Food matters
Policy measures for strengthening food and nutrition security in the Pacific Island Countries
Food matters to Pacific Islanders. Throughout the region, family farming and fishing is a way of life, cultural meaning, and a source of enduring food security which has ensured the health and wealth of Pacific Island communities. However urbanization and the transition of the population out of subsistence production have introduced a number of challenges and opportunities for the food sector – and to households, as both consumers and agricultural producers. This toolkit introduces a number of specific policy strategies and tools for responding to these challenges and opportunities: from pricing policies combined with targeted measures to reduce the incentives to consume food items contributing poor nutrition outcomes; to targeted food supply measures to improve access to healthier substitute food items among at risk population groups such as school children; to measures to facilitate increased investment in productivity enhancing technologies; to methods for improving the development and co-ordination of multi-sector interventions among food sector stakeholders.