<p>This dissertation challenges dominant food security discourses and practices that seek to address food insecurity through technoscientific approaches to agricultural production. Situated in Vietnam’s An Giang province in the Mekong River Delta, this work ethnographically explores and historically grounds global, national, and household scalar implications of these same discourses and practices on rice farmers’ livelihoods. The central research question that guided this project asks: if farmers are producing security for the nation, then why do they remain food insecure? Through a 16-month ethnographic study utilizing a mixed-methods approach I combined participant observation, household surveys, semi-structured interviews, and participatory mapping with rice farmers, farm laborers, and local and national government officials in order to address this question from a historically and ethnographically ground perspective. I show how Vietnam’s history of hunger and famine, experienced most recently in the late 1970’s, colors the nation’s current and future agricultural development. Focused on a future of rural development, economic growth, and values of modernity, new models of agricultural production are implemented across the Mekong River Delta to ensure the nation’s self-sufficiency in producing “enough” rice and food. Amongst these strategies, intensive triple cropping rice practices, food safety certifications and practices, and an increased reliance on agro-chemicals has resulted in differing farming practices and mixed impacts on farming livelihoods. I leverage a feminist political ecology and science and technology studies framework to foreground the rice farmers’ perspectives and differed experiences, while tracking the rooted inequalities within government policies, market logics, and social relationships. In three articles, I (1) examine differential experiences of state-based agricultural models and their impact on farmers’ livelihood security (2) trace how dominant discourses raise questions about individual and state responsibility; and (3) explore emergent farming livelihood opportunities and challenges within late socialist agricultural development. Drawing on ethnographic accounts and experiences, particularly from farmers, results showed that these dominant discourses that narrows food security to only be governable through techno-scientific approaches and agricultural practices are insufficient to address farmers’ insecurity.</p>

Background: Food insecurity is a major public health concern in most settings where the Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV) is prevalent, and it affects women disproportionately. However, the prevalence of food insecurity and associated risk factors for women who are living with HIV (WLH) in South Africa is under researched. Methods: The researcher conducted a secondary, cross-sectional analysis of 346 HIV-infected women aged between 18 and 45, in Gugulethu, Cape Town. All participants were 12 months postpartum and enrolled into the MCH-ART study, a large implementation science study of antiretroviral use in pregnancy. For this study, women completed a 10-item household food security questionnaire that categorised food security status into household-level food insecurity, individual level food insecurity and children hunger. Using this tool, the level of food insecurity was categorised as food insecurity (“yes” to up to four questions), experiencing food insecurity (“yes” to five questions or more) and free from food insecurity (“no” to all questions). Results: Overall, the mean age was 29 years (SD: 5.46); 25 % of the women completed high school; 61 % were unemployed; nearly 66 % were free from food insecurity; and 25 % experienced food insecurity. Women who were employed were less likely to experience food insecurity when compared to those who were not employed (OR=0.54; 95 % CI: 0.32-0.90; p= 0.01). Those who completed high school were associated with food security than the ones who did not complete high school (OR= 0.5; 95 % CI: 0.28-0.97; p= 0.04). After adjusting for maternal age, marital and cohabiting status, education attainment, and parity, employment remained a significant predictor of experiencing food security (AOR= 0.55; 95 % CI: 0.32- 0.95 p=0.03) and educational attainment was no longer associated with food insecurity. Conclusions: The prevalence of food insecurity was relatively low in the urban-based sample of HIV-infected women. However, most of these HIV-infected women were obese and overweight. Thus, there is a clear need for more research to explore issues of food insecurity and nutrition in HIV-infected South African women.

