The increasing community interest in food systems is often attributed to concerns about climate change. Questions such as Local food – an environment for change? are becoming evermore common. Research is now Connecting the Global Climate Change and Public Health Agendas and aiming at encouraging and enabling people to eat healthier, locally produced foodstuffs claimed to deliver individual health benefits and reduce climate impacts of the modern food system.
The future modeling regarding climate change in Australia and its impact on availability of healthy foods is highlighted in the Our Uncashed Dividend report by the Climate and Health Alliance claiming that ‘the biggest healthcare challenges today, and the greatest drains on the public purse, are preventable chronic diseases associated with carbon-intensive lifestyles’. In the report’s chapter on Eating our way to better health (and a safer climate) the rapid worldwide growth in meat consumption is said to be driving greenhouse gas emissions growth and contributing to the incidence of obesity. Moderating consumption of meat and dairy products is recommended as one way of lowering the incidence of obesity. The economic benefits, plus the health and environmental benefits of cutting emissions in the agricultural sector will require researchers to look beyond economics to locate the potential health benefits of such action.
The development of a national strategy for health in relation to climate change would not only affect health risks of obesity but also promote health via emissions reductions. A preventative health public policy response that incorporates food system issues such as the production and distribution of foods locally, in order to mitigate climate changing greenhouse gas emissions and carbon footprints would be an integrated strategy across areas such as transport, and the broader food, agriculture and land use sectors.
Some countries have been leading the way in fertilizing innovations in the food system. The US Community Food Projects Competitive Grants Program precedent of national funding for community food initiatives makes community food grants available for proactive multi-purpose food projects and approaches to making communities more self reliant at maintaining and developing food systems that address food and nutrition issues in the community. Projects are funded from between $10,000-$300,000 for a period of 1 to 3 years. This support enables outcomes that can further the goal of healthy eating, while at the same time addressing issues surrounding climate change and the sustainability of the food system.
What a stroke of genius – health, environmental and economic benefits all in one – what an opportunity for this example to be replicated in Australia. The question is – who has the courage to show the leadership to make it a possibility? The Australian food growing sector is not only interested, but has working prototypes of every style and scale of local food growing initiative currently operational and gathering huge community support. In addition the number of people who have trained in permaculture, urban agriculture, social enterprise, production horticulture and biodynamic farming is both a skills bank and a workforce in waiting. And the research capacity is sitting in our institutions, largely underutilized, with the ability to drive a refreshed research agenda for a positive food future for Australia. All it will take is a coordination of effort with funding of a peak body to coordinate a government investment in preventative health for a revitalized food system with a resilient food future as its focus.
