Building a Sovereign Food Future

Minnesota Tribal Nations and urban Indigenous groups are leading successful efforts to improve community health through food sovereignty and cultural revitalization. Community-led efforts to reclaim Indigenous foods are vital in improving health and addressing disproportionately high rates of diet related illness in Indian Country.

Despite being demographically and culturally diverse, American Indians experience some of the worst health inequities in the United States. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), American Indians and Alaska Natives have a greater chance of having diabetes than any other US racial group. and are almost three times more likely than white adults to be diagnosed with diabetes.

The destruction of traditional Indigenous food systems along with imposed western diets are underlying causes of dietary illness in Indian Country. Colonization, along with ongoing systemic and structural inequities directly contribute to the disproportionately high rates of diabetes amongst Indigenous peoples.

Prior to colonization, tribes had highly sophisticated food and agricultural systems. Traditional foods are interconnected with tribal culture, language, and spiritual health. Traditional Indigenous diets are extremely diverse, but tend to be localized, low-glycemic, and high in wild protein and essential fatty acids. 

When tribes were forcibly removed to reservations, food systems were destroyed and access to traditional foods were limited or completely eradicated. Traditional foods were replaced by rations provided by the federal government. Rations were comprised of unfamiliar foods like flour, sugar, and lard, that held no cultural significance and had much lower nutritional value. 

Federal policies of removal and assimilation, the loss of traditional foods systems, multigenerational trauma and geographic isolation have created extreme food insecurity on reservations. Nearly all reservations are categorized as food deserts, as defined by the USDA.

Today, there is growing recognition from healthcare providers, policy makers, and the federal government, of what Indigenous peoples have known for centuries – that reclaiming food sovereignty is imperative to Indigenous health and wellbeing. Food sovereignty asserts the rights of Indigenous communities to define their own diets, create food systems that are rooted in cultural values, and rebuild relationships between people and the land.

This fall, the Center for Prevention at Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Minnesota launched a new funding stream dedicated to advancing food sovereignty. Food Sovereignty Funding is designed to support Tribal Nations and Indigenous-led organizations in strengthening self-determination over community food systems and increase access to and consumption of Indigenous foods. The Fond du Lac Band of Lake Superior Chippewa and White Earth Nation are the first recipients of Food Sovereignty Funding.

“Rather than imposing our agenda as a funder, we wanted to support what Tribal Nations are already doing to build food sovereignty,” said Sarah Senseman, Racial & Health Equity Operations Director at Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Minnesota. “Indigenous communities have been leading this work, and as funders we need to recognize that community members hold the solutions to the systemic barriers they face and take action to support them.”

The Fond du Lac Band of Lake Superior Chippewa, with leadership from the Fond du Lac Tribal and Community College (FDLTCC), are actively working to create a sovereign, holistic food system rooted in Anishinaabe values that is environmentally responsible and empowers a thriving community. Fond du Lac recognizes food sovereignty as “a condition where community members are willing and able to obtain a safe, culturally acceptable, nutritionally-adequate diet through a sustainable, local food system that maximizes community self-reliance, cooperation, and resilience.”

In 2017, Fond du Lac Development purchased a 36-acre farm on the reservation. Named Gitigaaning, “the place of the gardens,” the farm hosts food sovereignty trainings, events, and a food system that embodies Anishinaabe values, beliefs, and traditions. With Food Sovereignty Funding, Fond du Lac plans to increase produce production, food preparation to support student learning opportunities and provide local Indigenous foods to the students and community.

The White Earth Food Sovereignty Initiative (WEFSI) recognizes that an affordable localized food system rooted in Anishinaabe traditions is vital to the holistic health and sovereignty of the White Earth Nation. To better understand the specific needs of community members, WEFSI conducted a Food Sovereignty Assessment between 2017-2018. Over 225 people participated in a survey, providing information about challenges impacting community members’ health, and opportunities to increase food security on the White Earth reservation. The survey found that the average distance to a grocery store is a- 60-mile round trip. Over 80% of people said they would purchase more fresh vegetables and traditional foods if they were available closer to their home.

In response to community needs identified in the Food Sovereignty survey, WEFSI purchased a food truck to distribute traditional healthy foods and Indigenous foods meal kits throughout the reservation. The food truck and meal kits are a solution to address barriers to healthy eating and have strong support from the community. Recipes featured in the meal kits were created by White Earth elders and Native chefs. All recipes feature healthy, local pre-portioned ingredients and step-by-step instructions.

With support from Food Sovereignty funding, WEFSI will continue to increase access to healthy traditional foods and distribute meal kits to community members. Additionally, they will work towards increasing the capacity to create a White Earth food coop to grow the local food economy and strengthen community health.

Food sovereignty efforts revitalize tribal economies, improve community health, strengthen cultural identity, and rebuild relationships with the land. Fond du Lac and White Earth are part of a larger movement to restore Indigenous foodways, heal from historic trauma, and nourish future generations.