The role of civil society in building the field of Food and Nutrition in Brazil: elements for reflection

The inclusion of Food and Nutrition (FN) issues on the public agenda has gained progressive relevance in Brazil and the civil society (CS) has an important role in this process. This article examines how CS affects policies in this field based on a historical perspective of their influence in political arenas of the Federal Government. The analysis was based on the following questions: (1) the political and institutional participatory approaches; (2) the related issues and political demands; (3) the implications of this process in developing public policies. The research instruments have combined literature review and documentary analysis. It was concluded that the role of the civil society was crucial for the consolidation of the National Policy of FN and the National Policy of Food and Nutrition Security. The institutional engineering and the profile of social organizations were very different, ranging from social movements to policy networks. The topics on the agenda have changed over the period studied, with the strengthening of ethnic, racial and gender issues. The gains of this process depend on public sector capacity to regulate and support the functioning of these institutional arenas and to involve governmental segments that actually has decision making power.