Food Policy Symposium - Deakin University · 2018-08-24 · • Food and nutrition politics is...
Transcript of Food Policy Symposium - Deakin University · 2018-08-24 · • Food and nutrition politics is...
Food Policy SymposiumStrengthening food and nutrition policy action from global to local levels
Please tweet your questions using #IPANFoodPolicy hashtag
NAVIGATING THE POLITICS OF FOOD & NUTRITION POLICY WHAT CAN WE LEARN FROM OTHER COUNTRIES?
Dr Phillip BakerAlfred Deakin Postdoctoral Research FellowDeakin University, Melbourne, AustraliaEmail: [email protected]
@philbakernz
Food Policy Symposium: Strengthening food and nutrition policy action from global to local levels, 12th August 2018
Structure of this talk1. What do we mean by food and nutrition policy and politics (and by
extension the politics of food and nutrition policy)?2. How do we navigate the politics of food and nutrition policy to strengthen
future responses (including some lessons from other countries)?
Draws from…
What do we mean by food and nutrition policy?
CHALLENGES• Complex drivers vs. preference for simplicity• Long causal pathways = invisible drivers• Time-lags = slow-burning impacts
Source: High Level Panel of Experts on Food Security and Nutrition (2017) Nutrition and Food Systems. Rome.
Source: UK Government (2007) Foresight: Tackling obesity – future choices project report. London.
What do we mean by food and nutrition policy?
Agriculture Health Food & nutrition
Horizontal dimension
Social protection
Trade & investment
Education
FinanceUrban planning
Indigenous affairs
Media & comm.
Regional
Global
National
Sub-national
Community
Vertical dimension
CHALLENGES• Ownership: Where is nutrition’s institutional home? • Coherence: How to maximise synergies, minimise conflicts acros
sectors and levels of governance?
What do we mean by food and nutrition policy?
Vs.
https://www.wcrf.org/int/policy/nourishing/our-policy-framework-promote-healthy-diets-reduce-obesity
Source: Brandon I (Honors student, Food Policy & Public Health Group, IPAN)
CHALLENGE• Sufficiency of scope
What do we mean by food and nutrition politics?
Challenges• Many stakeholders often with competing interests, beliefs,
and worldviews• Power imbalances
LEVELS OF INTERVENTION
Source: Nuffield Council on Bioethics. Public health ethical issues. London: Nuffield Council on Bioethics. 2007.
Grea
ter p
oliti
cal d
iffic
ulty
Navigating the politics of food and nutrition policy: What can we learn to strengthen responses?Framework on the political drivers of food & nutrition policy
Adapted from: Baker P, Hawkes C, Wingrove K, Demaio A, Parkhurst J, Thow AM, Walls H (2018) BMJ Global Health; doi:10.1136/bmjgh-2017-000485
The power of the individuals and organizations mobilized in support or in opposition
NUTRITION ACTOR NETWORKS Web of individuals and organizations who share common principles, causal beliefs, and a common interest in tackling poor nutrition, and who act collectively to do so.
• Vary widely in structure, membership, maturity and effectiveness.
Cullerton K, et al. (2016) Obesity Reviews. doi: 10.1111/obr.12459
Harris J, et al. (2017). BMC Public Health, 17(2), 492.
2010
2014
1. POWER OF ACTORS Nutrition network maps, Vietnam
Nutrition network map, Australia
Baker P, et al. (2017) Social Science & Medicine. 177: 141-149
Nutrition actornetwork
effectiveness
Degree ofnetwork cohesion
+
Strength ofleadership
+Strategic
capacities
+ Diversity of networkmembership
Potential forinternal conflict
+
-
Opportunities for generatingconsensus and managing
disputes
+
-
+
Availability of dataand evidence
+
Effectiveness offraming strategies
+Organizational
capacities
Supportive politicaladministrations
Financialresources
+
+
Strength ofinstitutions
Donor support
+
+
+
+
+
+
+
+
Responsiveness toemerging opportunities
and threats
Degree of networkmobilization
+
+
+
++
+
Enabling legislation,policies and
operational plans
+
+
Enabling beliefsystems and norms
+
+
++
+
++
+
+
+
+
+
Visibility ofmalnutriton
++
+
Opportunities forrecruiting and socializing
new members
+
+
+
Opportunities to positionnutrition within broader
policy agendas+
+
Strength of privatesector opposition
+
-
-
Intrinsic– Cohesion– Leadership– Strategic capacities – Organizational capacities– Financial resources– Responsiveness
External– Political context & dynamics– Societal conditions & events– Strength of institutions– Strength of opposition Source: Baker P, Lawrence M, et al. Forthcoming.
Network properties…
How do nutrition networks form and evolve? What makes them effective?
STRENGTH OF OPPOSITION: ‘Big Food’ and associated industries often impede commitment for nutrition.
CIVIL SOCIETY MOBILIZATION: Extent to which civil society groups mobilize for nutrition, including NGOs and social movements collectively representing citizen’s interest.
2. POWER OF INSTITUTIONSFOOD & NUTRITION INSTITUTIONAL SYSTEMS: Extent to which coordinating agencies and institutional frameworks mandated to address nutrition are established and empowered to effectively coordinate multi-sector/-level responses and advocate for sustained attention and resources.
Brazil’s National System of Food Security and Nutrition (SISAN)
Source: Sonnino R et al. (2014) Journal of Rural Studies, 36 (2014):1-12
3. POLITICAL AND SOCIETAL CONTEXTSFOCUSING EVENTS & SOCIETAL CONDITIONS• Short-term events (e.g. elections, policy reforms,
financial crises, media storms).• Long-term changes in society (e.g. rising health
care costs, ageing population).
POLITICAL PARTIES & PARLIAMENTARIANS• High-level political champions.• Non-partisan parliamentary coalitions for nutrition
(a key lesson for Australia?). Baker P et al. (2017) Social Science & Medicine. 177: 141-149
Political attention to obesity in Australia
INDICATORS, DATA AND EVIDENCE: Availability of credible indicators and high-quality data systems for monitoring nutrition, informing policy design, tracking progress, strengthening accountability and informing advocacy communications.
FRAMING: Public portrayal of the problem in ways that resonate with and motivate action by policy-makers and the public, and counter frames used by opponents.
4. KNOWLEDGE, EVIDENCE AND FRAMINGExamples of influential frames;• Several countries: Increasing use of an ‘obesogenic environment’
frame advances support for government intervention, by locating responsibility for obesity beyond the individual.
• Brazil: Nutrition goals were integrated into a national school feeding program when access to ‘fresh basic foods’ resonated with the interests of local farmers and food suppliers.
• England: Focus on children critical to getting political buy-in and over-coming nanny-statism arguments of political opponents to national obesity strategy.
• Mexico: Highlighting health and economic burden of obesity and diabetes, and uniquely harmful contribution of sugary drinks to these problems, were influential in generating support for a tax.
• Food and nutrition problems are complex and dynamic policy problems, requiring synergistic interventions for driving systems change.
• Food and nutrition politics is about power – this is fundamental to understanding the drivers (enablers and inhibiters) of policy change.
• Better understanding the politics of food and nutrition policy can support strategic actions for change – robust political science research, informed by real-world case studies, is key to this.
Conclusions
Thank [email protected]