Food Sovereignty Prize Garners 40 Nominees from 21 Countries

From Colombia to Lebanon, to India and across the US, a rising movement of farmers, workers, fishers, and agrarian communities is creating innovative solutions to hunger and poverty--and over 40 such initiatives have been nominated for the Food Sovereignty Prize, to be awarded this October in New York City.

The nominees, part of a growing food sovereignty movement that's rebuilding rural and urban food systems and economies across the globe, come from 21 countries and every continent, representing millions of people.

Now in its 5th year, the Food Sovereignty Prize spotlights grassroots activists working for a more democratic and sustainable food system. In honoring communities that are reclaiming their food systems, the prize shows how democratic access to land, water, and fair wages are central to ending world hunger.

The 2013 nominees include community food empowerment projects in Haiti, Uruguay, Nicaragua, Armenia, Senegal and elsewhere. "All of these nominees are doing remarkable work against steep odds, creating innovative and courageous solutions to hunger and poverty by taking back control over their food systems," said Eric Holt-Gimenez, director of Food First, a member of the US Food Sovereignty Alliance.

In contrast to the World Food Prize which emphasizes increased production through technology, the Food Sovereignty Prize champions solutions coming from those most impacted by the injustices of the global food system. While the World Food Prize only recognizes individuals, the grassroots organizations honored by the Food Sovereignty Prize are led by their members, and each organization counts over 20,000 families as members and leaders.

The 2012 Food Sovereignty Prize honored the Korean Women's Peasant Association, the Florida-based Coalition of Immokalee Workers, the National Fisheries Solidarity Movement in Sri Lanka, and the United Peasant Movement of Aguan Region in Honduras. The Korean Women's Peasant Association also conducted a speaking tour through the Midwest to Des Moines, Iowa to challenge the World Food Prize.

Information and updates on the prize and the US Food Sovereignty Alliance are available at: https://foodsovereigntyprize.org/; and https://usfoodsovereigntyalliance.org/.

Prize winners are recognized for promoting food sovereignty by: raising public awareness, organizing on-the-ground action, and/or developing and implementing programs and policies; recognizing the importance of collective action in bringing about social change;
building global linkages into their work; prioritizing the leadership of women, indigenous peoples, people of color, migrant workers and other food providers marginalized by the global food system.

"Food sovereignty is the right of peoples to healthy and culturally appropriate food produced through ecologically sound and sustainable methods, and their right to define their own food and agriculture systems. It puts the aspirations and needs of those who produce, distribute and consume food at the heart of food systems and policies rather than the demands of markets and corporations." - Declaration of Nyeleni, the first global forum on food sovereignty, Mali, 2007

More prize information at: https://foodsovereigntyprize.org/

Learn about the US Food Sovereignty Alliance: https://usfoodsovereigntyalliance.org/