Food Policy Resources

Bridging the Gap was a nationally recognized research program with the goal to improve the understanding of how policies and environmental factors affect diet, physical activity and obesity among youth, as well as youth tobacco use.  The program offers research, data and tools related to school district wellness policies, state obesity-related policies, and soda/snack taxes.

Urban agriculture has become a popular topic for metropolitan areas to engage in on a program and policy level. It is touted as a means of promoting public health and economic development, building social capital, and repurposing unused land. Food policy councils and other groups that seek to position urban agriculture to policymakers often struggle with how to frame the benefits of and potential problems with urban agriculture. In some cases, the enthusiasm is ahead of the evidence. This review provides an overview of the documented sociocultural, health, environmental, and economic development outcomes of urban agriculture. Demonstrated and potential benefits, as well as risks and limitations, of this growing field will be discussed. We also offer recommendations for further research to strengthen the scholarship on urban agriculture.

Presented by : Raychel Santo, Anne Palmer, and Brent Kim.

The FPN project and LiveWell Colorado cohosted a discussion for state food policy councils about state government positions in food systems. The conversation featured Sarah Hanson (Office of Farm to Fork, California Department of Food and Agriculture), Amy Gilroy (Farm to School Program Manager, Oregon Department of Agriculture), Ali Zipparo (Food and Markets Senior Agriculture Market Development Specialist/NFSN State Lead, Vermont Agency of Agriculture), and Bonita Oehlke (Market Development and Food Systems Planning, Massachusetts Department of Agricultural Resources) talking about the impact of their positions on local food systems and what food policy councils can do to support similar positions in their states.

On Sept. 20, 2016, the Johns Hopkins Center for a Livable Future welcomed the National Conference of State Legislatures to present highlights from their report Harvesting Healthier Options: State Legislative Trends in Local Foods, 2012-2014. Participants also heard about the passage of the Massachusetts Food Trust Program in 2014.

State legislatures across the nation are bringing policy to a vote in support of local and regional food systems. Over a two-year period, from 2012 to 2014, 36 states and the District of Columbia passed legislation in support of local and regional food systems. In 2014, Massachusetts blazed a trail for comprehensive food access policy with passage of the Massachusetts Food Trust Program. The policy aims to expand healthy food retail, support urban agriculture businesses, and engage the Massachusetts Food Policy Council.

Presented by: Douglas Shinkle and Mindy Bridges, National Conference of State Legislatures; Bonita Oehlke and Rose Arruda, Massachusetts Department of Agricultural Resources; Kristina St. Cyr, Massachusetts Public Health Association.

Food policy councils across the nation are digging in and turning their ideas into action.  There is no magic formula to get policy passed however, there are common elements that can help set up your food policy council for success. Learn to determine which policy intervention will have the most success; explore opportunities to build a public support for your policy proposal; and discover how to garner the support of key decision makers.  

Presented by: Mark Winne, Kathy Green, and Pam Roy.

Food systems are complex and identification of appropriate policy changes to improve the food system in your community can seem daunting. Learn about the legal, regulatory and administrative levers that your food policy council can pull to achieve effective changes in you community.  

Presented by: Emily Broad Leib and Ona Balkus.

The Johns Hopkins Center for a Livable Future and the Chesapeake Foodshed Network welcome Raychel Santo, Claire Fitch, Colleen Synk, Colleen McKinney, and Jose Oliva to speak on regional, environmentally sustainable, just, and humane practices in institutional food procurement. This webinar provides an overview of the Center for a Livable Future's recent report, Instituting Change, which examines the benefits and barriers to increased institutional procurement of regionally and sustainably produced food. It also discusses a recent analysis of the economic potential for regional food procurement among institutions in the Chesapeake region. Finally, the webinar presents the policies and implementation of the Center for Good Food Purchasing's standards.

Presented by: Raychel Santo, Claire Fitch and Colleen Synk of Johns Hopkins Center for a Livable Future; Colleen McKinney, Center for Good Food Purchasing; and Jose Oliva, Food Chain Workers Alliance.

Growing interest in urban agriculture is inspiring widespread attention from gardeners to policymakers alike, across municipalities and states. Food policy councils play an important role in assisting urban agriculture efforts by advocating for legislation, funding, and other resources, as well as through educational support for urban food producers. Tune into this webinar to learn about how to frame the benefits of urban agriculture to policymakers and the public based on evidence from Johns Hopkins Center for a Livable Future's recent review of the existing academic research. Hear from food policy councils in Kansas City, Missouri and Oakland, California about how they are making progressive changes to support urban farmers through urban agriculture zones and tax incentives and by promoting racial and social inclusivity.

Presented by: Raychel Santo, Johns Hopkins Center for a Livable Future; Beth Low-Smith, Kansas City Healthy Kids; and Shaniece Alexander, Oakland Food Policy Council.

This report looks at how local governments and community groups in five U.S. cities, Baltimore, Louisville, Memphis, Minneapolis and Oakland, are working to make affordable, healthy food available to more people and empower them to build better food systems. These cities are large and diverse, with higher poverty rates than the nation as a whole, but local leaders have found ways to give struggling residents more access to affordable, nutritious food.

