There is a seventh pillar of food sovereignty that has been adopted in Canada and this should be discussed here in Australia with our indigenous friends.
The seventh pillar — Food is Sacred — was added by members of the Indigenous Circle during the People’s Food Policy process. It asserts:
- recognises that food is a gift of life, and not to be squandered
- asserts that food cannot be commodified.
It is hard to fault the logic of this assertion that food is sacred as the giver of life, and we will enjoy engaging and reaching common ground on this seventh pillar over the coming months.
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SEVEN PILLARS OF FOOD SOVEREIGNTY
[button_link url=”http://foodsecurecanada.org/who-we-are/what-food-sovereignty” target=”blank” style=”” title=”” class=”” id=”” onclick=””]Source: Food Secure Canada[/button_link]
The first six pillars were developed at the International Forum for Food Sovereignty in Nyéléni, Mali, in 2007. The seventh pillar – Food is Sacred – was added by members of the Indigenous Circle during the People’s Food Policy process.
1. FOCUSES ON FOOD FOR PEOPLE
- Puts people’s need for food at the centre of policies
- Insists that food is more than just a commodity
2. BUILDS KNOWLEDGE AND SKILLS
- Builds on traditional knowledge
- Uses research to support and pass this knowledge to future generations
- Rejects technologies that undermine or contaminate local food systems
3. WORKS WITH NATURE
- Optimizes the contributions of ecosystems
- Improves resilience
4. VALUES FOOD PROVIDERS
- Supports sustainable livelihoods
- Respects the work of all food providers
5. LOCALIZES FOOD SYSTEMS
- Reduces distance between food providers and consumers
- Rejects dumping and inappropriate food aid
- Resists dependency on remote and unaccountable corporations
6. PUTS CONTROL LOCALLY
- Places control in the hands of local food providers
- Recognizes the need to inhabit and to share territories
- Rejects the privatization
7. FOOD IS SACRED
- Recognizes that food is a gift of life, and not to be squandered
- Asserts that food cannot be commodified
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