FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Food Security Conference to Focus on Public Policy

Oregon and Washington now rank first and second in the nation for hunger and unemployment. How best to respond to the complex issues of food, hunger and poverty will be the focus of the 6th annual conference of the Community Food Security Coalition (CFSC), set for October 5-7 in Seattle.

The CFSC conference, to be held in the Northwest Rooms of the Seattle Center, will attract more than 400 participants for tours, short courses and workshops highlighting food security efforts throughout Washington, Oregon, BC. The conference will include sessions on a wide array of issues, ranging from school lunches and junk food, to providing fresh, locally grown produce to low income seniors.

Food policy will also be a major conference topic. Leaders from the US and Canada will join with local food and agriculture activists to discuss the formation of municipal food policy councils to develop comprehensive strategies to provide quality, affordable food for everyone in their communities.

The full program is available on the CFSC website. The website also includes registration information.

The conference will open at 9:00 AM on Sunday, October 6, with a keynote address by Rod MacRae, former coordinator of the Toronto Food Policy Council and co-editor of For Hunger-Proof Cities: Sustainable Urban Food Systems. He will discuss the creation of municipal food policy councils to address the challenge hunger in the age of globalization.

Other conference sessions devoted specifically to public policy include:

Monday, October 7
8:30-9:30 AM Local Food Systems Plenary

9:45-11:15 AM Food Policy Councils: Reality and Practice
The workshop will examine the current state of knowledge about local food policy councils and how they are being used to build food security in communities. Participants will learn how to avoid some of the problems that food policy councils have experienced as well as ways to develop high-performing, effective councils. Speakers will include Rod MacRae and Mark Winne of the Hartford Food System.

11:30 AM-1:00 PM Forming Northwest Food Policy Councils
Food policy council organizers from the US and Canada will join in an interactive dialogue with Northwest policy makers and advocates to develop strategies to launch food policy councils in our region. The workshop will be moderated by Wendy McClure of the Seattle Dept of Neighborhoods and, among other speakers, will include Rod MacRae and Connie Whitehead of the Knoxville Food Policy Council.

Everyone concerned with the complex issues of food, hunger and preserving local agriculture are encouraged to attend all or part of the Community Food Security Coalition conference. With your participation, it will leave a lasting legacy through the formation of food policy councils in local communities throughout our region.

Sixty Northwest organizations have joined in planning and supporting the national Community Food Security Coalition conferences. Participating organizations include food banks, farmers markets, churches, nutrition programs, family farms, and organizations focused on local economies, sustainable fisheries, farming, social justice, and public health.