Development of new economic mechanisms for socially responsible and sustainable industries

Objective:

to promote dignified access to quality food for everyone, particularly the most vulnerable, and to work with them and agricultural and social economy organizations to create new economic models for solidarity-based and sustainable supply chains.

Our vision, our projects

At Territoires à Vivres, we believe in the need to empower citizens to choose their own food and shape the food system in their communities.
We are all eaters, so issues of food and agriculture affect us all, and we should be able to participate in the decisions that concern them. Yet the current food system—encompassing production, processing, distribution, and consumption—is largely controlled by major agribusiness conglomerates and by the European Union through the CAP (Common Agricultural Policy), which subsidizes the majority of our agriculture. The state and citizens find themselves stripped of their power over the food system. It is time to restore democracy to our food system so that it meets the needs of consumers, while respecting the environment, biodiversity, and producers. Food democracy is the concept developed by Tim Lang in 1996 following the World Food Summit. He defines food democracy as a citizen demand to reclaim power in order to defend the right to food and gain access to decent, affordable, healthy food that we trust.
We align with this vision and advocate for a right to sustainable food that goes beyond the mere right to be fed, taking into account the social, cultural, and pleasurable dimensions of food. To make the right to food effective, prices must be affordable and there must be a supply of quality food in all communities. Recognizing a right to sustainable food also means guaranteeing decent working conditions for producers and preserving the environment and biodiversity.
As advocates for the most vulnerable, we approach the right to food by starting with the most disadvantaged—those who cannot afford to feed themselves, much less access high-quality, sustainable food. The most vulnerable face food injustices that lead to health problems, loss of dignity, social exclusion, and more. Empowering people in food-insecure situations so they can take control of their own food and food policies in their communities—this is our vision for the fight against poverty and exclusion, and what we are putting into practice at Territoires à Vivres.
In practice, we are experimenting with food democracy by supporting resident collectives that work together to better understand the food system, politicize food, and mobilize to raise awareness, take action, and advocate for access to quality, sustainable food for everyone. We are also establishing citizen assemblies of food consumers to envision a shared, collective governance of food policies. Finally, in Montpellier, we are launching a local residents’ committee in September 2022, which will aim to manage a community food bank.