A Governance and Membership Subcommittee led the drafting process for the articles in the bylaws. All Philadelphia (Pennsylvania) Food Policy Advisory Council appointed members were given the opportunity to discuss and submit feedback on the bylaws, and then the subcommittee put them to a vote for approval. 

The goal of the toolkit is to make clear the laws that affect residents who are growing and selling food in Oakland, California. The resource consolidates the municipal, county, state and federal regulations that govern food cultivation and distribution in Oakland. In addition, the toolkit provides suggestions for how to access land for cultivation and offers resources to support starting and running a small food business based on food grown by residents. The toolkit includes an extensive resource list, including a land access checklist and a model lease agreement.

Created by Esperanza Pallana, Ariel Dekovic, and Rob Bennaton

In Minnesota, there were more than 20 active food networks that participated in a statewide initiative to develop the Minnesota Food Charter.  This report seeks to provide support to foster and grow the emerging statewide food network in Minnesota by exploring opportunities and challenges faced by other statewide and multi-state food networks. The report provides a summary of findings from interviews with food network leaders on ten categories on network development and activity.

Created by Noelle Harden, Jamie Bain, and Stephanie Heim

This report focuses on state legislation in all 50 states enacted between 2012 and 2014 that aimed to strengthen various components of local food systems. The report focuses on six policy areas with the most state legislative action: local food system approaches; farm to school; farmers' markets; community gardens and urban agriculture; healthy grocery retail; and food policy councils.

Created by Amanda Essex, Douglas Shinkle, Mindy Bridges

This webinar examines the existing wholesale grocer and wholesale produce distribution systems in the upper Midwest and the potential for collaboration with local foods growers and advocates. Wholesale grocers‚ such as Mason Brothers of Wadena, MN, and Affiliated Foods Midwest, a co-op with offices in Nebraska, Kansas and Wisconsin‚ are key suppliers of grocery stores, particularly rural groceries, throughout the North Central region. This webinar was hosted by the North Central Regional Center for Rural Development and Michigan State University Center for Regional Food Systems.

Presenter: Dr. Kathy Draeger

The Urban Agriculture Subcommittee developed the Soil Safety and Urban Gardening in Philadelphia Process and Recommendations Report to inform a Philadelphia soil safety policy for growing in potentially contaminated urban soil. The report contains: municipal soil safety policy research; discussion and conclusions from experts and practioners in the Philadelphia Soil Safety Working Group; and recommendations to the City of Philadelphia on how to support urban growers through soil safety resources and protocols.

To advance research and practice in the context of race and ethnicity in food systems work, the Journal of Agriculture, Food Systems and Community Development presents 24 thoughtful and challenging commentaries spanning a wide range of communities from activists of color, leaders, consultants, white advocates and project partners, nonprofit organization staff and board members, public agency staff, and academics on misperceptions, stereotypes, and misunderstandings. These commentators address what happens when well-meaning folks arrive in their communities with ready-made tools, strategies, and programs; many under the guise of empowerment.

This report highlights a range of state and multi-state food system initiatives across the United States and explores six cross-cutting themes. Key strategies, indicators and lessons learned are shared for each initiative. Practitioners of collaborative food system work will find this a useful overview with accessible insights into how to engage communities, coordinate multi-sector work and measure change.

Created by Lilly Fink Shapiro, Lesli Hoey, Sue Ann Savas, and Kathryn Colasanti.

Supermarkets are responding to the obesity crisis by changing their product offerings, in-store environments, and marketing practices to make healthy choices more accessible, affordable, and appealing. This webinar summarizes the factors that influence low-income consumers' food choices and describe culturally appropriate interventions that promoting healthier shopping and eating. Explore effective nutrition education programs and come away with practical tips on how to work with grocery retailers in your community to make the healthy choice the easy choice.

Presenters: Cathy Califano, Anne Harrison, Ellen Damaschino, Teresa Blanco

This report explores the complex historical and contemporary challenges to Native American healthy food access, childhood obesity, and health disparities. Looking first at the historical context of colonization, the treatment of Native Americans as sovereign Tribal Nations, and the evolution of Federal Indian policy, Feeding Ourselves frames the work ahead to engage and assist Native communities in moving beyond this condition.

Created by Janie Simms Hipp, Wilson Pipestem

Serving as Artist in Residence at the Community Food & Agriculture Coalition, artist and activist Claire Emery engages the public in discourse about food security, soil preservation, and protecting agricultural land at the Clark Fork Farmer's Market. Using rich, organic soil from local farms, Claire sifts a soil circle on top of cement as an invitation for the public to consider the importance of preserving agricultural lands. CFAC embraces contemporary art as a powerful tool to activate the public in their  Farmland: Save It Don't Pave It Campaign, which aims to influence and improve county subdivision policy.

Image credit: Bonnie Buckingham, Community Food and Agriculture Coalition; CLF Food Policy Networks Photo Contest, 2015.

By downloading this image, you agree to use the photo within the context that it was taken. You also agree to never use it for commercial purposes. The image always belongs to the original photographer and should be attributed to the photographer and Center for a Livable Future Food Policy Networks Photo Contest.