In Drôme, citizens want to create social food security

Le Collectif de la Sécurité sociale de l’alimentation. – Stéphane Marc.

In Dieulefit, in Drôme, citizens have created a system to allow everyone, whether wealthy or precarious, to have access to quality food.

Buy tasty tomatoes, a piece of cheese or a fillet of fish without being stuck in your wallet. This is the principle of Social Food Security (SSA), a concept tested almost everywhere in France and soon in Dieulefit (Drôme), supported by a collective, made up of two employees and around forty volunteers."We would have offices open to the public and a grid which would indicate that with such an income, the contribution is so much, explains Julie Yon, member of the SSAS. This would unlock an allowance to be spent in approved places: in producer shops, with farmers or artisans, for example."

A lower contribution for the most deprived

The poorest would have a lower contribution than their allowance, and vice versa for the wealthiest, in order to create a balanced system. "Everyone could eat with dignity." What would be the advantage for those who contribute more ? "They would participate in another model of society and would also protect themselves, in the event of unemployment or illness for example."

Supported by the City and the community of municipalities, the collective carried out an experiment in the form of a market. Last April, a Local Food Committee was created. He will devote himself to Social Food Security. "We chose 22 people representative of society, according to criteria of age, gender, income , composition of the household or even length of service in the territory." They will work on two thorny points: the amounts of contributions and allowances and the agreement criteria. "It’s not simple. There are questions of locality, label… Behind it, there is the idea of ​​transforming our production model."

"Food would become a collective affair"

The collective hopes to launch a pilot phase at the end of 2024 before generalization to the community of municipalities. "As with health with Social Security, food would become a collective affair. There is an eminently public health issue in this, underlines the woman who is a professional nurse. Obesity, diabetes and even hypertension are diseases linked to diet, which are found more in the most precarious populations."