Initiatives and exposures associated with food security in remote and isolated communities: a scoping review

• Published in: Rural and Remote Health
• Main Authors: Mallory Drysdale, Kelly Skinner, Calin Lazarescu, Alix Couture, Shelley Young, Leanne Idzerda
• Format: Article in Journal/Newspaper
• Language: English
• Published: James Cook University 2024
• Subjects: food cost; food security; Indigenous; interventions; isolated; traditional foods; Special situations and conditions; RC952-1245; Public aspects of medicine; RA1-1270; Greenland
• Online Access: https://doi.org/10.22605/RRH8627; https://doaj.org/article/306b82d2aa9d40c991197abbc5339b3f

Introduction: Chronic household food insecurity (HFI) and lack of food availability and accessibility in isolated communities are longstanding public health crises. This review aims to paint a more fulsome picture of food security initiatives in remote and isolated communities by examining programs across circumpolar countries, Australia, and Aotearoa New Zealand. This synthesis of research will contribute to an understanding of what types of initiatives exist and aid in the identification of best practices. Methods: The authors conducted a scoping review identifying articles that include either (1) an evaluation of an initiative with a quantitative food security outcome in remote and isolated communities, or (2) quantitative associations between exposure factors with food security outcomes. Inclusion criteria included English and French articles focused on remote and isolated communities in Canada, the US, Australia, New Zealand, Sweden, Norway, Finland, Greenland, and Russia from January 1997 to July 2022. Results: The article search yielded 1882 results, of which 96 fulfilled the inclusion criteria, including 26 studies evaluating initiatives, 66 studies evaluating exposure factors, and four studies that included both initiatives and exposure factors. The majority of the studies included in this review were conducted in Canada and Australia. No initiative studies conducted in Russia, Greenland, Norway, Finland, or Sweden fulfilled the criteria for inclusion in this review. The most common types of initiatives evaluated included school-based programs, market subsidies, and education initiatives, though a small number (<5) of other programs were evaluated, including traditional food programs and greenhouses. Though multiple programs resulted in lower food costs or increases in healthy food consumption in remote regions, the cost of a healthy diet in these areas remained high, as do levels of HFI. Factors associated with improved food security outcomes included higher income level, access to adequate housing, ...