Community Food Security

Rosie Kadwell, Public Health Dietitian

Community Food Security

• Definition

• Root Causes

• How to address Community Food Insecurity

• HKPR District Health Unit involvement

• Haliburton County Community Food Assessment

Food Security

Everyone in the community has access to Safe food Personally/Culturally acceptable Nutritious

Community Food Security

Everyone in the community has access to Safe food Personally/Culturally acceptable Nutritious

Sustainable Food System Healthy choices Community self-reliance Social Justice Equal access for everyone

Food System

A healthy sustainable food system focuses on:• Local seasonal foods

• Health of the population

• Building communities

• Local economic development

• Supporting local producers, processors, distributors and retailers

Sustainable Food Systems

Land

Environmental Degradation

Soil Erosion/Loss

Overproduction

Financial Viability

Loss of Agricultural Land

Food System Assessment,

Planning,Action &

Policy

Production

Skill Loss

Pesticides & Fertilizers

Climate

Globalization

Greenhouse Gas Emissions

Fossil Fuels& Peak Oil

Food Disruption

Vulnerability

Food Supply Chain vs. Web

Packaging

Processing Distribution

Pollution

Infrastructure

Safety

Consumer-Producer barriers (conflicting

regulations)

Business Costs

Energy-dense foods

Buying Selling

Rising Food Prices

Manufacturing Claims/Menu Labels

Hunger

Food Banks

Food Deserts

Access

Consumption

Waste

Poverty

Social Isolation

Food Insecurity

Nutrition

Disease

Skill Loss

Education

Overconsumption

Excess Packaging

Infrastructure

Recovery

Transportation & Storage

Land value/speculation

Development

Complexity of theFood System

Note: Based on work by Jennifer Parker (UofT) for the City of Hamilton in 2013

Environmental Health

EconomicVitalitySocial Equity and

Human HealthFood

consumption

Food production

Food processing, distribution

and marketing

Lack of • Basic Income

• Affordable Housing

• Affordable Day Care

• Access to Healthy Food

• Local Food Production

• Infrastructure to Support Local Food

• Food Policies

Causes of Community Food Insecurity

Do we live in Communities that are Food Secure or Insecure?

Creating Food Secure Communities

HKPR Community Nutrition Team What are we doing?

• Involved in all aspects of the Community Food Security Continuum

Community Food Assessment(CFA)

“A CFA is a powerful way to tell the story of what is happening with food in a community, and to mobilize efforts to improve the food system.

Through such assessments, diverse stakeholders work together to research local food system,

share findings, and implement changes based on their findings & recommendations.”

Community Food System Assessment Washington State University Extension Service

Prior to CFA, work will need to focus on diverse stakeholders work together

Educate Key Stakeholders & Decision Makers

Collaborative Process

Build Partnerships

Engage Community Members

Cultivate Trust

Establish a CFA Steering Committee • pride & ownership

January 2014Recruiting CFA Steering Committee

Food Production and Consumption

Food Access

Municipal Policy Planning

Spring 2014 Assessment Priorities

Fall 2014 - Winter 2015Working Groups – Food Production and Consumption

Little quantitative data

Discovered that official stats and reports did not accurately reflect our local farming activity

Qualitative Approach – key informant interviews

Interviewed past and present local food producers - listened to their stories, challenges and successes

Interviewed grocery stores, restaurants and farmers market vendors

Fall 2014 - Winter 2015Working Groups – Food Production and Consumption

Researcher and GIS consultant • Survey of 56 food business or

programs

• Develop Data Base

• Food access point mapping

• Map Deprivation Index

• Analysis, Recommendations

Fall 2014 - Winter 2015Working Groups – Food Access

• Hired Consultant with Land Use Planning expertise

• Reviewed OP

• Reviewed OP with similar features i.e. rural, lack prime agricultural lands, seasonal tourism major economic base

Fall 2014 - Winter 2015Working Groups – Municipal Planning/Policy

• Environmental scan

• Interviews with key stakeholders

• Set priorities around food systems

Fall 2014 - Winter 2015Working Groups – Municipal Planning/Policy

Spring & Summer 2015

• Completed Food and Official Plan Report

• Presentations to County Council and Dysart et al

• Finalizing the other two reports

Fall 2015 – Winter 2016

• Share our findings with community

• Move forward with recommendations and recruit more community members

• Seek new funding source

Our Accomplishments

Educate Key Stakeholders and Decision Makers

20+ key stakeholders were educated on importance of community food security planning and conducting CFA

All municipalities were engaged in the CFA process

Interest from County Planner & County Tourism Director

Our Accomplishments

Collaborative Process

All CFA decisions were made in a collaborative fashion

“ Working together collaboratively changes us from isolated units into one voice; it breaks down barriers and made

us more effective”

Accomplishments

Built Partnerships

Developed strong partnerships with key stakeholders

“It strengthened those of us who care about food security and sustainability

to work closely with one another - especially working with Municipal Councilors and staff - we have the

chance to influence municipal planning in a really important way.”

"Being part of the CFA project has not only given my business an opportunity to develop as a social enterprise, but more importantly,

it has offered a wider perspective of food issues through working with fellow

stakeholders."

Feedback on Collaboration and Partnership

Community Food Security

Thank-you