Culture and food security

Alonso, Elena Briones; Cockx, Lara; Swinnen, Johan

doi:10.1016/j.gfs.2018.02.002

Cited by 141 publications

(63 citation statements)

References 219 publications

(300 reference statements)

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“…In Canada and the USA, rural and indigenous communities are twice as vulnerable to contamination of their food resources compared to the national average [84]. These communities have greater exposure to, and are in direct contact with, contaminating sources [13,84], a situation similar to that faced by mining communities in southern Brazil.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…The lack of food security due to the consumption of contaminated fishing resources has been reported in local fishing and river communities from the south, southeast, and northeast coasts of Brazil, as well as by indigenous Amazon communities [13,22,85]. In recent decades, the global return of incentives for coal extraction has raised concerns about the food security of local communities [32].…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Invisible contaminants and food security in former coal mining areas of Santa Catarina, Southern Brazil

Blanco

Sühs

Brizola

et al. 2020

J Ethnobiology Ethnomedicine

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Background: Mining activities have environmental impacts due to sediment movement and contamination of areas and may also pose risks to people's food security. In Brazil, the majority of coal mining activities are in the south, in the Santa Catarina carboniferous region. In this region, previously mined areas contaminated with heavy metals frequently occur nearby inhabited zones. Mining is part of the daily lives of local communities, and its environmental impacts are visible in the landscape; however, plants with medicinal and food use from these areas can be still consumed. Heavy metals are contaminants that do not have odor, color, or taste, and are therefore difficult to detect. We aimed to verify whether people use plants from contaminated mine areas, and understand which factors can influence the use of these resources, even from areas visibly impacted. Methods: We conducted 195 semi-structured interviews with residents from 14 areas nearby abandoned mines in the main municipalities of the Santa Catarina carboniferous region. We asked each interviewee about the length of time they lived in the region, their perception of the quality of the environment, and what plant species were used and for what purpose. We constructed generalized multivariate linear models to verify which variables can affect the group of species mentioned and generalized linear models to verify which variables can affect the total number of citations. We estimated the frequency of citing species collected using the Smith index. Results: From all interviewees, 127 (65%) reported collecting plants for medicinal and food use, directly from contaminated mine areas. Long-term residents, as well as those who noticed more environmental changes (positive and negative), cited more plants used and had more detailed knowledge of plant use in their communities. When asked if they were aware of the possible contamination of mined areas, 85% said they knew about it. However, only 10% associated negative health effects with the use of plant species collected in contaminated mined areas.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Invisible contaminants and food security in former coal mining areas of Santa Catarina, Southern Brazil

Blanco

Sühs

Brizola

et al. 2020

J Ethnobiology Ethnomedicine

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

show abstract

“…Food utilization is a critical component to understand in policies, as it is directly related to culture and place. Culture plays a critical role in food security, as it influences how meals are prepared, shared, and consumed (Briones Alonso et al 2018). Food preparation can bring in different social interactions and cultural ways of processing foods, which can have implications for the digestibility, palatability, and safety of food (Briones Alonso et al 2018).…”

Section: Utilizationmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Culture plays a critical role in food security, as it influences how meals are prepared, shared, and consumed (Briones Alonso et al 2018). Food preparation can bring in different social interactions and cultural ways of processing foods, which can have implications for the digestibility, palatability, and safety of food (Briones Alonso et al 2018). Krönner presents the concept of "meal cultures" noting that people consume culturally symbolic meals rather than food understood as "feed" (Krönner 2017).…”

Section: Utilizationmentioning

confidence: 99%

A Human Ecological Approach to Policy in the Context of Food and Nutrition Security

Dyball

Davila

Wilkes

2020

Handbook of Systems Sciences

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In addressing the complex challenge of ensuring food and nutrition security for a growing and rapidly urbanizing global population, we need appropriate tools for developing policies that are not only effective but sustainable and socially just. In this chapter we outline a human ecological approach that can be used by policy thinkers, managers, governments, and others to support the analysis, critique, and design of policies, programs, and services to manage problems in complex human-environment systems. At its core, the approach involves consideration of the interactions and feedbacks between the following main components of the given system: the environment; human health; policies/institutions; and cultural paradigms. While the general approach can be applied to any human-environment system, here we present the framework through the example of food and nutrition security, in particular contrasting two examples of how different paradigms can influence policy and management approaches and in turn give rise to different systems and different outcomes for both human and environmental well-being.

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“…Heavy metals can bioaccumulate in the food chain, therefore metals in the soil can be accumulated by plants that are consumed by humans, finally accumulating in humans [5,6] Local communities are human groups, located in the same region and time period, that develop a cultural identity and a unique relationship with the environment [7][8][9]. The interaction of local communities with the environment is directly related to their culture, and to the experiences and perceptions of past and present generations [10], and is reflected in the use of local resources and dietary habits [10,11]. The study of heavy metal impacts on food security of local communities has gained prominence in regions such as China, related to urban growth in mined areas [1,12], and northern Europe, related to increased mining activities and insecticide use in agriculture [13].…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Invisible contaminants and food security in former coal mining areas of Santa Catarina, southern Brazil

Blanco

Sühs

Brizola

et al. 2020

Preprint

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Background Mining activities have environmental impacts due to sediment movement and contamination of areas, and may also pose risks to people's food security. In Brazil, the majority of coal mining activities are in the south, in the Santa Catarina Carboniferous region. In this region, previously mined areas contaminated with heavy metals, frequently occur nearby inhabited zones. Heavy metals are contaminants that do not have odor, color, or taste, and are therefore difficult to detect. We aimed to verify whether people use plants from contaminated mine areas, and to understand which factors are related to plant use. Methods We conducted semi-structured interviews with residents from 14 areas nearby abandoned mines in the main municipalities of the Santa Catarina Carboniferous region. Results Out of the 196 interviewed residents, 127 (65%) reported collecting plants for medicinal and food use, directly from contaminated mine areas. Long-term residents, as well as those who noticed more environmental changes (positive and negative), cited more plants used, and had more detailed knowledge of plant use in their communities. When asked if they were aware of the possible contamination of mined areas, 85% said they knew about it. However, only 10% associated negative health effects with the use of plant species collected in contaminated mined areas. Conclusions Our study demonstrates that people living nearby contaminated areas use and consume locally sourced plants, it also reveals a lack of information about contamination, as well as a lack of actions that include local communities in contaminated area restoration strategies. This situation poses a risk to the food security of the people living nearby former coal mining areas.

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Culture and food security

Cited by 141 publications

References 219 publications

Invisible contaminants and food security in former coal mining areas of Santa Catarina, Southern Brazil

Invisible contaminants and food security in former coal mining areas of Santa Catarina, Southern Brazil

A Human Ecological Approach to Policy in the Context of Food and Nutrition Security

Invisible contaminants and food security in former coal mining areas of Santa Catarina, southern Brazil

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