What is Food Security? Food Security - It's Everbody's Business
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What is Food Security?

Food security

Food security happens when all people at all times have access to enough food that …

  • is affordable, safe and healthy
  • is culturally acceptable
  • meets specific dietary needs
  • is obtained in a dignified manner
  • is produced in ways that are environmentally sound and socially just
The food system

Food security is not just a poverty issue; it is a much larger issue that involves the whole food system and affects every one of us in some way.


The food system includes…
  • everyone who grows or catches food, like farmers, fishers, and hunters
  • earth, air, water, energy (the physical environment)
  • food processors, packagers, distributors, marketers, and advertisers
  • food wholesalers and the warehouses where food is stored
  • the transportation system: trucks, planes, boats, trains
  • places that sell food: grocery stores, markets, bakeries, farm stands, co-ops, restaurants
  • places where food is served: hospitals, nursing homes
  • governments, policies, taxes (the political and economic environment)
  • the health care system, the workforce, schools, technology (the social, educational and cultural environment)
  • everyone who eats!
Food sovereignty

…is the right of peoples and communities to safe, nutritious, culturally appropriate food, to food-producing resources, and to the ability to sustain themselves.

…is the right of peoples and communities to define their own agricultural, labour, fishing, food and land policies which are ecologically, socially, economically and culturally appropriate to their unique circumstances.

Food Sovereignty: A Right for All Political Statement of the NGO/CSO Forum for Food Sovereignty, 13 June 2002, Rome


Food security happens when…
  • farmers and fishers can earn a fair income for their efforts
  • food is produced in a way that is safe for people and the environment
  • local, regional, and community food production is supported
  • social justice and inclusion are priorities
  • all people are empowered to work together to create positive change in the food system and our communities
Food insecurity happens whenever food is hard to get, such as when:
  • there are no farms or grocery stores nearby
  • our food travels great distances to get to us
  • there isn’t enough money
  • healthy & safe food is not available
  • healthy foods cost more than unhealthy foods
  • our rivers are polluted so fish don’t survive
  • our traditional foods are not available or accessible
The Food Security Continuum

1. Short-Term Relief Strategies
  • directed at those who are most food insecure
  • provide short-term relief for the immediate problem of hunger
  • usually for emergency situations; do not deal with underlying problems that cause food insecurity, such as low income
  • examples: food banks, soup kitchens
2. Capacity-building Strategies

a. Individual skill-building strategies:
  • include programs where individuals develop skills to grow, produce or prepare their own food
  • examples: cooking classes, composting, vegetable gardening
b. Community skill-building strategies:
  • build skills at the community level
  • give people a chance to come together and develop social support networks.
  • examples: community gardens, community kitchens, farmers’ markets, food co-ops, “buy local” campaigns, food buying clubs, sharing traditional food customs
3. Systems Change Strategies
  • aim to make changes to policy that will build food security
  • examples: provincial or municipal food charters, food policy organizations, participatory food costing, participatory research


    • Food Security Continuum adapted from the national resource “Thought About Food? A Workbook on Food Security and Influencing Public Policy”, downloadable at www.foodthoughtful.ca.
A Short History of the Food Security Movement in Canada

1996: World Food Summit in Rome, hosted by the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO). Canada joins 186 other nations in supporting the Summit’s goals of eliminating hunger and reducing by half the number of undernourished people no later than the year 2015.

1998: Canada develops Action Plan for Food Security which recognizes the importance of public participation in policy discussions.

1999: Canadian Food Security Bureau (Dept. of Agriculture) established.

2001: World Food Summit follow-up at FAO and Canadian civil society organizations meet at Ryerson University to provide input for Canada.

2002: In Winnipeg, a Conference on Food Security is held with the goal of creating a provincial organization.

2002: Quebec National Assembly unanimously passes Bill 112, a law to combat poverty and social exclusion.

2004: The second national Food Security Assembly is held in Winnipeg.

2005: The government of Newfoundland & Labrador states its commitment to poverty reduction and seeks input from all sectors

2005: Third national Food Security Assembly in Waterloo. The national organization Food Secure Canada is formed, with Food Security Network of Newfoundland & Labrador as a founding member.

2006: Fourth national Food Security Assembly in Vancouver

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