Advice for Food Systems Governance Actors to Decide Whether and How to Engage With the Agri-Food and Beverage Industry to Address Malnutrition Within the Context of Healthy and Sustainable Food Systems Comment on "Challenges to Establish Effective Public-Private Partnerships to Address Malnutrition in All Its Forms".

Vivica I Kraak

doi:10.34172/ijhpm.2021.70

Abstract

The effectiveness of public-private partnerships (PPPs) to address malnutrition will depend on the issue, engagement purpose, policy context and actors’ interactions. This commentary offers advice for governments, United Nations (UN) and civil society organizations to decide whether and how to engage with industry actors to improve diets for populations. First, food systems governance actors must acknowledge and reconcile competing visions, harmonize numerous corporate-engagement principles, and support a shared narrative to motivate collective actions toward healthy sustainable diets. Second, food systems governance actors have tools to guide engagement through many alliances, networks, coalitions and multi-stakeholder platforms with different levels of risk and trust. Third, food systems governance actors must prioritize accountability by setting corporate-performance threshold scores to justify private-sector engagement; evaluating engagement processes, outcomes and consequences; using incentives, financial penalties and social media advocacy to accelerate time-bound changes; and revoking UN consultative status for corporate actors who undermine healthy people and planet.

Highlights

The effectiveness of voluntary public-private partnerships (PPPs) to address malnutrition will depend on the issue, purpose of engagement, policy context and use of riskassessment and decision-making tools to guide actors’ interactions for the partnership process (Figure 1).[1]
Fanzo et al[3] conducted an evidence review as part of an independent evaluation funded by the Global Alliance for Improved Nutrition (GAIN), and analyzed 30 key informant interviews to understand the challenges associated with using PPPs to promote healthy diets within food systems to address malnutrition worldwide
They did not examine partnerships for agriculture and sustainable diets within the context of climate change. Their three major conclusions were that: (1) government and civil society organizations that engage with private-sector entities must address potential, perceived or actual conflicts of interest (COI); (2) substantial trust deficits exist between public- and private-sector actors that must be overcome; and (3) compelling evaluations are lacking to justify using partnerships over legislative or legal policy approaches to achieve diet, food system and health outcomes.[3]

Summary

Introduction

Introduction The effectiveness of voluntary public-private partnerships (PPPs) to address malnutrition will depend on the issue, purpose of engagement, policy context and use of riskassessment and decision-making tools to guide actors’ interactions for the partnership process (Figure 1).[1] There is currently no agreement among food systems actors— United Nations (UN) agencies, government and civil society organizations, and transnational agri-food and beverage firms—about how to achieve resilient food systems that provide safe, affordable, healthy, equitable and sustainable diets within the context of the Global Syndemic (ie, undernutrition, obesity and climate change) and coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic.

Results

Conclusion