Local government consultations in practice: Involving the community in food safety policymaking

Abstract

This study offers an analysis of a public consultation initiative on proposed changes to the food safety bylaw led by Auckland Council in ethnolinguistically diverse districts of Auckland (New Zealand). The fieldwork comprised in-person observations of five Auckland Council consultations held at street markets over a three-month period, and interviews with stakeholders. We focus on the strategies used by Council representatives to invite passersby to participate, their level of success in attaining participation, and the respondents' form of engagement. We describe the tensions between the need for Council representatives to invite participation in an assertive, confident manner, and the need to appear respectful and non-threatening. We also explore the tensions between displaying visual information that can be understood easily and quickly by passersby, and the need to encourage reflection and awareness of different perspectives. We discuss the difficulties in eliciting alternative perspectives to those displayed by the Council and of engaging in a deliberative manner in the context of open-air street markets. We formulate recommendations regarding the need to invest in long-term relationships with community leaders to encourage the participation of volunteers; the need to pilot consultation display materials; and the need for ongoing professional training in public consultation. • Participants may interpret consultation as an awareness raising campaign. • Characteristics of the market influences willingness of public to participate. • High profile community members succeed in encouraging participation at open markets. • Need for greater ethnolinguistic diversity in public relations agencies. • Need for piloting consultation materials for comprehensibility by target audience.

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