Foundations of food democracy

In the previous chapter, we provided a brief overview of the industrial food system landscape and its’ key players such as major supermarket chains and their operations. The very nature of large retail chains such as supermarkets means that consumers, farmers and others in the retail supply chain get little say in what is stocked or sold. Instead, shelf-stable ultra-processed foods with high profit margins dominant over fresh produce in supermarkets. Such food is cheap, but comes at a high price for producers, the environment and consumer health. Given the status quo that is the twenty-first century industrial food system, how do key stakeholders get a say in the way our food system operates? What is sold in supermarkets and how? How might individuals, producers, communities and societies be empowered to access, prepare, cook and eat healthy food in a sustainable way? This is where the concept of food democracy comes into play. This chapter will unpack the term food democracy, its origins, importance and key dimensions.