Many Australian responses to food insecurity have focused on short-term solutions such as emergency food relief.
Nearly 13 per cent of Australians are exposed to food insecurity, with rural, regional and remote areas disproportionally affected.
New research from Edith Cowan University (ECU), Food security systems change: a case study from rural, regional, and remote Australia, has uncovered that while regional and remote food security initiatives are innovating, collaborating, sharing knowledge, and adapting to local challenges, few are engaging in strategic advocacy with government.
Strengthening these advocacy efforts is vital to achieving long-term food security, Dr Stephanie Godrich, from ECU's Nutrition & Health Innovation Research Institute, said.
"Beyond individual wellbeing, food security strengthens communities and economies, reducing healthcare costs, supporting local producers, and fostering resilience during crises like droughts, pandemics, or supply chain disruptions," she said.
Increased food insecurity corresponds with numerous physical, mental, and social consequences, such as reduced overall health and wellbeing, leading to increased mortality rates, mental health concerns such as anxiety and depression, and increased demand on health care services and expenses.
Many Australian responses to food insecurity have focused on short-term solutions such as emergency food relief and nutrition or cooking programs. While these initiatives play an important role, they address only a small part of a much larger problem.
"Food relief may improve access to food, but it does little to strengthen people's ability to use or influence the food systems around them. Our research highlights the need for a more holistic, system-wide approach, one that recognises food insecurity as a complex issue requiring coordinated, long-term solutions," Dr Godrich said.
The research findings also highlight a clear opportunity for governments to empower community organisations by promoting accessible contacts and creating genuine opportunities for collaboration, paving the way for more resilient, self-sustaining food systems across Australia's most vulnerable regions.
"Food security initiative leaders should integrate more knowledge about the political, economic and environmental factors that influence food security into their initiatives. This would increase awareness across their network about the wider structural determinants of the issue.
"Government could incorporate community-led innovations and solutions into policy, which would create localised self-governance, important to equip communities with control over their food security," Dr Godrich said.
She added that a portfolio of policy and community programs such as food access, and social inclusion initiatives are needed to better support place-based food security, as these would comprehensively address the array of food security determinants simultaneously.
