Solomon Islands, like many Pacific Island nations, suffer from the burden of malnutrition. External drivers including population growth, declining agriculture and fisheries productivity and global food trade have contributed to the transition to greater reliance on imported foods. Globally, diets are recognized as both a cause of and solution to the burden of malnutrition. Using a mixed‐method approach this study assessed nutritional status and key determinants of malnutrition among women and young children in rural Solomon Island communities. Quantitative 24‐hour recall surveys identified diets of women and young children in these communities to be very limited in diversity. Typical daily diets comprised of fish, sweet potato (and/or rice) and slippery cabbage (a leafy green) usually boiled in coconut milk or baked. Participatory research using problem tree and biocultural approaches identified basic determinants of poor diets and opportunities to address these challenges. We highlight three domains of opportunity to improve diets across multiple scales; 1) improve nutrition‐sensitive agriculture and fisheries to produce and distribute diverse, productive and nutrient rich foods; 2) nutrition education and empowerment, focusing on the first 1000 days of life, to influence and inform choices regarding food consumption; and 3) reducing the consumption of imported, energy‐rich nutrient poor foods through national and regional policies. These multi‐scale domains highlight that food system approaches that strengthen integrated policy and empower people are essential for healthy and sustainable diets in Solomon Islands and more broadly in the Pacific region.

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Indigenous Solomon Islanders, like many living in Pacific Small Island Developing States (PSIDS), are currently experiencing the global syndemic—the combined threat of obesity, undernutrition, and climate change. This mixed-method study aimed to assess nutrition transitions and diet quality by comparing three geographically unique rural and urban indigenous Solomon Islands populations. Participants in rural areas sourced more energy from wild and cultivated foods; consumed a wider diversity of foods; were more likely to meet WHO recommendations of >400 g of non-starchy fruits and vegetables daily; were more physically active; and had significantly lower body fat, waist circumference, and body mass index (BMI) when compared to urban populations. Urban populations were found to have a reduced ability to self-cultivate agri-food products or collect wild foods, and therefore consumed more ultra-processed foods (classified as NOVA 4) and takeout foods, and overall had less diverse diets compared to rural populations. Clear opportunities to leverage traditional knowledge and improve the cultivation and consumption of underutilized species can assist in building more sustainable and resilient food systems while ensuring that indigenous knowledge and cultural preferences are respected.

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Food security and malnutrition are leading health and development issues in the Pacific Island region. The food system scholarship points to the need for capacity building across multiple levels of governance to improve food system outcomes in the Pacific Island Countries and Territories. This paper aims to identify the strengths and weaknesses of systemic capacity in the food system governance of the Solomon Islands and identify opportunities for capacity building. A theoretically informed, empirical policy analysis was undertaken, informed by qualitative semistructured key informant interviews. Challenges related to capacity included slow information flows, inadequate human resourcing, and skill gaps at all levels of government. Opportunities for capacity building span workload, personal, performance, supervisory, role, systems, and structural capacities. These include the improvement of coordination between food system actors through the establishment of a multisectoral food system platform or agency, and increasing the involvement of vulnerable populations in policy planning and decision making. The current food system governance of the Solomon Islands shows important strengths in systemic capacity across multiple capacity types at national, provincial, and community levels. Our analysis provides insights for future capacity building efforts that build on these strengths to improve social, environmental, and economic outcomes.