Bringing Women to the Table

To have a meaningful conversation about food production, purchase and preparation, as well as food insecurity, there's one word that should make its way into almost every statement we utter. But the word is rarely heard. And when it is, it makes a stir. This all-important word is "women."

Women grow more than half of the world's food. And in developing countries, they grow more than 80 percent, according to the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations. But even so, they own just 2 percent of the world's land, reports U.N. WomenWatch.

If you want to talk seriously about food security, then, don't talk about how GMOs are going to help us grow more crops; talk about how we need to give the people who farm the land the rights to control the land. Talk about giving the people who grow our food access to resources like microcredit, infrastructure and training, not to mention the right to operate as autonomous individuals in society. Talk about how women's rights matter to our food.

And if you want to talk about changing the food system here in the United States, don't just talk about the greed of agribusiness and the folly of scientific silver bullets. Talk instead about how women, despite their universal presence in the workforce, still do the majority of the housework and food prep in American homes. Talk about how this second shift gives them control over what their families eat and a lot of sway as the nation's grocery stores primary consumers.

Talk to women about their needs and their frustrations in a meaningful way and leverage them to make positive change.

Today is a good day for those discussions to start. It's International Women's Day, and as such I nominate it as the day we start uttering the most important word in food: women! Let's bring women to the table.

To learn more, check out this video from the World Food Programme:

Photo: UN Photo/John Isaac