Right to Food (articles 4, 16 and 22) 83. Although the African Charter does not expressly protect the right to food the African Commission held, in SERAC & CESR v Nigeria, that the right to food is inherent in the Charter’s protection of the rights to life, health and the right to economic, social and cultural development. 84. The right to adequate food is an individual right that is indivisibly linked to the inherent dignity of the human person and is indispensable for the fulfilment of other human rightsxxxvi that are also enshrined in the African Charter, including, in particular, the rights to health, education and political participation. Enjoyment of this right will particularly depend on the enjoyment of the right to water and access to affordable energy for cooking. 85. The right to adequate food is realized when every man, woman and child, alone or in community with others, has physical and economic access at all times to adequate food or means for its procurement. The right shall therefore not be interpreted in a narrow or restrictive sense which equates it with merely a minimum package of calories, proteins and other specific nutrients. 86. The State has the following, among other, obligations to: Minimum Core Obligations a. Take the necessary action to guarantee the right of everyone to be free from hunger and to mitigate and alleviate hunger even in times of natural or other disasters; b. Refrain from and protect against destruction and/or contamination of food sources; c. Refrain from using access to food as a political tool to reward supporters, punish opponents or recruit militias. National Plans, Policies and Systems 48 d. Develop national plans and policies to ensure food security, which includes constantly accessible and quality food that meets the requirements of nutrition and cultural acceptability; e. The plans and policies should address critical issues and measures in regard to all aspects of the food system, including the production, processing, distribution, marketing and consumption of safe food, as well as parallel measures in the fields of nutrition, health, education, employment and social security. Care should be taken to ensure the most sustainable management and use of natural and other resources for food at the national, regional, local and household levels; f. Ensure that national policies are designed and implemented so that food consumed is culturally acceptable;