an examination of print media coverage of household food insecurity action in canada
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An Examination of Print Media Coverage of Household Food Insecurity Action in Canada. Patricia A. Collins, PhD School of Urban and Regional Planning, Queen’s University Canadian Public Health Association Annual Meeting May 28, 2014. Presentation Overview. - PowerPoint PPT PresentationTRANSCRIPT
An Examination of Print Media Coverage of Household Food Insecurity Action in Canada
Patricia A. Collins, PhDSchool of Urban and Regional Planning, Queen’s UniversityCanadian Public Health Association Annual MeetingMay 28, 2014
Presentation Overview
• Background on HFI and HFI-Action in Canada
• Knowledge gaps, study objective, and methods
• Preliminary results
• Conclusions and implications
HFI in Canada
• 13% of Canadian households are food insecure – 34% marginal worry about food– 46% moderate making compromises with food– 20% severe forgoing food
• Health impacts– Compromised nutrition– Adults Low SRH, nutrition-related chronic diseases– Children Overweight, low BMD, asthma
Tarasuk et al. 2014Kirkpatrick & Tarasuk 2008
Che & Chen 2001Vozoris & Tarasuk 2003
Dubois et al. 2011Kirkpatrick et al. 2010
Determinants of HFI
• Low income is primary determinant of HFI– 72% of households dependent on welfare– 38% of households dependent on EI/WC– 62% of households dependent on wages
• Increasing prevalence attributable to rising costs of living
• Proximity (or lack thereof) may not be a strong determinant of HFI
Tarasuk et al. 2014Emery et al. 2012
Kirkpatrick & Tarasuk 2010Apparicio et al. 2007
Pearson et al. 2005
Action on HFI
• Lack of coordinated provincial and federal policies to reduce HFI– UN rep De Schutter’s call for national food strategy in
2012
• Neoliberalism, welfare state decline, downloading to municipalities
• Action primarily at municipal level– Unable to redistribute income– Food-based solution to income-based problem
Riches 2002Emery 2012
Tarasuk et al. 2012FCM 2006
Tarasuk 2001
Conceptual Framework for HFI Action in Canada
Municipal-Level Food-Based
Approach
Charitable Model
Household Improvements & Supports Model
Community Food Systems Model
Federal & Provincial
Level Income-Based
Approach
Income-Support Model (e.g.,
social assistance, child care
benefits, housing supports)
HEALTH (e.g.,
diabetes, CVD, stroke, hypertension, mental illness,
asthma, obesity)
HOUSEHOLD FOOD
INSECURITY
Access to (healthy)
food
Self-efficacy
Dignity
Social cohesion
Income Security
Anxiety & Stress
Nutritional Status
Disease Mgt
Approach to HFI HFI InitiativeHFI Determinant or Distal Health
DeterminantHFI Status Proximate Health
Determinant Health Status
Coping Skills
Collins et al. 2014
Knowledge Gaps and Study Objective
• Food-based initiatives supported by various groups– Fed & prov health policy-makers, public health units– Local service providers, food security advocates
• Gaps– Limited evidence of effectiveness of initiatives in reducing HFI – No evidence on how media might be driving/perpetuating
support
• Study Objective– To critically analyze Canadian print media coverage of HFI
issues
Methods
• Quantitative media content analysis
• Eighteen newspapers – 2 national, 16 regional/local
• 6 provinces – QC, ON, MB, SK, AB, BC
• Published between 2007-2012
Codebook
• Bibliographic details – Title, author, newspaper, date, section, type, length
• Initiatives profiled – Name, level, type, model
• Recommendations for action – Yes/no, prescribed action, organizations, government level &
sector
• Tone – Positive, neutral, negative
Article Sample Flowchart
Excluded articles that discussed international initiatives
Articles mentioned either “food security” or “food insecurity”
N=2456
Excluded articles that were not a news story, editorial, opinion/commentary or a letter to the
editor
Excluded articles that defined food security/insecurity differently (e.g., food security
meaning food safety)
N=952
N=707
N=547
General Characteristics of Article Sample
• Nearly one-third from three newspapers – Vancouver Sun 14%– Toronto Star 9%– Globe and Mail 8%
• Article Type– News story 72%– Opinion or commentary 13%– Letter to the editor 9%– Editorial 5%
Article Coverage from 2007-2012
2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 20120
20
40
60
80
100
120
140
160
Year of Publication
Num
ber
of A
rtic
les
Coverage of Food-Based Initiatives
57
20.1
13.4
4.35.3
Level of Operation of Initiatives Profiled in Newspaper Articles
Neighbourhood Municipal RegionalProvincial National
13.1
27.5
40.9
8.8
9.6
Models of Food-Based Initiatives Profiled in Newspaper Articles
CharitableHousehold improvements and supportsCommunity food systemsMultiple modelsAwareness/consciousness raising
Types of Initiatives Profiled
Community ga
rdens &
urban
agric
ulture
Food ban
k/soup kit
chen
/mea
l progra
m
Multiple initiati
ves
Policy/b
ylaw ch
ange
Protec
tion of farm
land & lo
cal fo
od move
ment
Food ch
arters
& policy
councils
Educ &
skills
devel,
comm kit
chens
Awareness
& consci
