Elizabeth Dowler

Department of Sociology, University of Warwick, Coventry CV4 7AL

tel: ++24 765 23549 fax: ++ 24 765 23497

Professor in food and social policy

Registered Public Health Nutritionist

1996 PhD University of London Nutrition and Poverty: the case of lone parents in the UK.

1976 MScUniversity of London (Faculty of Medicine) Human Nutrition

1972 MA Natural Sciences Tripos, University of Cambridge

A Registered Public Health Nutritionist, my research is on the social and policy dimensions of food and human nutrition. I work collaboratively with colleagues from different disciplines and sectors in the UK, elsewhere in Europe and the global south. Recent main areas of research have been on food security, national and international; local and new food initiatives; food and nutrition in mediating inequalities in health and of poverty; policy evaluation at local and national levels. I have explored consumers’ identities and perceptions of ‘risk’ and ‘trust’ in relation to food, and the implications of negotiated new relationships with producers and the food system. The ethical dimensions of research and practice within the food system are a relatively new area of research.

I have qualitative and quantitative research skills, and have managed a number of research projects, often across institutions. For 20 years my main work base was an international, multidisciplinary, public health teaching and research institution (LSHTM); in 2000 I moved to social policy within sociology (University of Warwick). I was a consultant for international agencies in the 1980s and early 1990s (on food security; nutritional surveillance, monitoring and evaluation; nutrition in health, agricultural and development planning; nutrition advocacy training for professionals from health, agriculture, statistics and planning). In the UK I have been consultant to NHS Scotland, Department of Health England, the Food Standards Agency, and a Regional Development Authority among others (on evaluation of national food and nutrition policy, food access and food poverty, nutritional advocacy, local food initiatives, and social policy).

In the 1980s and early 1990s I worked in Francophone Africa, but for the past 16 years have mostly worked in English language speaking countries.

  • member, national Council Food Policy Advisers, Defra, 2008-2010
  • member, Food and Fairness Inquiry, Food Ethics Council, 2009-2010
  • member, Food Standards Agency, Independent Panel to Review Controls on Infant Formula and Follow-on Formula, 2008-2010
  • Senior Marie Curie Research Fellow, University College Dublin:food and social policy; rights base approaches to food poverty, Jan-March 2008
  • lead for evaluation team of national policy, Food and Wellbeing Wales, for Food Standards Agency Wales, 2006-7.
  • member 3-person external evaluation panel, Scottish Diet Action Plan 1996-2005, for NHS Scotland, 2005-6;
  • member, National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence (NICE) Programme Development Group, Maternal and Child Nutrition Guidelines (published March 2008)
  • member and Director/Trustee, Food Ethics Council, UK
  • individual member, National Heart Forum
  • member University of York Consortium HDA Evidence and Guidance Collaborating Centre for Maternal and Child Nutrition and HDA Practice Development Centre for Maternal Child Nutrition
  • recentResearch Steering Committees:
  • Health Start Evaluation, University of York, 2010-2012
  • Young children’s nutrition in Liverpool, University of Liverpool/Heart of Mersey 2009-2010
  • Parents’ & teenagers’ conceptions of diet, weight and health: does class matter? Universities of

Hertfordshire and Edinburgh 2006-8

  • teenage pregnancy and dietary intervention, University of Manchester+Tommy’s Charity 2004-8
  • peer- led intervention in infant feeding inminority ethnic groups in London, UniversityCollege, London, FSA, 2002-6
  • member Working Group on Food and Poverty/Food Access Network, Sustain, 1996-2009

summary recent/current research:

  • food security: implications for low income consumers of financial crisis (Defra;Co-I; Collier PI)
  • role and access to ‘local’ food: developing participatory measurement toolkit (CPRE; Co-I; Kneafsey PI)
  • exploring ‘reconnection’ between consumers, producers and food (ESRC/AHRC; Co-I; Kneafsey PI)
  • evaluation diet and nutrition strategy implementation at national and local levels, particularly for deprived households (Health Scotland/FSA Wales)
  • food access and food security in social deprivation, measurement and policy response;
  • sustainability of community food projects as policy instrument for addressing inequalities;
  • public perceptions of BSE/CJD and ‘risk in food’, media and policy responses

SELECTED RECENT PUBLICATIONS:

BOOKS AND CHAPTERS:

DOWLER, E. (forthcoming)‘How should we eat? the principles and practice of just food’ (edited book).

