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Democratising food: The case for a deliberative approach

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  13 March 2020

Merisa S. Thompson Open the ORCID record for Merisa S. Thompson [Opens in a new window] ,
Alasdair Cochrane Open the ORCID record for Alasdair Cochrane [Opens in a new window]  and
Justa Hopma Open the ORCID record for Justa Hopma [Opens in a new window]
Merisa S. Thompson*
Affiliation:
University of Birmingham
Alasdair Cochrane
Affiliation:
University of Sheffield
Justa Hopma
Affiliation:
Independent Researcher
*
*Corresponding author. Email: m.s.thompson@bham.ac.uk
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Abstract

Prevailing political and ethical approaches that have been used to both critique and propose alternatives to the existing food system are lacking. Although food security, food sovereignty, food justice, and food democracy all offer something important to our reflection on the global food system, none is adequate as an alternative to the status quo. This article analyses each in order to identify the prerequisites for such an alternative approach to food governance. These include a focus on goods like nutrition and health, equitable distribution, supporting livelihoods, environmental sustainability, and social justice. However, other goods, like the interests of non-human animals, are not presently represented. Moreover, incorporating all of these goods is incredibly demanding, and some are in tension. This raises the question of how each can be appropriately accommodated and balanced. The article proposes that this ought to be done through deliberative democratic processes that incorporate the interests of all relevant parties at the local, national, regional, and global levels. In other words, the article calls for a deliberative approach to the democratisation of food. It also proposes that one promising potential for incorporating the interests of all affected parties and addressing power imbalances lies in organising the scope and remit of deliberation around food type.

Keywords

Deliberative DemocracyFood PoliticsFood JusticeFood SecurityGlobal Food SystemDemocratisationNon-Human Animals
Type
Research Article
Information
Review of International Studies , Volume 46 , Issue 4 , October 2020 , pp. 435 - 455
Copyright
Copyright © British International Studies Association 2020

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