The public health landscape in South Africa today is characterised by a double-burden of nutritional challenges. Under-nutrition is prevalent, as is evident from the high levels of childhood stunting that are reported. Deficiencies of micro-nutrients such as vitamin A and iron continue to be prevalent in children, females and vulnerable groups. Simultaneously overweight and obesity among adults and children together with an associated increase in the occurrence of non-communicable diseases (NCDs) such as diabetes and cardiovascular disease are increasing steadily to epidemic levels. With approximately 40% of the population living under the International Poverty Line and approximately a quarter of the population not able to obtain enough food to fulfil their daily energy needs, poverty and food insecurity are harsh realities in many South African households. The ability of a household to make healthy food choices is, among other factors, affected by food affordability. Food affordability is determined by household income relative to the cost of purchased food items. In recent years, food affordability in South Africa has been under increased pressure due to the following factors: household income-growth barely keeping track with inflation, rising unemployment, as well as high and ever increasing food prices. The pressure on lower income households is particularly profound, forcing such households to use about a third of total expenditure for food purchases. In this study, a multi-disciplinary approach was used (including principles of nutrition, economics and consumer behaviour sciences) to develop models to measure the cost and affordability of healthy eating in South Africa at a national level and on a socio-economically disaggregated basis. The healthy food basket model was primarily based on the South African Food-based Dietary Guidelines, typical food consumption patterns, household demographics and official urban retail food prices monitored by Statistics South Africa. Food affordability is a major challenge, with 60% of the population unable to afford the Moderate-cost Food Basket which provides greater nutritional diversity. The more economical Thrifty Healthy Food Basket (approximately 30% less expensive) is only affordable to approximately half of the South African population. A four member household earning two minimum wages has to spend a third of total expenditure on food to be able to afford this basket, while the typical food expenditure share of such households is usually lower (approximately 24%), thus confirming the pressure on households to afford healthy eating. In future the models of healthy eating also present possibilities for further expansion (e.g. these models can be refined to study different geographical areas or different household structure typologies). Compared to national nutritional recommendations, the study found that the intakes of whole-grain starch-rich foods, lean meat, fish, eggs, dairy, fruit, vegetables and legumes were low. Inadequate intake was generally more severe among lower income households. Less-affluent households spend a large proportion of their food budget on starch-rich staples, fats / oils and sugar-rich foods, but allocate insufficient resources to animal-source foods, legumes, fruit and vegetables. This study also identified that excessive intakes of refined and processed starch-rich food options, sugar-rich foods and fats / oils were common across all income groups and increased with socio-economic status. These findings confirm the reality of the nutrition transition in South Africa. The contribution of this research to estimate the socio-economically disaggregated consumption of animal-source foods (meat, fish and eggs) and starch-rich foods (maize meal, bread, rice and potatoes), provides valuable insights into differences in food intake across the socio-economic spectrum of South Africa. A complex combination of interventions is required to promote healthy eating patterns in South Africa. In addition to legislative measures (e.g. salt and sugar reduction legislation), consumer education (across the socio-economic spectrum) should focus on science-based practical solutions and provide advice on making healthy and budget-conscious food choices. In addition, it is also important to design and implement policy actions to improve the affordability and availability of healthy food options for the various socio-economic groups, in diverse geographic locations in South Africa. The improvement of food affordability is a key component in moving closer to achieve the Sustainable Development Goal of the United Nations “to end hunger, achieve food security, improve nutrition and promote sustainable agriculture”. Furthermore, improving household food and nutrition security (including addressing issues pertaining to healthy food consumption and affordability), through public and private sector actions, is one of the enabling milestones in the National Development Plan 2030. The monthly costing of the food basket models which were developed in this study and analyses thereof should be used as policy analysis tools to act as a practical, scientific basis for the food security debate in South Africa. These tools are, in fact, already published on a quarterly basis in the public domain. In future the models of healthy eating also present possibilities for further expansion (e.g. these models can be refined to study different geographical areas or different household structure typologies). / Thesis (PhD) - University of Pretoria. 2020. / Financial support received from: * The Bureau for Food and Agricultural Policy (BFAP) * The Department of Science and Technology (DST)/National Research Foundation (NRF) Centre of Excellence (CoE) in Food Security * Agbiz * Red Meat Research and Development South Africa (RMRD SA) * DST/NRF South African Research Chairs Initiative (SARChl) in the National Development Plan Priority Area of Nutrition and Food Security (Unique number: SARCI170808259212) * University of Pretoria / Animal and Wildlife Sciences / PhD Nutrition / Unrestricted

