IS COMMUNITY ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT PUTTING HEALTHY FOOD ON THE TABLE? Food Sovereignty in Northern Manitoba’s Aboriginal Communities Shirley Thompson, Asfia Gulrukh, Myrle Ballard, Byron Beardy, Durdana Islam, Vanessa Lozeznik, and Kimlee Wong NATURAL RESOURCES INSTITUTE, UNIVERSITY OF MANITOBA ABSTRACT Food-related community economic development (CED) is making a difference in northern com- munities where food insecurity rates are very high at 75% (n=534). People in northern Manitoba reported in interviews that hunting, fishing, berry-picking and gardening made them self-sufficient, in the recent past (25 to 50 years ago), but now many children and adults cannot afford to eat healthy. Presently many financial and regulatory barriers to country foods exist, which severely curtails food sovereignty and sustainable livelihood, while increasing food insecurity. The Nelson House Country Foods Program, which employs people to hunt and fish to feed the community, is related to better food security rates (p<0.001). The Northern Healthy Food Initiative’s (NHFI) application of a CED approach is having an impact on community building according to obser- vations which found 33 new gardens in 2009 alone, as well as 7 new greenhouses and hundreds of new freezers in the 14 communities studied. Northern Aboriginal communities were found to have unique food access issues that resulted in a new Aboriginal food access model to show the factors, including CED, that impact food access and food sovereignty. As well, Aboriginal food sovereignty and sustainable livelihoods model was developed to show how the vulnerability con- text created by colonial government and climate change has impacted community assets and food security, requiring CED to reestablish sustainable livelihoods and food sovereignty. S. Thompson is the corresponding author and can be reached by e-mail ([email protected]). 14 One-time permission to use this article is granted to the Natural Resources Institute, University of Manitoba, solely for the workshop to be held on February 3, 2012. © Captus Press Inc. All rights reserved. FOOD SOVEREIGNTY IN NORTHERN MANITOBA’S ABORIGINAL COMMUNITIES 15 INTRODUCTION community supported agriculture (CSA), farmer’s markets, community gardens, etc. Community- Could food based community economic develop- based food programming is one policy response ment (CED) help feed families in northern to tackle food insecurity; to complement food, Manitoba where many families lack economic health and social policies (Power & Tarasuk, access to nutritious foods? Problems associated 2006; Power, 1999). Manitoba’s “CED lens” with food access in remote communities include (Loxley & Simpson, 2007) incorporates CED limited selection of perishable foods, expensive principles into the government’s policy-making food prices, escalating transport costs, uncertainty practice. However, CED has been criticized as of travel with winter roads not freezing over, gap filling, providing limited government funding, high poverty rates, and a decline in use of coun- for areas of social policy and welfare that gov- try foods (NFPSC, 2003). Many people have ernments have vacated (Sheldrick, 2007). Com- stated that to live a healthy life in a northern munity food security initiatives depends on the Manitoba community, individuals need to practice ability of not for profit organizations to organize, sustainable local food cultivation and harvest- command resources and generate support for ing practices. Community members recognize the measures that will improve local food access need to improve food access and have requested and nutrition for citizens, especially underprivi- the re-invigoration of local food production as a leged ones. Unlike the standardization of univer- first priority (NFPSC, 2003). This request is a sal social programs or food market chains these call for food related community economic devel- initiatives vary greatly from community to com- opment (CED) towards food sovereignty. This munity. However, community organizations usu- paper explores eight remote or semi-remote ally lack the resources and the authority to make First Nation communities and six Aboriginal and significant changes in existing food regimes. Northern Affairs (ANA) communities considering Food based CED offers a local solution the impact of CED and community level factors to the prevailing corporate food regime (aka on food sovereignty. For CED, specifically coun- agrifood) (Sonnino & Marsden, 2006). Agrifood try foods programming, food buying clubs and operates in a marketplace system that excludes the Northern Healthy Food Initiative (NHFI) access and control to the poor and under- and other government programming is consid- privileged while creating a cycle of