ousness
raisin
g
Public mark
ets
Good food boxe
s0
10
20
30
40
50
60
70
Num
ber o
f Arti
cles
Responsibility for Action
• Organizations responsible– Government 70%– Multiple orgs 16%– Private citizens 6%– NGOs 5%– Educational institutions
2%– Private corps 0.5%– Public health units 0.2%
42.5
26.3
18.4
12.7
Level of Government Responsible
Municipal Prov/TerrFederal Multiple levels
Initiatives Profiled and Tone of Coverage
Initiative Type Positive
Neutral
Negative
Community gardens (N=65) 49 46 5Food banks (N=48) 33 46 21Multiple initiatives (N=47) 49 23 28Policy/bylaw change (N=42) 0 95 5Protection of farmland & local food mov’t (N=39)
21 72 8
Education & skills development (N=38) 71 29 0Food charters & policy councils (N=38) 16 76 8Awareness & consciousness raising (N=35)
6 54 40
Public markets (N=14) 71 29 0Good food boxes (N=8) 63 37 0Total (N=374) 34 53 13
Government Level and Tone of Coverage
Level of Government
Positive Neutral Negative
Municipal 19 70 11Provincial/Territorial
16 52 32
Federal 3 50 47Multiple Levels 10 43 47
Findings Summary
• Print media news coverage of food insecurity issues in Canada risen steadily
• Majority of coverage profiles initiatives delivered at neighbourhood- and municipal-levels
• Non-charitable initiatives (i.e., those from household improvements and community food systems models) positively framed
• Municipalities implicated often and positively
Conclusions & Implications
• These findings suggest that news media may be mediating the widespread support for food-based approaches to address HFI in Canada.
• This study's findings reinforce the need for critical evaluation of such initiatives to ensure that Canada's food-based approach to HFI action is driven by evidence, not rhetoric.
Acknowledgements
• Senate Advisory Research Committee, Queen’s University
• Dr. Megan Gaucher, Trent University
• Drs. Elaine Power & Margaret Little, Queen’s University
References
• Apparicio, P., M.-S. Cloutier and R. Shearmur (2007). "The case of Montreal's missing food deserts: Evaluation of accessibility to food deserts." International Journal of Health Geography 6(4).
• Che, J. and J. Chen (2001). "Food insecurity in Canadian households " Health Reports 12(4): 11-22.
• Collins, P., E. Power and M. Little (2014). "Municipal Level Responses to Household Food Insecurity in Canada: A Call For Critical, Evaluative Research." Canadian Journal of Public Health 105(2).
• Dubois, L., D. Francis, D. Burnier, F. Tatone-Tokuda, M. Girard, G. Gordon-Strachan, K. R. Fox and R. Wilks (2011). "Household food insecurity and childhood overweight in Jamaica and Quebec: a gender-based analysis." BMC Public Health 31(11): 199.
• Emery, J. C. H. (2012). Why a basic annual income is necessary to reduce food insecurity prevalence. North American Basic Income Network Conference. Toronto, ON.
• Emery, J. C. H., A. C. Bartoo, J. Matheson, A. Ferrer, S. I. Kirkpatrick, V. Tarasuk and L. McIntyre (2012). "Evidence of the Association between Household Food Insecurity and Heating Cost Inflation in Canada, 1998–2001." Canadian Public Policy 38(2): 181-215.
• FCM (2006). Building prosperity from the ground up: Restoring municipal fiscal balance. Ottawa, ON, Federation of Canadian Municipalities.
• Kirkpatrick, S., L. McIntyre and M. L. Potestio (2010). "Child hunger and long-term adverse consequences for health." Archives of Pediatric & Adolescent Medicine 164(8): 754-762.
References (cont.)
• Kirkpatrick, S. and V. Tarasuk (2008). "Food insecurity is associated with nutrient inadequacies among Canadian adults and adolescents." The Journal of Nutrition 138: 604-612.
• Kirkpatrick, S. and V. Tarasuk (2010). "Assessing the relevance of neighbourhood characteristics to the household food security of low-income Toronto families." Public Health Nutrition 13(7): 1139-1148.
• Pearson, T., J. Russell, M. Campbell and M. Barker (2005). "Do 'food deserts' influence fruit and vegetable consumption? - A cross-sectional study " Appetite 45: 195-197.
• Riches, G. (2002). "Food banks and food security: Welfare reform, human rights and social policy. Lessons from Canada? ." Social Policy and Administration 36(6): 648-663.
• Tarasuk, V. (2001). "A critical examination of community-based responses to household food insecurity in Canada." Health Education & Behavior 28(4): 487-499.
• Tarasuk, V., L. McIntyre and E. M. Power (2012). Income-related household food insecurity in Canada: A policy failure to address poverty. Submission on Civil Society Priority Issue #1: Hunger, Poverty and the Right to Food. Toronto, ON, Report to Olivier De Schutter, the United Nations Special Rapporteur on the Right to Food Mission to Canada: United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization.
• Tarasuk, V., A. Mitchell and N. Dachner (2014). Household food insecurity in Canada, 2012. Toronto, ON, Research to identify policy options to reduce food insecurity (PROOF).
• Vozoris, N. and V. Tarasuk (2003). "Household Food Insufficiency Is Associated with Poorer Health." The Journal of Nutrition 133(1): 120-126.