The relative cost of food for limited resource customers raises as income drops and opportunities for comparison shopping are eliminated

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2 The relative cost of food for limited resource customers raises as income drops and opportunities for comparison shopping are eliminated When we were strong in our foods on this continent, we were stronger people we were healthier. And for Indigenous peoples it all starts with the food. When Indian Country lost its ability to feed itself, through whatever means, we lost that part of ourselves that supports our ability to thrive. It is only by regaining our foods will we be able to restore our health, our resilience as peoples and secure the stability and diversification within our own communities and local economies." Janie Hipp Director, Indigenous Food and Agriculture Initiative, University of Arkansas School of Law This survey was conducted in order to assess the state of food security and food sovereignty on the Menominee Indian Reservation. These are two separate yet interrelated gauges which when combined create a multi-facetted picture of the community s food system. Food security is defined by the World Health Organization as, when all people at all times have access to sufficient, safe, nutritious food to maintain a healthy and active life. This differs from food sovereignty in that while adequate food may be available, it may not be culturally appropriate or determined by the preferences of the people consuming it. Food Sovereignty is defined as, the right of people to determine their own food and agriculture policies; the democratization of food and agriculture. Keshena contains the only grocery store on reservation. The remainder of the Menominee territory is considered a food desert or an area in which access to healthy, fresh food is hindered by a lack of transportation, economic barriers, etc. Through this survey we sought to gain a more complete picture of the current Menominee food system and what steps could be taken to improve it, while increasing access to healthy food for all residents. There is a strong moral imperative to successfully address these shortcomings as, in many ways, diabetes, obesity and heart disease are income (and therefore, access) based diseases. Given the prevalence of these conditions on reservation, tackling the gaps in food availability would play a significant role in improving public health. The questions for this survey were inspired and modified from surveys that were conducted on other reservations, the Dine Policy Institute Food Sovereignty Assessment Tool, and the Rio Puerco Alliance and Hasbídító Tri-Chapter Food and Energy Economic Survey. The questions were compiled and formatted by members of The Sustainable Development Institute and the Department of Continuing Education at The College of Menominee Nation, the Food Distribution program of the Menominee Indian Tribe of Wisconsin, and the Menominee Tribal Health Clinic. We received approximately 300 responses from a broad cross section of the population. The survey was distributed to WIC participants at the Menominee Tribal Health Clinic, and Food Distribution participants. It was also mailed out to elders through the Senior Meals Program, and electronically distributed to tribal employees and CMN students, faculty and staff. The survey questions were designed to shine light on four research questions: What factors impact access to healthy food on the reservation? How do families cope with these factors? What sort of traditional food procurement activities are people engaged in? What can be done to address these access issues?

3 Summary of Results: 67% of people do the majority of their food shopping off reservation Average spending on food is between 5% and 16% of household income 59% of participants report that reservation stores do not carry a large enough selection of fresh food 44% of people who indicated their families do not consume enough fresh fruits and vegetables noted cost as the primary barrier. 50% of respondents are directly engaged in some aspect of traditional harvesting practices. 47% of people surveyed said that over 10% of their food was supplied by government programs Food Share, School Lunch and WIC are the most well utilized food assistance programs 13% of participants indicated they receive commodities monthly 37% of people surveyed experienced at least one day of food insecurity in the last month 47% of respondents noted that cost was the primary barrier preventing them from eating fresh, healthy food. 25% of people surveyed currently have a garden. 65% of participants would like to have a garden if there was more assistance available. 73% of respondents think there are hunger issues on the reservation. 21% (the greatest consensus) of people indicated that the best way to improve food access on reservation is for programs to coordinate better amongst themselves. The classes people would most like to see offered include gardening techniques, food preservation and cooking wild game.

4 Question #1 Based on the responses gathered from this question we can determine that twice as many people primarily shop off reservation. 61% of people surveyed reported that they shop mainly in Shawano. This indicates that twice as many dollars are spent off reservation as well. Food dollars are currently exiting the reservation, causing potential community revenue to be put to use elsewhere.

5 Question #2 According to the 2010 census, the median household income on reservation was 33,333.00, with an average household size of 4 individuals per residence. Meaning that on average are spent on food each year per household. That accounts for between 5% and 16% of average household income. Couple this with the fact that 31% of people lived below poverty level, according to the 2010 census, and food expenses become a significant portion of annual income.

6 Question #3: This question was intended to provide more specific information on household eating habits than could be determined by census data. The assumption was that many household grocery bills frequently reflect reoccurring visitors who are not occupants. This may include nieces, nephews, grandparents or neighbors who often attend meals.

