It was a commitment made last June, it is now a vote in due form, with a timetable: Paris will experiment with social food security, after the vote on Wednesday evening in the Council of Paris on a text by defining the amount, principle and timetable.
The initiative is inspired by this crazy idea that was that of “Secu”. Or ensure quality, affordable care for all, by asking everyone to contribute. The promoters of Social Food Security therefore want to open a new branch of Social Security to cover the food costs of all people residing in France, by providing each person with food vouchers up to 150 euros per month, the average spending basket of a person in France for food. By promoting approved products, the system would also encourage the organic sector and brands that promote sustainable agriculture, thus fighting against pollution, global warming and junk food.
“Right to food”
The text voted on yesterday, on the proposal of the Les Ecologistes group, sets out the broad outlines of a “common food fund”, where everyone contributes according to their means and benefits from an identical monthly sum to spend in a network of approved structures. The allocated budget is €100 per month for 100 households per district, over a period of 4 months, with an average contribution of 40 euros per month per household. The city will therefore provide 60 euros in subsidies for each 100 euros. Three districts will participate, the 14th, 18th and 20th arrondissements, for an operational launch in September 2024, after a prefiguration and engineering phase.
“Thus, regardless of their means, everyone will be able to access the same shops and the same healthy, quality products, thus guaranteeing the universality of the right to food,” welcomes the Les Ecologistes group in a press release.
Already well advanced in Montpellier or in other areas such as Gironde, the experience is of interest to more and more areas, such as recently the department of Seine-Saint-Denis. Alongside these communities, citizens have set up their own self-financed food funds, such as the Magic Baguettes initiative in Paris, supported by the La Marmite rouge association. And other initiatives are very little inspired by it, like the Saveurs en Partage grocery store, in the 20th arrondissement of the capital.