Caraher, M. and DOWLER, E. (forthcoming) Food for Poorer People: Conventional and ‘Alternative’ Trangressions? in C. Sage and M. Goodman (eds) Food Transgressions: Making sense of contemporary food politics, Ashgate

Elizabeth DOWLER, Moya Kneafsey, Rosie Cox and Lewis Holloway (2010) ‘Doing food differently: reconnecting biological and social relationships through care for food’ in: N. Charles and R. Carter (eds) Nature, Society and Environmental Crisis, Sociological Review Monograph, Chichester: Wiley-Blackwell, pp200-221.

Kneafsey, M, Venn, L, Holloway, L, Cox, R, DOWLER, E and Tuomainen, H (2008)Reconnecting Consumers, Producers and Food: Exploring Alternatives, Oxford: Berg.

DOWLER, Elizabeth (2008) ‘Poverty, food and nutrition’. ch 3 in: Strelitz,J. and Lister,R. (eds) Money Matters, London: Save the Children Fund UK.

Cox, R, Kneafsey, M, Venn, L, Holloway, L, Dowler, E and Tuomainen (2008) ‘Constructing Sustainability through Reconnection – the case of ‘alternative’ food networks’, ch 10 in: Robinson, G (ed) Sustainable Rural Environments, Ashgate.

DOWLER, E. and Spencer, N. (eds) (2007) Challenging Health Inequalities: from Acheson to ‘Choosing Health’, Bristol: Policy Press. including: Spencer, N. and DOWLER, E. Introduction ch 1 pp 1-16; DOWLER, E., Caraher, M., and Lincoln, P. Inequalities in food and nutrition: challenging ‘lifestyles’ ch 8, pp127-155; DOWLER, E. and Spencer, N. Challenging Health Inequalities: themes and issues, ch 13 pp 233-248.

Holloway, L., M, Kneafsey, R. Cox, L. Venn, E.Dowler and H. Tuomainen (2007) ‘Possible food economies: other food networks and the constitution of “alternative” producer-consumer relations’, in Maye, D., Holloway, L. and Kneafsey, M. (eds) Alternative Food Geographies: representation and practice, Oxford: Elsevier, pp. 77-93.

Elizabeth DOWLER, Judith Green, Giancarlo Gasperoni and Martin Bauer, (2006) Assessing public perception: issues and methods. ch 3 in: Dora, C. (ed) Health, Hazards and Public Debate: Lessons for risk communication from the BSE/CJD saga,WHO: Copenhagen, pp 39-60.

Elizabeth DOWLER (2004) Food and poverty: insights from the UK. ch 3 in Maxwell, S. and Slater, R. (eds) Food Policy Old and New, pp33-41. Oxford: Blackwell Publishing.

Elizabeth DOWLER and Geoff Tansey (2003) Food and poverty. in: Mosley, P & DOWLER, E. (eds) Poverty and Social Exclusion in North and South.London: Routledge. pp189-207.

E. DOWLER (2003) Food and Poverty in Britain: Rights and Responsibilities. in: E DOWLER and C Jones Finer (eds) (2003) The Welfare of Food: rights and responsibilities in a changing world, Oxford: Blackwell Publishing, pp 140-159. also pub (2002) Social Policy and Administration, 36, 6, 698-717.

Elizabeth DOWLER (2002) Nutrition policy. in: Shetty, P. (ed) Nutritionthrough the Life Cycle. Leatherhead: Leatherhead Int. Ltd and Royal Society of Chemistry, pp 140-169.

Elizabeth DOWLER, Sheila Turner with Barbara Dobson (2001) Poverty bites: food, health and poor families. London: Child Poverty Action Group.

Elizabeth DOWLER and Suzi Leather (2000) Spare some change for a bite to eat? From Primary Poverty to Social Exclusion: the role of food, in Bradshaw, J and Sainsbury, R. (eds) Experiencing Poverty, Aldershot: Ashgate, pp 200-218.

McGlone, P., Dobson, B., DOWLER, E. & Nelson, M. (1999) Food projects and how they work. York: York Publishing for the Joseph Rowntree Foundation.

Köhler, B. Feichtinger, E., Winkler, G. & E. DOWLER (eds) (1999) Public Health and Nutrition: the challenge. Sigma Edition: Berlin.

JOURNALS

in preparation

DOWLER, E. and Tansey, G. ‘Securing just food in a changing world’ to be submitted to Food Policy.

Holmes, B., DOWLER, E., Nelson, M. ‘Measuring food security in low income households in the UK: a national survey.’

