Food Sovereignty Day 2014 recognises pioneers of the fair food movement

The Australian Food Sovereignty Alliance (AFSA) welcomes the awarding of the Food Sovereignty Prize to the Union of Agricultural Work Committees (UAWC), and Community to Community Development (C2C).

The UAWC is a grassroots small farmer organization in Palestine that builds farmer cooperatives and seed banks and supports the leadership of women. The C2C supports immigrant farm workers in the US in developing worker-owned cooperatives and promotes domestic fair trade exchanges.

The sixth annual awards were made by the United States Food Sovereignty Alliance. First made in 2009 as an alternative to the production-focused World Food Prize, they are made to organisations developing solutions to the injustices in the global food system. According to the USFSA, the award honours those reclaiming and democratising their food systems and contributes to ending hunger.

[message_box icon=”fa fa-quote-left” background=”#556270″] [quote author=”” image=”https://afsa.org.au/wp-content/uploads/2014/10/nick-200-1.jpg” w=”200″ h=”199″ image_align=”right”]The UAWC and the C2C embody the vision of a democratic and fair food system for all, which is at the heart of food sovereignty”, said AFSA National Coordinator, Dr Nick Rose.

This is the vision that inspires our work here in Australia. In particular, during this International Year of the Family Farmer, we want to highlight the vital role played by innovative Australian producers who are working hard to feed their local communities and regions in ecologically sustainable ways, often in very difficult market conditions.

This is why AFSA launched a dedicated farmers’ chapter, Fair Food Farmers United (FFFU), in March this year.

Dr Nick Rose, AFSA National Coordinator[/quote][/message_box]

 

Some of the 97 events currently taking place around Australia during the AFSA’s annual Fair Food Week are workshops and tours organised by FFFU farmers.

For interview:

• Dr Nick Rose (AFSA): 0414 497 819
• Tammi Jonas (FFFU): 0422 429 362

Fair Food Week: fairfoodweek.org.au
Australian Food Sovereignty Alliance: afsa.org.au.au