dependency, ered. Following from the Northern Food Prices rather than self-sufficiency. Under corporate Report in 2003, the government of Manitoba agrifood systems, consumers are separated from created the NHFI, a pilot project, to implement producers in terms of both distance (food can priority recommendations made by the Northern travel vast distances to places of consumption) Food Prices Report (2003) in 2005. The NHFI is and relationships (producers are separated by coordinated by a multi-department government a chain of processors, shippers and retailers team led by Aboriginal & Northern Affairs and from consumers) (Shragge, 2003). Conversely, programs are implemented through a funding local food networks focus on establishing a direct partnership with three northern regional non-gov- relationship between producers and consumers ernment organizations (NGOs), a school division with a positive social relationship that emerges and a province-wide food security organization. from a sense of place (Selfa & Oazi, 2005). Also Food related CED is different than sustain- local food systems are explained with respect able agriculture or anti-hunger campaigns to geographic space: “local food systems are (Winne, Joseph & Fisher, 1998), seeking local rooted in particular place ... use ecologically capacity building and empowerment to resolve sound production and distribution practices, and issues of poverty, hunger and inequality (Shragge, enhance social equity and democracy for all 1997; 2003). Food-related CED decommodifies a members of the community” (Feenstra, 1997). portion of food production and/or distribution According to Winona LaDuke economic withdrawing it from the capitalist market. This development in Aboriginal communities should reclaims food access by the community as a be based on the Indigenous concept of Mino- necessity and a right (Riches, 1999), rather than bimaatisiiwin or the “good life”. Winona LaDuke a privilege. Local food networks include food co- (2002: 79) explains how the alternative definition operatives, buying clubs, country food programs, of this term is “continuous rebirth”: “this is how THE JOURNAL OF ABORIGINAL ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT VOLUME 7 / NO. 2 / 2011 One-time permission to use this article is granted to the Natural Resources Institute, University of Manitoba, solely for the workshop to be held on February 3, 2012. © Captus Press Inc. All rights reserved. 16 S. THOMPSON ET AL. we traditionally understand the world and how based economies in which the harvesting of indigenous societies have come to live within country food for primarily domestic consumption natural law.” This good life requires cyclical plays a significant role in their food security and thinking, reciprocal relations and responsibilities culture (Usher, Duhaime & Searles, 2003). The to the earth and creation. Continuous inhabita- term “country food” or “traditional food” refers tion of place with an intimate understanding of to the mammals, fish, plants, berries and water- the relationship between humans and the ecosys- fowl/seabirds harvested from local stocks. Until tem and importance to maintain this balance are recently, northern Manitoba Aboriginal communi- central tenets. According to LaDuke (2002), eco- ties relied almost entirely on country foods for nomic development based on indigenous values sustenance and health. must be decentralized, self-reliant and consider- Food self-sufficiency is acknowledged to ate of the carrying capacity of that ecosystem. have existed in the recent past by government. Winona LaDuke states: “the nature of northern A government document reports: “As late as indigenous economies has been a diversified mix the 1950s, northern communities were relatively of hunting, harvesting and gardening, all utilizing self-sufficient, except for flour, sugar and similar a balance of human intervention or care, in products. It was not uncommon to have had accordance with these religious and cultural sys- market gardens, canning and other locally pro- tems’ reliance upon the wealth and generosity of duced foods” (NFP, 2003: 19). This included nature” (LaDuke, 2002: 80). The resource man- wild game from hunting and trapping, fish, agement system for sustainable yield used tech- berries and gardening. Subsistence economies of niques for domestic production and production northern Manitoba have been undermined and for exchange or export: “Whether the resource undervalued in terms of their provisioning of is wild rice or white fish, the extended family as food security (Churchill, 1999). LaDuke (2002) a production unit harvests within a social and describes how colonialism through Christianity, resource management code that ensured sustain- western science, eurocentrism, socioeconomic able yield” (LaDuke,