7 Question #4 57% of respondents indicated that Sav-a-lot does not stock a large enough selection of fresh food. This could be a significant factor in the exodus of food dollars from the reservation.

8 Question #5 This data indicates that there is an economic reason as to why people are not consuming fresh fruits and vegetables. The majority (44%) of people who responded that they don t eat adequate fresh produce said that it was a result of price. Selection/ Availability and Quality are also indicators that the type of produce that they would purchase is lacking, leading to a nutritional deficit which can also be considered economic in origin. The conjecture which can be made from this is that either the price at stores with adequate produce is more than they can afford or that they are shopping at stores which stock low quality produce and cannot shop elsewhere.

9 Question #6 The majority of respondents indicated that they are engaged in some sort of direct-harvest activity. Hunting, fishing and gardening were the most common responses. Given that 10% of the reservation residents responded, it would be reasonable to conclude that around half of residents engage in at least one of these activities.

10 Question #7 Over 50% of those surveys responded that they are engaged in the direct harvest of traditional foods. Of the 208 affirmative respondents, 31% indicated that they harvest deer. 24% of people participate in fishing activities and another 15% collect berries and other wild fruits.

11 Question #8 47% of people surveyed said that over 10% of their food was supplied by government programs. Given the statistical income level of residents (47% low income, 32% impoverished) the responses to this question were unexpected. The majority of participants indicated that they do not receive any food assistance. It would be interesting to compare these numbers to those gathered in nonnative communities. It could be expected that the percentage of residents on food assistance would be higher than among the native population. The following three questions and charts all serve to clarify the use of government food assistance programs on reservation.

12 Question #9 Food stamps, School Lunch, and WIC were the most well utilized programs amongst participants. Eligibility requirements, income caps, funding cuts and so forth could be a factor in explaining lower than expected public assistance enrollment.

13 Question #10 13% of people surveyed indicated that they receive commodities on a monthly basis.

14 Question #11 c The majority of respondents indicated that either they did not require food assistance or were able to obtain it. However, 37% said that there was at least one day in the past month that they were unable to obtain the assistance they needed to feed themselves. 32% indicated that they had experienced 5 or less days of food insecurity in the past month. With 20% saying that the insecure period was under 2 days. This data supports the previous conjecture that barriers to assistance programs may be at fault.

15 Question #12 24% of respondents indicated that they felt the quality of their diet was excellent or very good. 38% of people rated their nutritional intake was good. 33% of people felt that their diet was fair or poor.

16 Question #13 27% of participants answered that they felt they were in excellent or very good health. 50% of respondents indicated that they were in good health. 23% of people answered that they were in fair or poor health. Because the questions posed are entirely subjective, it is hard to quantify what is meant by any of these responses. It is however, helpful in gauging where people feel they are health wise and diet wise.

17 Question #14 47% of people indicated that high cost was the main barrier to the consumption of healthy foods. Lack of availability and lack of time were also prominent factors at 17% and 15% respectively.

18 Question #15 How is what you eat now different from when you were younger? 25% of respondents indicated they feel that they eat healthier now than when they were younger. This could be due to lower costs, greater availability or more convenient. Of the people who felt that they ate less healthy now the reasons were fairly evenly spread between a greater consumption of processed food and a reduced consumption of wild food.

19 Question #16 25% of participants in this survey currently have a garden.

20 Question #17 65% of respondents indicated that given additional assistance and resources that they would like to have a garden.

21 Question #18 73% of participants responded that they thought there were hunger issues on the reservation.

22 Question #20 The greatest share of respondents (21%) felt that the best way to improve food and hunger issues on the reservation was for the programs tasked with addressing these issues coordinate better amongst themselves. Other popular answers included; larger gardens, more outreach to vulnerable populations (children and elders) and hold more community meals and food pantries.

23 Question #21 28% of respondents indicated that they would like to see more gardening classes offered on the reservation. An equal amount, 25%, of people would like to attend food preservation and wild game cooking classes. Seed saving workshops were the next most popular choice, receiving 13%.