World food security will be one of the greatest global challenges in the 21st century and utilisation of an increased range of food crops is generally regarded as being vital to meeting this challenge, including the use of legumes. Bambara groundnut (Vigna subterranea) is an African indigenous legume that shows great potential to improve the food and economic security of small scale farmers living in semi-arid regions of South Africa. This study sought to investigate the potential for Bambara groundnut to enhance the food and economic security of small scale farmers in the Capricorn District of Limpopo Province, South Africa. A total of 43 Bambara groundnut producers were interviewed about Bambara groundnut production and their perceived enablers and barriers of utilizing Bambara groundnut. The study found that the majority of Bambara groundnut producers were old (>65 years of age), female small scale farmers who produced the crop for primarily household use. There were however a small number of farmers who produced Bambara groundnut on a larger scale, mostly to sell. Most farmers perceived that local demand was higher than supply and were able to obtain a high market value for Bambara groundnut. There appeared to be potential economic opportunities for many of the farmers to sell Bambara groundnut. The main reason why most farmers in this study did not sell Bambara groundnut was because the yields they obtained were too low. The main enablers perceived by farmers for Bambara groundnut production were a) The high nutritional value of Bambara groundnut; b) The good taste of the seeds; c) The nitrogen fixation properties of this legume and its ability to improve soil fertility; d) The legume intercrops well with maize; e) Bambara groundnuts high drought resistance; f) Cultural traditions associated with Bambara groundnut; and g) Use as animal feed. The main barriers were a) Low yielding characteristics of Bambara groundnut; b) Lack of available farmland; c) Lack of irrigation; d) Poor land management practices; e) Low soil fertility; and f) The crop's susceptibility to water logging. Overall the farmers were positive about Bambara groundnut production and could potentially benefit from advancements made in this sector of agriculture. The study concludes with recommendations to help improve small scale farmers' production of Bambara groundnut with the aim of improving their food and economic security.

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The COVID-19 pandemic brought about disruptive consequences to many people’s livelihoods around the world. The package of restrictions to contrast the health crisis caused a contraction of income and employment, on the demand side, and a disruption of domestic and global value chains, on the supply side. In many low-income economies, the crisis exacerbated an already fragile situation, raising concerns in terms of food insecurity and malnutrition. However, given the peculiar characteristics of the COVID-19 shock, not all individuals are expected to be affected in the same way. Nevertheless, evidence of the ultimate impact on food security, and the mechanisms of transmission, is still scarce. This thesis aims to address this literature gap, providing evidence for three African countries. Specifically, the study analyses the change in terms of food production and food consumption, as well as their relationship, in the aftermath of the COVID-19 outbreak, disentangling the heterogeneous impact over different types of households and different segments of the food value chain. To answer the proposed research questions, the study uses the most appropriate econometric techniques, which include a longitudinal model with household fixed effects, a structural equation model, and a cross-sectional model. What emerges is that the COVID-19 crisis severely impacted both household employment and income in 2020, the more so the longer the time length from the pandemic onset. The shock operated through two main channels of transmission, namely food value chain disruption and job loss, ultimately affecting household food security and child nutrition. The study also highlights the importance of considering the specific context under analysis and distinguishing between different types of households, specifically their market positioning when considering agricultural households.

Food availability is a serious problem for some low-income neighborhoods. This study examines food access in Eatonville, Florida, a small town in Orlando, Florida. Eatonville was one of the first African American towns incorporated into the United States after emancipation. It is a low-income community with 25% of the overall population and 30% of children living below the poverty line. This study will examine the state of food availability through food store and resident surveys in hopes of diagnosing need in order to alleviate it. There are serious implications for residents of cities with inadequate access to nutritious, affordable food. Children living with unequal access will face many future disadvantages in education, employment, and health. These compounding problems lead to a cycle of poverty that can be alleviated with appropriate public policy measures and other neighborhood changes that address food access in low-income neighborhoods.

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