Gateway Expands Food Policy Coverage The Agriculture and Public Health Gateway has added a new topic—Food Policy Councils - which includes more than 30 recommended resources. The Community Food Security Coalition describes food policy councils as entities that “bring together stakeholders from diverse food-related sectors to examine how the food system is operating and to develop recommendations on how to improve it.”
Food policy councils may take many forms, according to the North American Food Policy Council. Typically, they are either commissioned by state or local governments, or through a grassroots effort. Food policy councils have been successful at educating officials and the public, shaping public policy, improving coordination between existing programs and starting new programs. Examples of projects include mapping and publicizing local food resources; creating new transit routes to connect underserved areas with full-service grocery stores; persuading government agencies to purchase from local farmers; and organizing community gardens and farmers' markets. More information about food policy councils can be found at the Community Food Security website.
The Gateway website now includes 35 topic areas in its “Browse-by-Subject” feature, and provides access to several key public health and agriculture databases. It is an important resource for researchers, advocates, journalists and educators interested in topics that link agriculture and public health, such as antibiotic resistance, the food system links to climate change, pesticides, biodiversity, food security and many more. |
