Equity and expertise in the UN Food Systems Summit

Abstract

The UN Food Systems Summit is bold but controversial, with important implications for global food systems and public health. ► Alongside claims of corporate capture, many have noted insufficient attention paid to human rights and to rebalancing power in the food system. ► These issues speak to wider issues of participation and equity in the summit itself. Narrow definitions of equity only consider income inequities in outcomes and coverage. Broader definitions consider why such inequities persevere and are interlinked via process es that can be historical and intergenerational. ► The summit’s science group is slanted in disciplinary expertise: it lacks sufficient expertise in equity, health, and noncommunicable diseases, or representatives with expertise in Indigenous knowledge. ► It is not too late to rectify this in the summit structures, as we approach the September summit meeting.