Food Policy SymposiumStrengthening food and nutrition policy action from global to local levels

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NAVIGATING THE POLITICS OF FOOD & NUTRITION POLICY WHAT CAN WE LEARN FROM OTHER COUNTRIES?

Dr Phillip BakerAlfred Deakin Postdoctoral Research FellowDeakin University, Melbourne, AustraliaEmail: phil.baker@deakin.edu.au

@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

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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 youphil.baker@deakin.edu.au