Food Policy for Local Food System
Security Resilience
_Cheshire County is already beginning to see the rise of the community's voice around issues of local food and agriculture through Agriculture Commissions in local communities around the county. Another local policy move that communities across the nation are engaging in are Food Policy Councils.
While Agriculture Commission serve a crucial role in educating local government on agricultural issues and coordinating efforts around land use, Food Policy Councils (FPCs) bring a unique perspective and tool to local communities by examining the food system as a whole. FPCs bring together diverse stake-holders from various food-related sectors to examine how the local food system is operating and make recommendations on how to improve it. These groups have the capacity to educate officials and the public on local food issues, shape public policy, coordinate efforts between existing programs, and start new programs to fill in gaps in local food actions. These groups are formed in a variety of ways, but most often are commissioned by state or local government, or start as grassroots efforts. For more information on Food Policy Councils and to get help with starting one, visit the North American Food Policy Council webpage.
One first action of any Food Policy Council or any other community group wanting to improve their local food system is to engage in a community-wide food assessment. This assessment helps the community to gather information about the conditions of the local food system. Publicizing this data is valuable in informing the work of local action groups as well as in building broader awareness of the condition of a community's food system and what is being done to improve it. A thorough resource on this topic is Community Food Security Coalition's Community Food Assessment Program website.
Other local policy ideas and initiatives could be pursued after the development of Agriculture Commissions and Food Policy Councils. Two great documents that outline some of these ideas:
While Agriculture Commission serve a crucial role in educating local government on agricultural issues and coordinating efforts around land use, Food Policy Councils (FPCs) bring a unique perspective and tool to local communities by examining the food system as a whole. FPCs bring together diverse stake-holders from various food-related sectors to examine how the local food system is operating and make recommendations on how to improve it. These groups have the capacity to educate officials and the public on local food issues, shape public policy, coordinate efforts between existing programs, and start new programs to fill in gaps in local food actions. These groups are formed in a variety of ways, but most often are commissioned by state or local government, or start as grassroots efforts. For more information on Food Policy Councils and to get help with starting one, visit the North American Food Policy Council webpage.
One first action of any Food Policy Council or any other community group wanting to improve their local food system is to engage in a community-wide food assessment. This assessment helps the community to gather information about the conditions of the local food system. Publicizing this data is valuable in informing the work of local action groups as well as in building broader awareness of the condition of a community's food system and what is being done to improve it. A thorough resource on this topic is Community Food Security Coalition's Community Food Assessment Program website.
Other local policy ideas and initiatives could be pursued after the development of Agriculture Commissions and Food Policy Councils. Two great documents that outline some of these ideas:
gettingfoodonthetable.pdf | |
File Size: | 2715 kb |
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regionalist_policy_approaches.pdf | |
File Size: | 690 kb |
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