The health of our food system
Kate Underwood
The relationship between food and health has always been complicated, but right now, as a country, the health of our food system is not in a good way. We’re facing huge amounts of food insecurity, a cost of living crisis, a climate emergency, and some of the worst food-related health outcomes in the developed world.
After studying nutrition and spending over a decade in the food industry, I’ve come to understand that our connection with food, where it comes from, and how we feed ourselves is one of the most important relationships we have. It’s personal, cultural, social, and political, and it directly reflects the state of our nation and the health of our communities.
Statistics show that 19 per cent of New Zealand kids face moderate to severe food insecurity, which means they don’t have access to enough quality food to meet their basic needs. Meanwhile, 95 per cent of the food we grow here is sold into export markets. Yet we’re globally heroed as being top food and beverage exporters for the quality of our kiwifruit, dairy, seafood, and wine.
How is it that as a country, we find ourselves feeding the rest of the world with our best kai yet cannot ensure our people and children have access to locally produced, nutrient-dense food? We are an island nation with an extensive coastline, yet we struggle to find locally caught fish. It’s currently cheaper to import milling wheat from Australia than it is to transport locally grown wheat from the South Island to the North Island.
Over the last year, we’ve seen a whopping 12.1 per cent increase in food prices (in the year ending March 2023), while Consumer NZ recently found that supermarkets are making $1,000,000 in daily excess profits. Something here doesn’t add up.
As part of my work with Eat New Zealand, our CE Angela Clifford, alongside Freedom Farms and VAWA (Veterinarians for Animal Welfare), recently filed a parliamentary petition calling for a community-led, values-based national food system – one that creates a better future for all New Zealanders.
If empty shelves and broken supply chains during Covid taught us anything, it’s how important having access to our own food is. By taking small steps like choosing to support local, buying direct from small food producers, and, where possible, shopping outside of the supermarket duopoly – such as at farmers’ markets or greengrocers or ordering vege boxes – we can both save money and return more profits back to our producers and local communities.
I’d like to see a future where we don’t have to rely on imported, processed, and low-nutrient food to nourish future generations. If we want to continue to enjoy the incredible food we produce here, we must demand change towards a healthier (and more delicious!) Aotearoa for all.
Find more info at fixourfoodsystem.com or @eat.newzealand
