This document outlines steps for establishing a community food council and developing a food charter in Renfrew County, Ontario. It discusses the characteristics and activities of food councils, including bringing together diverse stakeholders to improve the local food system. Examples of food councils and charters from other communities are provided. The proposed process for Renfrew County includes gathering stakeholder input on food issues, drafting a charter, gathering feedback, and obtaining endorsements to guide local food system decisions.

1. Exploring a Community Food Council
& Food Charter
October 28, 2013
DU B FIT Consulting
Nancy Dubois
dubfit@rogers.com
519.446.3636

2. Outline
 Food System
 Food (Policy) Councils / Coalitions
 Characteristics
 Priorities / activities
 Members
 Food Charters
 Proposed Steps for Renfrew County
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3. A healthy food system …
 is one in which all residents have access to, and can
afford to buy, safe, nutritious, and culturallyacceptable food that has been produced in an
environmentally sustainable way and that sustains our
rural communities.
(Waterloo Region http://www.wrfoodsystem.ca/priorities )
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4. Elements
of a Food
System
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5. 5

7. Description – Food (Policy) Council
 Bring together stakeholders from diverse food-related
sectors to examine how the food system is operating
and to develop ideas, actions and policy
recommendations on how to improve it.
 Take many forms, but are typically either
commissioned by governments, or are predominately a
grassroots effort – may be a reincarnation or evolution
of an another group
 Have been successful at educating officials and the
public, shaping public policy, improving coordination
between existing programs, and starting new
programs
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8. Common Operating Characteristics
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Take a comprehensive approach
Pursue long-term strategies
Offer tangible solutions
Are place-based with a strong local component
Advocate on behalf of the larger community
Seek government buy-in
Establish formal membership
Operate with little or no funding
 Food Policy Council Briefing Paper -
http://www.ncchpp.ca/148/publications.ccnpps?id_article=
664
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10. Common Process
 Situational Assessment / Environmental Scan
 Set priorities
 Establish a plan of action for each priority (long and
short term)
 Recruit the players
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14. Typical Activities of a Food Council (1)
 Mapping and publicizing local food resources
 Creating new transit routes to connect underserved
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areas with full-service grocery stores
Persuading government agencies to purchase from
local farmers
Organizing community gardens and farmers’ markets
Advocate for policy change to improve a community's
food system
Develop programs that address gaps in a community's
food system
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15. Typical Activities of a Food Council (2)
 Strategize solutions that have wide applicability to the
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food system
Research and analyze the existing conditions of a
community's food system
Communicate information about a community's food
system
Cultivate partnerships among a community's five food
sectors
Convene meetings that draw diverse stakeholders of a
community's food system
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16. E.g., Increase residents' access to grocery stores:
FPCs unpack the interrelated causes of the problem,
considering things like:
 Infrastructure: Are (public) transportation links to
existing grocery stores adequate?
 Economic development: Which banks will or will not
loan to new grocery stores?
 Built environment: Which zoning codes or regulations
could be changed to locate grocery stores closer to
residential areas?
 Alternatives or supplemental programs: Could a
farmers market or home delivery program fill service
gaps?
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17. Kamloops Food Action Initiative
The Interior Health Authority, the City of Kamloops and the
Kamloops Food Policy Council partnered to undertake the
Community Food Action Initiative project in 2006. The
goal was to engage stakeholders in efforts to strengthen
and support food planning, policy, and practices in the
Kamloops Region.
Five project elements:
1. Inventory of resources and food action projects;
2. Community consultation and policy review;
3. Food Action Forum to review policy and develop actions;
4. Draft Plan;
5. Evaluation using the Food Security Report Card tool.
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18. http://www.wrfoodsystem.ca/
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24. Food Charters
They are policy-reference documents that:
 present a vision for a just and sustainable food system that
has been developed by the community and endorsed by
the community’s decision-makers
 anchor municipal commitments to sustainable food
system policies
 provide guidelines for decisions about food
 bring people together to talk about & work on local food
