enhancing food security and physical activity for maori, pacific and ...

Enhancing Food Security and Physical Activity for Māori, Pacific and Low-income Peoplesboth projects the van drivers often ended up providing other health promotion, socialwork, and social support services to customers.The Braystone Project, a community intervention in Australia, evaluated provision of34 35mobile fruit and vegetable market stalls at public housing estates. Evaluationshowed that at two high-rise estates access to fruit and vegetables and socialconnectedness improved, but these findings were not replicated at two low-rise estates.Access to supermarketsAccess to supermarkets is often seen as important in the ability to access healthy food. 36Research with food bank users in Christchurch found that half used a car to dosupermarket shopping, and they did not necessarily shop at the closest supermarket. 37Without a car, food had to be carried home and participants had to shop locally at higherpriced outlets. In Glasgow, a food superstore was developed as part of a regenerationinitiative in a deprived area. 38 Assessment of the impacts on the community found30 percent of households surveyed switched to the new store, and two-thirds of thesewere households with a very low disposable income. Subsequent analysis showed thatmost of those who switched stores had previously shopped at similar stores outside thelocal area. 39 Thirty-nine percent of shoppers got to the store by walking, leading toincreased independence reaching the store. 38 However, no impact from having closeraccess to a supermarket was seen on fruit and vegetable consumption. An earlier studyin Leeds assessed a similar intervention. This study did observe an increase in fruit andvegetable intake in those switching to the new food store, although there was no controlsite as in the study in Glasgow. 39Lack of transport to undertake food shopping has been associated with food insecurity in9 37 40-45many studies. The economic feasibility of providing a supermarket shuttle totransport shoppers to supermarkets was investigated in California. 46 Although theresults are specific to the supermarket areas investigated and the assumptions made, itshowed that if 5 percent (n=181) of transit-dependent households used the shuttle, itwould break even in 16 months. 46 Such a system could be considered not just bysupermarkets, but by councils, in order to provide transport to established community orfarmers’ markets in low-income areas.DiscussionThe ENHANCE workshops proposed community/farmers’ markets or gardens andimproved access to the food supply as important targets to improve food security forMāori, Pacific, and low income families/whānau. Interventions suggested to improveaccess were community markets, mobile fruit and vegetable vendors, and providingtransport to stores. These suggestions fit within a Community Food Security framework.Community Food Security takes a wide view of food security and focuses on bothcommunities and food production systems. It combines the issues of sustainable foodproduction and food consumption, 47 and recognises them both as important in achievingfood security. Examples of some of the different Community Food Security initiatives areteaching vegetable gardening to low-income households, creating community foodbusinesses, new bus routes linking low-income neighbourhoods with supermarkets,developing community gardens, and farmers’ markets. 48The literature review suggests that community gardens are well-liked by gardeners whouse them, and can have a positive effect on fruit and vegetable consumption, as well as91