24 Analysis and Recommendations The perceived hunger issue on reservation is perhaps the most significant piece of data collected from this survey. Regardless of whatever else, nearly 3 out of 4 people believe there are unaddressed hunger issues. The food insecurity experienced on the Menominee Reservation is primarily a result of food costs and transportation barriers. The impact of this insecurity presents as high obesity, diabetes and heart disease rates. Residents lacking reliable transportation are restricted to the limited selection of foods available at the reservation s one grocery store. This is the case for 32% of survey participants. Nearly half of all respondents supplement their diet with food provided through government programs. Considering the low average per capita income it is possible that budget cuts and strict eligibility requirements prevent many other needy families from receiving benefits. Given how many people participate in these programs it would be difficult to argue that Menominee Food Sovereignty is intact. The dependence on government food programs is countered in many ways by the strong culture of wild food harvesting and desire to grow one s own food. Since 50% of people actively seek out traditional food sources it is clear that a foundation exists for a more stable, sovereign food system. The ethic of self and community reliance is evidenced through this. The strong desire for gardening resources and traditional skill classes is further evidence of this fact. In terms of economic barriers and opportunities, it is undeniable that significant improvements can be made that would have far reaching benefits. Potentially the easiest issue to tackle would be the quantity of fresh food available on reservation. Food dollars could be put to work in the community rather than flowing out to neighboring areas. This could make a substantial impact on community health, economic opportunities and food sovereignty. People are voting with their wallets. And they are currently voting overwhelmingly in favor of Shawano. The food dollars spent off reservation are dollars lost to the community. Were there a much wider selection of food available at Menominee the economic impact would be substantial. Geography plays a key role in why the Menominee reservation is food insecure. The shear expanse of territory coupled with limited public transportation infrastructure severely limits access to the one area store. However, this does provide the opportunity for significant entrepreneurship. A mobile grocery store could be constructed from a retired transit vehicle and travel to each township on a revolving basis. This and many other solutions could be implemented at low cost. There are multiple USDA grants that are targeted at setting up mobile markets. From this survey we determined that people prefer self-sufficiency and hold a strong desire to directly provide for themselves. Community tilling programs, expanded plant distributions and tool sharing programs would make a significant impact on Menominee food sovereignty. Were each township to have a seed lending library, tool shed, and resource center housed at either a church, community center or other public building the concentration of resources would be dispersed, rather than solely available in Keshena. Resources would be available where people live, immediately increasing the ability of residents to actively participate in the food system. This is a primary component of democratizing the food system. Education is a crucial aspect of this process as well. School gardens, permaculture summer camps and Master Gardener classes are primary examples of education improving equitability of access to quality food. Were every school and daycare to have even a small garden children would gain valuable life skills

25 about growing food which they would then pass along to their parents. The produce could be prepared in the cafeteria or sent home with the children like a school-run CSA. Many people reported that they did not have the time, knowledge or money required to prepare healthy homemade meals. This could be addressed through healthy cooking on a budget classes. These classes could double as weekly community meals. The Denver Indian Center operates an indigenous permaculture summer camp where teenagers mentor younger children on sustainable growing practices, language and culture. This could be modified as an offshoot of culture camp and the historic Menominee gardening practices could be taught to youth along with the Menominee language and planting ceremonies. In order to encourage agricultural entrepreneurship, the farmers market could develop a consignment component. Through this program home gardeners could sell their excess directly to the market, who would then sell it for them. This would incentivize gardening while mitigating the time commitment required of vendors. The farmers market should also develop a relationship with a different sponsoring organization. This would allow for the market to accept food stamps, increasing access to fresh produce for low income families. One of the most influential actions that could be taken would be the adoption of food sovereignty policy by the tribal legislature. Were this issue to be prioritized and the remediation codified a more organized and concerted effort could be made to address this issue. There is momentum in Indian country to do just that. All across the country tribes are adopting food sovereignty policies that enable them to prioritize local, fresh, culturally appropriate foods. Beyond this, many survey respondents noted that if groups working to address food access issues coordinated better amongst themselves they would be more effective. A unified front of groups working to address an establish list of priorities would likely have a more lasting impact with less effort than individual organizations trudging on separately. In order to utilize the forested reservation landscape for food production expanded forest agriculture could be undertaken. Permaculture (permanent-culture) principles employ land use ethics which are innately compatible with MTE s stated ethics. Permaculture can be used to design forest gardens which feature shade tolerant food plants that require little maintenance once established. This would allow for increased agricultural production on tribal land without altering the predominant ground cover. Conclusion Essentially, there are tangible, low cost solutions which can effectively address the food security issues on reservation. Which solutions are employed illustrates the difference between food sovereignty and food security. Food sovereignty means the choice lies with the stakeholders. Following this logic the choice of solutions to address food insecurity also must be made by stakeholders.