capacity and protection of the environment (water quality, soil, air and maintenance of biodiversity)

How would these Voluntary Guidelines be most useful for different stakeholders, especially at national and regional levels, once endorsed by CFS? 

The key is the commitment of governments to adopt these guidelines gradually, but as quickly as possible, but we also believe that it is more important  that civil society is empowered to motivate changes so organizations and stakeholders embrace these guidelines in their strategic plans and take measures to mobilize governments to achieve them.

Civil society has the capacity to change systems, but public policies (governments, public sector) are responsible for facilitating the implementation of sustainable and healthy food systems. We must aspire to a society in which citizens have sufficient health and food literacy and are exposed to environments where it is easier to follow healthy behaviours that enable them to reach the highest levels of health, regardless of their educational and economic level.

All the links in the food chain must work collaboratively and fairly, and the primary sector must be strengthened, be specially protected and its actors suitably trained to facilitate an adequate impact on small economies, social justice, the environment, biodiversity and culture of the people.

Thus, support to families, retailers and small and medium-sized companies, will facilitate fairer systems, which is fundamental to a more sustainable food system. Regulation must be a tool in the promotion of sustainable systems, but primary sector needs investments, public policies and training in advance, which would allow them to make a fair profit from their work.

Undoubtedly, it is a matter of food literacy, but there is no point in having the capability and willingness to act in a sustainable way, whether on the part of consumers, farmers, fishermen, etc.,  if the social, political and economic environment, does not facilitate easy to access to the tools to put into practice what we know is better for a more sustainable food system: affordable fresh and no/minimally processed food, evaluative labelling, healthier portion sizes, pricing policy for non-sustainable or unhealthy foods, affordable environmentally friendly supplies, promotion of non-harmful natural resources and techniques in agriculture, livestock, fishing, food industry, etc.