system and food security challenges
 provide a reference for managing food system issues on a
system-wide basis.
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25. Benefits of a Food Charter
 Activate civic engagement
 Create opportunities for conversations about food
 Create a valuable tool through collaborative process
 More public participation helps communities address challenges
 Articulate an overall vision for food policy
 Bring together separate policy areas (land use/zoning, waste
management, health & food safety
 Support staff to initiate innovative planning & operations
strategies
 Facilitate collaboration
 Facilitate inclusivity
 Expand traditional thinking & roles
 Extend range of influence & action
 Show leadership & vision
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26. Benefits of a Food Charter
 Catalyze actions
 Inform projects that benefit local economies and the
environment
 Support fundraising
 Benefit the environment
 encourage personal & institutional choices that
support more sustainable food systems
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27. Quotes from Communities with a Food Charter:
 —“Galvanizes and focuses work around food”
 —“Makes the city a leader”
 —“Helps put food on the municipal agenda”
 —“Municipal resources become available for food issues”
 —“Development of new community gardens and farmers’
markets”
 —“Facilitates and frames food system research and
assessment”
 —“Facilitates / guides the development of more
applied/specific policy documents”
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28. Common Charter Ingredients
 Vision statements
 Principles / Guidelines
 Action Goals / Priorities
 Background & rationale
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29. Charter Principles
 http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5PCLQThZ8io&fea
ture=youtu.be - Guelph Wellington Food Charter
 Vancouver
 Ecological health
 Social justice
 Community economic development
 Collaboration & participation
 Celebration
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31. Examples of Food Charters
 Toronto’s Food Charter (2000)
 Saskatoon Food Charter (2002)
 City of Greater Sudbury Food Charter (2004)
 Vancouver Food Charter (2007)
 Capital Region Food Charter (2008)
 Region of Durham (2008)
 Thunder Bay Food Charter (2008)
 London’s Food Charter (2010)
 Guelph-Wellington Food Charter (2011)
 Kawartha Lakes Food Charter (2011)
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32. Supportive Resources
 G-W Food Charter Toolkit - http://www.gwfrt.com/wp-
content/uploads/2013/04/GWFRT_Toolkit_Final_2013.pd
f
 Toolkit for Eaters - page 3
 Toolkit for Growers - page 5
 Toolkit for Business and Institutions - page 7
 Toolkit for Policy Makers - page 8
 Toolkit for Community Food Projects - page 9
 Ottawa’s Food for All Policy Writing Team Toolbox -
http://www.justfood.ca/foodforall/documents/Food_for_
All_Policy_Writing_Team_Toolbox.pdf
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33. Typical Process to Develop Charter
 Ottawa
 Conducted a scan of food programs and services
 Conducted a series of literature reviews and in-depth stakeholder interviews to
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help us learn about the experiences of others who have worked towards
addressing food issues and understand what steps are needed in order to
translate these community ideas into action in Ottawa.
Food For All hosted Food Action Planning conversations to identify issues that
exist around food in Ottawa and to build a vision of what food in Ottawa can
and should look like.
Policy-writing teams comprised of community participants then worked
together to set policy priorities based on evidence and research, and developed
the food Action Plan Proposals. For many volunteers, this was the very first time
they had had a chance to engage in a policy process.
We have hosted Kitchen Table Talks focussing on the different chapters of the
Food Action Plan and
Sought online feedback on the website.
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34. Typical Process to Develop Charter (2)
 Create a Steering Committee / Core Group
 Determine your local resources and process
 Community Food Assessment
 Mapping Food Access Points (existing Continuum for Norfolk & Haldimand)
 Community Consultations – open forum, stakeholder interviews, focus groups
 Report to summarize current situation & desired future
 Draft Food Charter
 Gain input to draft
 Open input via Web site/ paper
 Community Consultations – open forum, stakeholder interviews, focus groups
 Finalize the Charter
 Endorsement
 Community organizations / Stakeholders
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Local government
 Communicate Charter to stimulate corresponding action
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35. Proposed Renfrew Process
 Nov. 28 – morning: Healthy Communities context
 Nov. 28 – afternoon: broad stakeholder input to the
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priority food issues in the community
Nov. 29 – smaller group of s/h’s to use input to draft
local Food Charter
Develop endorsement strategy
Draft Charter circulated for input and 12 specific Key
Informant interviews conducted
Confirm the Charter
Enact endorsement strategy
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