DOWLER, E., Caraher, M., Michaels, S., Diamond, N., Delow, E. ‘Evaluating local food initiatives in the West Midlands’.

under review

Kneafsey, M. DOWLER, E. Lambie, H., Inman, A. and Collier, R. ‘Consumer perceptions of “food security”: perspectives from the UK’ under review special issue Journal of Rural Studies

in print

Dowler, E. and O’Connor, D. (2012) ‘Rights-based approaches to addressing food poverty and food insecurityin Ireland and UK’ Social Science and Medicine, 74, 44-51 special issue on human rights to health.

DOWLER, E., Kneafsey, M., Lambie, H., Inman, A. and Collier, R. (2011) ‘Thinking about “food security”: engaging with UK consumers’ special issue Critical Public Health, 21, 403-416.

MacMillan, T. and Dowler, E. (2011 forthcoming) ‘Secure and sustainable? Examining the rhetoric and potential realities of UK food security’Journal of Agricultural and Environmental Ethics

Watt, R. G., Tull, K. I., Hardy, R., Wiggins, M., Kelly, Y., Molloy, B., Dowler, E., Apps, J. and McGlone, P. (2009) Effectiveness of a social support intervention on infant feeding practices: randomised controlled trial. Journal of Epidemiology and Community Health, 63,2, 156-162.

Elizabeth DOWLER (2008) ‘Food and Health Inequalities: the challenge for sustaining just consumption’ Local Environment 13, 8, 759-772.(special issue on inequality and sustainable consumption)

Dowler, E.A. (2008) Policy initiatives to address low income households' nutritional needs in the UK. Proceedings of the Nutrition Society, 67, 3, 289-300.

Cox, R., Holloway, L., Venn, L., Dowler, E., Ricketts-Hein, J., Kneafsey, M., Tuomainen, H. (2008) Common Ground? Motivations for participation in a community supported agriculture scheme. Local Environment 13 (3) 203-218.

Holloway, L., Kneafsey, M., Venn, L., Cox, R., DOWLER, E., & Tuomainen, H (2007) Possible food economies: a methodological framework for exploring food production-consumption relationships, Sociologia Ruralis, 47, no1, 1-19.

Caraher, M. and DOWLER, E. (2007) Food Projects in London: Lessons for Policy and Practice, Health Education Journal,66, no 2, 188-205.

Thorogood, M., Simera, I., DOWLER, E., Summerbell, C., Brunner, B. (2007) A systematic review of population and community dietary interventions to prevent cancer. Nutrition Research Reviews, 20, 74-88.

Wrieden,W. et al, including E Dowler (2007) The impact of a community-based food skills intervention on cooking confidence, food preparation methods and dietary choices - an exploratory trial, Public Health Nutrition, 10 (2) 203-211.

Watts, R. , McGlone, P., Russell, J., Tull, K., DOWLER, E. (2006) Establishing, implementing and maintaining a social support infant feeding programme. Public Health Nutrition, 9 (6), 714-721.

Venn, L., Kneafsey, M., Holloway, L., Cox, R., DOWLER, E., & Tuomainen, H. (2006) Researching European ‘alternative’ food networks: some methodological considerations. Area, 38.3: 248-258.

Holloway, L., Kneafsey, M., Venn, L., Cox, R., DOWLER, E., & Tuomainen, H. (2005) Possible food economies: food production-consumption arrangements and the meaning of ‘alternative’. ‘ESRC/AHRC Cultures of Consumption’ Working Paper, and Sociologia Ruralis.

Judith Green, Alizon Draper, Elizabeth DOWLER, Giolo Fele, Vera Hagenhoff, Maria Rusanen, Timo Rusanen (2005) Public understanding of food risks in four European countries: a qualitative study. European Journal of Public Health, 5(5):523-527.

Judith Green, Alizon Draper and Elizabeth DOWLER (2003) Short cuts to safety: risk and 'rules of thumb' in accounts of food choice. Health, Risk and Society, 5,1, 33-52.

Elizabeth DOWLER and Martin Caraher (2003) Local Food Projects - the New Philanthropy? Political Quarterly, 74, no1, 57-65.

Elizabeth DOWLER (2001) Inequalities in diet and physical activity in Europe. Public Health Nutrition 4, (2B), 701-709.

Morris, J., Donkin, A., Wonderling, D., Wilkinson, P. DOWLER, E. (2000) A minimum income for healthy living. Journal of Epidemiology and Community Health 54, 885-889.

Donkin, A.J.M., DOWLER, E. A., Stevenson, S.J.,Turner S. A.. (2000) Mapping access to food in a deprived area: the development of price and availability indices. Public Health Nutrition, 3, 31-38.

