"Highly processed, highly packaged, very unhealthy. But they are low risk": exploring intersections between community food security and food safety

Abstract

Introduction: Food insecurity and foodborne disease are important issues in Canada, and the public health actions taken to address them can be conceptualized as factors shaping the food environment. Given emerging evidence that these two areas may interrelate, the objective of this study was to explore ways in which community food security efforts and food safety practices (and the population health issues they aim to address) may intersect in British Columbia, Canada, and interpret what this might mean for conceptualizing and attaining healthier food environments. Methods: We conducted 14 key informant interviews with practitioners working in community food security and food safety in British Columbia, and used qualitative descriptive analysis to identify examples of intersections between the sectors. Results: Participants identified four key ways that the two sectors intersect. They identified (1) how their daily practices to promote safe or healthy food could be helped or hindered by the activities of the other sector; (2) that historically disjointed policies that do not consider multiple health outcomes related to food may complicate the interrelationship; (3) that the relationship of these sectors is also affected by the fact that specific types of food products, such as fresh produce, can be considered both risky and beneficial; and (4) that both sectors are working towards the same goal of improved population health, albeit viewing it through slightly different lenses. Conclusion: Food security and food safety connect in several ways, with implications for characterizing and improving Canadian food environments. Collaboration across separated public health areas related to food is needed when designing new programs or policies aimed at changing the way Canadians eat.

Keywords

• food security, food safety, public health practice, policy