Food Environments Working Group

The ANH Food Environment Working Group (ANH-FEWG) brings together food environment experts to review and synthesise working definitions, key concepts, methodological approaches and current research gaps. The Working Group aims to provide a platform of consensus to guide and accelerate food environment research in low and middle income countries (LMICs).

Resources

In September 2018, the Food Environment Working Group published a perspectives paper in the journal Global Food Security. Building on 2017's widely utilised technical brief and framework, he paper synthesises food environment literature in order to frame the Group's critical perspectives, and introduces a new definition and updated conceptual framework that includes external and personal domains and dimensions within the wider food environment construct. The paper concludes by discussing implications for future research in LMICs.

Key papers:

• Technical Brief: Food environment research in low-and middle-income countries
• Food Environment Research in Low- and Middle-Income Countries: A Systematic Scoping Review
• Concepts and critical perspectives for food environment research: A global framework with implications for action in low- and middle-income countries

Uptake of the FEWG framework:

• GAIN & UNICEF: Food Systems for Children and Adolescents
• United Nations System Standing Committee on Nutrition (UNSCN) Vol 44: Food environments: Where people meet the food system

FEWG at the Royal Geographical Society’s Annual International Conference, 2017

In September 2017 Chris Turner presented at the session ‘Food in Urban Africa: Nutrition and Governance’. The presentation showcased content from the Technical Brief 'Concepts and methods for food environment research in low and middle income countries' and concluded with the premier of the Working Group’s video animation.

FEWG at the ANH Academy Week in Addis Ababa, 2016

In June 2016 Chris Turner led a Food Environment Working Group session at the Agriculture, Nutrition and Health Academy Week in Addis Ababa. Details of this session and other proceedings from the week can be found in the official ANH Academy Week report.