2.1.3 Indigenous Food Sovereignty

2.1.3 Indigenous Food Sovereignty

The BC Centre for Disease Control (BC CDC) note that “Indigenous food sovereignty (IFS) is an essential aspect of addressing food security and food insecurity; however IFS is not defined [as] … Indigenous partners have indicated that a definition cannot adequately capture the nuances of IFS, and that IFS must be discussed in the context of actions and systems change.”21 The Food Security Strategy recognizes the importance of supporting Indigenous Nations, organizations, and individuals in pursuing their own priorities as they relate to Indigenous food sovereignty and food security. In Penticton, Indigenous food sovereignty and food security is promoted in a number of ways by the Okanagan Nation Alliance22 and Penticton Indian Band, with related research and education being carried out by the En’owkin Centre. 23 Two examples of such initiatives include Bringing the Salmon Home: The Columbia River Salmon Reintroduction Initiative24 and Penticton Indian Band’s community garden.25

Food insecurity is a challenge for a number of Indigenous people living in About Penticton Indian Band’s Community Penticton. Ooknakane Garden Friendship Centre provides • Penticton Indian Band has had a one-acre meals to Indigenous people community garden for 15 years. The garden living in Penticton who brings different generations together to share require food security food and work together in the garden. It also support. The community provides fresh food for anyone in the survey undertaken as part community who needs it. They have of this project received commercial kitchens where they do canning responses from Indigenous after the harvest. The garden particularly people. Some noted that supports Elders, many of also serves as a they faced food security platform to initiate conversations about the challenges due to the cost importance of fresh food and healthy diet. of food, inability to grow their own food due to lack of access to land, and challenges being able to practice traditional hunting and gathering practices. Due to the relatively low number of responses from Indigenous participants, further research in this area would be valuable. Considerable research has been done on the importance of the ability of Indigenous people to connect to traditional foods. The executive director of the Okanagan Nation

21 Draft website materials, developed by the BC Centre for Disease Control, July 29th, 2021. 22 Refer to https://www.syilx.org/about-us/syilx-nation/food-sovereignty/ for more information. 23 For more information about En’owkin Centre, refer to https://www.enowkincentre.ca/. 24 Refer to https://columbiariversalmon.ca/ for more information. 25 For more information, refer to: http://pib.ca/?page_id=917. Information on the community garden provided by Terry Terbasket, garden coordinator.

Alliance, Pauline Terbasket, writes on the importance of honouring the “reciprocal relationship” to the Four Food Chiefs27 by reconnecting with the land and traditional foods. Doing so is “actively recovering from the colonization which alienated” Indigenous people from their lands and foods.28 The benefits of Indigenous people’s accessing more traditional foods have also been identified in the study Traditional Foods and Indigenous Recipes in B.C.’s Public Institutions. 29 Key benefits were found to be promoting cultural connections, the nutritional value of the food, mental health benefits, connecting to the land, lower food costs, and supporting locally produced foods, among others.

A study undertaken by Okanagan Nation Alliance and University of Alberta researchers also found direct benefits of eating a traditional diet among Syilx/Okanagan people. People who ate more traditional foods benefitted from higher levels of vitamins and nutrients and more balanced diets. Benefits also included mental and cultural well-being.30

The Strategy and its implementation intends to be a support for local Indigenous Nations, organizations, and individuals in the ways that they aim to promote Indigenous food sovereignty and food security.

Opportunities

• Support ONA and PIB with food security/sovereignty initiatives, such as restoring salmon populations in local waterways. • Uphold the right to traditional food procurement practices and access to traditional food sources. • Support charitable food services which support Indigenous people living in

Penticton. • Promote greater access to communal garden space in urban areas.

27 “Chief Skmxist, or Black Bear, is the oldest. He is chief of all the animals that walk on the earth and he brings the perspective of wisdom and culture. Chief Spitlem, or Bitter Root, is chief of all those who grow below the ground. He brings the perspective of community and interconnectedness. Chief Siya, or Saskatoon Berry, is chief of all who grow above the ground and brings creativity and innovation. And finally, Chief N’titxw, or Salmon, who is chief of all those who live in the water, brings the perspective of action.” From uiki?st [Terbasket, P.] (2019). Syilx perspective on original foods: Yesterday, today, and tomorrow. Journal of Agriculture, Food Systems, and Community Development, 9(Suppl. 1), 49–54. https://doi.org/10.5304/jafscd.2019.091.016 28 uiki?st [Terbasket, P.] (2019). Syilx perspective on original foods: Yesterday, today, and tomorrow. Journal of Agriculture, Food Systems, and Community Development, 9(Suppl. 1), 49–54. https://doi.org/10.5304/jafscd.2019.091.016 29 British Columbia, feedBC. Traditional Foods and Indigenous Recipes in B.C.’s Public Institutions. 2021. https://www2.gov.bc.ca/assets/gov/farming-natural-resources-and-industry/agriculture-andseafood/feedbc/traditional_foods_and_indigenous_recipes_in_bcs_public_institutions.pdf 30 “Syilx/Okanagan diet quality positively impacted by increased food sovereignty, says study”, Peachland View. June 22nd, 2020. https://www.peachlandview.com/2020/06/22/syilx-okanagan-diet-qualitypositively-impacted-by-increased-food-sovereignty-says-study/