Parent activists versus the corporation: a fight for school food sovereignty

Sarah Riggs Stapleton ()
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Sarah Riggs Stapleton: University of Oregon

Agriculture and Human Values, 2019, vol. 36, issue 4, No 12, 805-817

Abstract: Abstract This paper empirically supports school food as a site of contested values, where corporate interests can come into direct conflict with those of communities. This is a story about the experience of a small group of activist parents going up against a major food service corporation contracted by their school district. The analysis considers their experiences as dedicated and knowledgeable parent activists who, after years of trying to work with employees of the global food service corporation, grow weary, aim to overthrow it, and finally, after a decade, succeed. In response to the parents’ struggles, I apply a food sovereignty lens to school food, introducing the concept of school food sovereignty. I propose that school food sovereignty requires community participation and consideration of the health and welfare of students, environmental sustainability, local economic benefits, cultural congruence, and attention to food-related justice.

Keywords: School food; Food sovereignty; Parent activism; Neoliberalism; Sustainability (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2019
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Citations: View citations in EconPapers (3)

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DOI: 10.1007/s10460-019-09955-w

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