Food is one of the most essential requirements for survival, yet rarely do people pay much attention to where their food actually comes from. Most people in the industrialised world no longer live in harmony with the seasons or feel a connection to the source of their food. The average American meal now travels 1500 miles from field to fork whereas half a century ago in Ireland every farm was self-sufficient in the basic needs. Food growing skills, acquired through hard work, commitment and traditional knowledge, are devalued in modern food systems. This intensive model relies on artificial support such as fertilisers and pesticides, global markets, and expertise and resources brought into the farm.
Modern agriculture is not about feeding people. It is about wealth creation for a small minority. Every minute 11 children under the age of 5 die from hunger related diseases while it is predicted that by 2020 there will be 5 million deaths every year attributable to overweight and obesity. Food has become a commodity provided by anonymous producers, processors and retailers to anonymous consumers who in turn expect convenience and constant variety at a cheap price. Through standardisation and exploitation, the global food system has ensured that there is a perennial supply of cheap convenient food available to those who are able to travel to mega supermarkets. Small independent food shops are being squeezed out at the rate of 1000 each year in the UK. Although these shops are vital for many people, they are unable to compete with the supermarkets on price. The large outlets source their products wherever in the world these can be acquired at the lowest financial cost.
Global markets also demand uniform foods and these pressures often force growers to comply with the demands for uniformity. Instead of producing a wide range of food crops, nations and regions specialise in one or two globally-traded commodities - those they can produce cheaply enough to compete with every other producer. This scenario has resulted in a steep loss of bio-diversity. The modern food system is dependent on oil, which is a limited resource and its uncontrolled use is also leading to global warming. Inevitable rises in oil prices and the uncertainties arising from war and conflict also make long distance movement of food around the world a high-risk strategy which could quickly result in food shortages.
Less than half a century of apparent ‘progress’ in food production and distribution has led to a long list of environmental and social ills;
• the environmental cost of producing and transporting our food and dealing with our waste packaging is unsustainable;
• knowledge of food growing is almost a lost skill in industrialised countries;
• large corporations are controlling our food;
• small shops are disappearing;
• the loss of local shops is leading to hardship and malnutrition for those who cannot travel to large shopping malls;
• agro-biodiversity is being lost;
• food import dependency will become a real threat as our food system are dependent on non renewable fossil fuel.
Giving this grim scenario it is imperative that people find ways to feed themselves while being mindful of the carrying capacity of the earth and the needs of others. Making choices about how and where our food is produced is important for the health of the planet, the wellbeing of others and -although it may not be obvious yet – our own food security. Consumers in the industrialised world do not worry about food insecurity because so far the system seemed to operate in their favour. This probably explains why local food growing does not feature high on the political agenda.
It is also difficult for people to act effectively for change if they do not understand how the food system works. Choices need to be informed and people cannot understand their role in the global food system when those processes are located elsewhere.
However, side by side with the negatives aspects of the present food systems there is an emerging ‘alternative movement’ who want to ensure the health of the planet and to support local food initiatives. The alternative movement draws its strength from ‘traditionalists’ who wish to resist capitalist penetration, ‘marginalized people’ including the unemployed and ‘post-materialists’ who are young, well-educated and committed to post-materialist values. This movement although it has not reached a critical mass is having some influence in the proliferation of small local food systems.
Local food systems need to be supported by the purchasing power of local communities. The rebirth of small-scale farming can only be viable if it can restore the connection between farm and consumer. Farmers Markets and Community Supported Agriculture are food systems which link local farmers with consumers, thereby creating a symbiotic union which enhances the food-security of consumers as well as the viability of the farms. The beginnings of this new model of farming can be seen in the growth of Box Schemes, the establishment of Farmers Markets in many towns, and also in the development of Community Supported Agriculture - which began in 1965, through a group of Japanese women who believed in having a closer link to the source of their food. The concept of Farmers' Markets is an even older one. Farmers have bartered and sold goods as far back in history as agriculture itself.
As food became a cheap commodity there was also a decreased interest in personal food production. Self provisioning through growing food in home, community and school gardens is now gaining popularity again. This possible resurgence in self provisioning will also help to increase the amount of land available for food growing. Globally the amount of land for food growing is decreasing. However, half of London’s 2.8 million households have gardens which together comprise nearly 20% of Greater London area or 30,455 ha. Similar proportions of land are also available in other cities and towns, including Dublin.
A diversity of food systems complement one another, ensuring that more people have access to local food and more land is used to grow food. This diversity is in contrast with global systems which tend to have a one-size-fits-all perspective on production and consumption. A viable local food system, as well as providing economic stability to local farmers and fresh local food to consumers, contributes to protection of the natural environment. The benefits include the conservation of the greenbelt, a reduction in food miles, a reduction in waste and increased food-security for all. The days of reliance upon cheaply sourced food supplies transported across the world are coming to an end. It is essential that local areas, or regions, become more self sufficient in their basic food needs. Striking a balance between growing as much food as possible in city and town gardens and simultaneously supporting local farmers seems to be a sustainable solution.
So next time you sit down to a meal be mindful of where your food came from - your garden, local farmers, within the country, Europe or further away. If from within the country has your food being transported to and from the distribution centres of a large outlet and if from overseas is it a food which could not be grown locally and are the growers treated fairly?
Fran Brady
July 2005 Dublin Unitarian Church