Increasing access to healthy food in rural areas
This month, in the lead up to Christmas, Premier Lara Giddings committed $270,00 to boost emergency food relief including 4,400 healthy food hampers.
The pledge coincided with the launch of the Tasmanian Food Access Research Coalition report on food insecurity in Tasmania.
The report focused on the Clarence community and Dorset in the north east and found food security is a real issue, especially for low income families.
Two of the Tasmanian Food Access Research Coalition [TFARC] researchers, Sandy Murray from the University of Tasmania and Dorset primary health co-ordinator, Gretchen Long say their research in the productive agricultural region of Dorset revealed a need for more sustainable food systems.
Gretchen Long says the study revealed pockets in Tasmania's rural communities where people lack access to healthy food choices year-round, even though quality food might be locally grown.
"So people are actually living in a food desert because of their distance to a food store or food outlet, it's inaccessible to them," Ms Long said.
"One of the main reasons is transport and that was what our study in Dorset found.
"Another reason was the cost of petrol for people, putting petrol in their cars to get to the stores.
"So even if they had access because of a vehicle the access was compromised because of the cost of petrol."
Sandy Murray says food hampers are certainly a solution, but a temporary one at best.
"For families that need a hamper it's not going to provide any long-term solutions.
"From what I understand, there were only 25 sent out to the Dorset region and for those families it certainly provides food for the Christmas table.
"But certainly for the long term it's not a solution so we're looking for medium to long-term solutions that can ensure families have enough food for the future.
One initiative that's taken off in Dorset is a partnership program that's involved Eatwell Tasmania providing a recipe of the month using available local ingredients that's stocked by the Scottsdale supermarket and published in the local newspaper.
Gretchen Long says another involved two primary schools in a whole of curriculum program based on best practice sustainable farming and gardening techniques.
"We're specifically working with Bridport and Ringarooma on the Mulching Munchkins program," Gretchen said.
"It actually links in with the history, science literacy and numeracy in the new Australian curriculum.
"What we're trying to do is expose the children to a range of options surrounding food.
"A lot of work has gone into that in terms of what will be the most sustainable garden, and what will be low energy and low maintenance requirements.
"So we have state of the art water tanks hot-houses, compost bins, raised garden beds and it's going really well."
Children and community members are reporting effective outcomes and Gretchen long says as well the primary Industry Education Foundation is picking up the curriculum developed by the teachers in the Dorset schools for its national curriculum packages.
Sandy Murray says the TFARC program has also attracted interest from Tas Medicare Local, which are now funding aspects of the program in every local government area in Tasmania.
"It's called the Healthy Food Access Tasmania project," Sandy Murray said
"Up in Poatina, for example, they're trying to get a food co-op off the ground, which is absolutely fantastic."
"I know up there [in the central highlands] they've certainly got an older populations and for those that don't have access to a car, it's very difficult for them to get access to food.
"So the community is rallying together and doing some really great stuff.
"We Tasmanians are pretty resilient and coming together I think there are a lot of solutions, and a lot of strength we can draw on from each other and a lot of experiences."