Eating well should no longer be a privilege

"End of the world" and "end of the month" are the same thing: this phrase, which combines social and ecological issues, has become a classic among environmental activists.

But we must give substance to this imperative of a just and sustainable transition through concrete measures. We must demonstrate that the ecological transition is not a sum of constraints for the poorest, but the promise of a better life: better breathing, better housing, better healthcare... and better nutrition.

Food is an essential area of ​​this daily ecology, and it remains underinvested. However, under the combined effects of the health crisis and inflation, food insecurity has reached unprecedented proportions and our food aid system is now overwhelmed (1).

Here, we must definitively dispel a preconceived notion: no, access to sustainable, quality food is not a bohemian fad! Every local elected official understands how the quality of meals served in the canteen is a central issue for parents, regardless of their income.

In Seine-Saint-Denis, food is a key indicator of social and environmental inequalities. As with pollution and heat sinks, residents of working-class neighborhoods pay the highest price. Our department has the highest rates of obesity and diabetes in the region.

Faced with these challenges, local solutions are emerging. In 2023, the Seine-Saint-Denis department and Action Against Hunger launched, with financial support from the State for a period of three years, a unique partnership between a local authority and an NGO: an experiment in a "sustainable food card."

This "restaurant voucher" type card allows 1,350 users selected from priority groups (students, the elderly, pregnant women or young parents) to purchase the food products of their choice in numerous partner stores with a bonus for healthy and sustainable purchases (50 euros per month and a possible 25 euro bonus). Initial assessments show that this financial assistance, coupled with support activities towards healthy and sustainable eating by partner associations, is leading to a positive change in consumption practices: more diversified plates, the disappearance of the most critical indicator of food insufficiency and nearly 25% of spending in stores offering a sustainable offer.

This project, and other experiments that are spreading throughout France, notably inspired by the social security of food , contribute to making the right to food the cornerstone of public food policies at the local level. They are an outline of what the recognition of a right to food at the national level could lead to. This would be a major step forward by formalizing the obligation for public authorities to guarantee effective and universal access to quality food, while promoting fairer remuneration for producers. Sustainable food also encourages the emergence of local sectors and the SSE in the food processing sector. All these issues are an integral part of a right to food.

It is no longer a question of good intentions or one-off means, but of an obligation to achieve results.

Making food a fundamental right means affirming a fairer and more environmentally friendly society. A society that does not accept that we have to choose between eating or heating our homes. A society where eating well will no longer be a privilege, but a right.

(1) 16% of French people are experiencing quantitative food insufficiency. More than 50% of those affected do not use this assistance for various reasons (adequacy, information, access, availability). Source: Credoc, September 2023.