Donkin, A.J.M., DOWLER, E. A., Stevenson, S. J.,Turner S. A. (1999) Mapping access to food at a local level. British Food Journal, 101, 7, 554-562.

DOWLER, E. (1999) Food and poverty: the present challenge. Benefits: Journal of Social Security Research, Policy and Practice. 24 (Jan/Feb), 3-6.

DOWLER, E. (1998) Food as a utility: guaranteeing food security for all. Consumer Policy Review, 5, 162-168.

DOWLER, E. (1997) Budgeting for food on a low income: the case of lone parents. Food Policy 22, 5, 405-417.

DOWLER, E. and Dobson, B. (1997) Nutrition and poverty in Europe: an overview.Proceedings of the Nutrition Society, 56,1A, 51-62.

SELECTED REPORTS

Rosemary Collier, Elizabeth DOWLER, Moya Kneafsey, Hannah Lambie, Alex Inman. Consumer insight into food prices and food security. Report to DEFRA. November 2010.

Moya Kneafsey, Hannah Lambie, Elizabeth Dowler. Community Toolkit for mapping local food. Report to Council for the Protection of Rural England. February 2010.

Elizabeth DOWLER, Laura Davis, Kevin Morgan, Tim Lang, David Hunter. Mid-Term Evaluation of Food and Wellbeing Wales. Report to Food Standards Agency Wales. September 2007.

Moya Kneafsey, Lewis Holloway, Rosie Cox, Elizabeth DOWLER. Re-connecting Consumers, Food and Producers: exploring ‘alternative’ networks. Report to the ESRC. March 2007.

Tim Lang, Elizabeth DOWLER, David Hunter. Review of the Scottish Diet Action Plan 1996-2005. Report to NHS Health Scotland. October 2006.

Richard Watt, Pauline McGlone, KTull, Y Kelly, R Hardy, M Wiggins, J Apps, B Molloy,E DOWLER. Promoting recommended infant feeding practices in a low-income sample - randomised controlled trial of a peer support intervention (N09016). Report to the Food Standards Agency. 2006.

Iveta Simera, Margaret Thorogood, Elizabeth DOWLER, Carolyn Summerbell, Eric Brunner. Population and community programmes for dietary prevention of cancer: systematic review of effectiveness. Report to the World Cancer Research Fund. January 2005.

Elizabeth DOWLER, Simon Michaels, Naomi Diamond, Martin Caraher, Emma Delon, Charles Cousins The value and potential of local food initiatives in the West Midlands region. Report to Advantage West Midlands. July 2004.

Elizabeth DOWLER, Maria Stuttaford, Martin Caraher. Evaluation of the Coventry Food Poverty Project. Final Report to Coventry City Council. November 2003.

Michael Nelson, Katy Dick, Bridget Holmes, Roger Thomas and Elizabeth DOWLER Low Income Diet Methods Study Final Project Report to the Food Standards Agency. March 2003.

Alizon Draper, Judith Green and Elizabeth DOWLER Public perceptions of BSE and CJD risk in Europe, their interplay with media, policy initiatives and surveillance issues. Drawing the lessons for information policy: Task 1: inter-country results and comparison Report to WHO Environmental Epidemiology, Geneva. May 2001.

Jul-Larsen, E. & DOWLER, E. Increasing the Role of Fish and Fisheries in Alleviating Undernutrition, Mid-term Project External Review. Report to the Government of Norway and Food and Agriculture Organisation of the United Nations, (FAO) June 1993.

DOWLER, Elizabeth, Implementing a Food and Nutrition Surveillance System for Nepal; Operationalizing Nutritional Surveillance and Policy Unit. Report to UNICEF, April/May 1990.

DOWLER, Elizabeth, Implementation and Evaluation of a Training Workshop for Senior Planners to Introduce Nutritional Concerns into Agricultural and Rural Development Projects. CIAWI, BPLP, Indonesia, Report to FAO, Rome, September 1989.

DOWLER, E. Revisions to Training Package on Integrating Nutrition Considerations into Agriculture and Rural Development Planning. Report to FAO, September 1988.

DOWLER, E. Curriculum Planning for Masters Degrees in Community Nutrition in Health at the University of Shanghai, and in Community Nutrition in Agriculture at the University of Beijing. Report to FAO/UNDP, August 1988.

DOWLER, E. Training to Integrate Nutrition Considerations into Agriculture and Rural Development Planning. 3rd report of International Training Advisor to FAO, May 1988.

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