The Three E’s of Agriculture: Equity and Sustainable Food Systems APA California Conference September 25, 2017 Trish Kelly Managing Director Trish Kelly Managing Director September 25, 2017

Valley Vision Food and Ag Portfolio Next Economy Central Valley AgPlus Food and Beverage Mfgr. Consortium Food and Ag Workforce Cluster Food System Sacramento Region Food System Action Plan Healthy Foods Task Force Farm to School Network Related Projects: Farm to Fork Stockton Food Action Plan Connected Capital Broadband Consortium Community Health Needs Assessments Food Waste to Energy

Agricultural Assets/Gaps And yet… 90-160% increase in food served by food banks over 6 years 22.5 million pounds of food distributed by the region’s food banks annually Increasing levels of overweight and obesity $215 million could be added to the local economy from more participation in federal nutrition assistance programs Our bounty… $2.4 billion in farmgate value More than 150 different crops 3.4 million tons annual tons of production 7200 farms and ranches; 1.3 million acres More than 37,000 related jobs More than $7.2 billion in economic value Sources: Food System Action Plan, SACOG

Food System Action Plan Integrates full spectrum of food system issues within a single policy framework Identifies gaps and prioritize actions Provides roadmap for regional and local action More than 250 community stakeholders engaged First-ever: food desert maps overlaid with major food access points including emergency food distribution sites (SACOG); nonprofit inventory; food distributed through emergency food system and gaps

Goal 1: Ensure the viability of the food and ag economy at all scales. Goal 2: Increase the amount of locally-grown produce distributed to the regional food system. Goal 3: Increase access to fresh, healthy produce, especially in underserved communities. Goal 4: Increase consumption of healthy foods through access to food and nutrition education and knowledge.

Food System Action Plan Implementation Food Access: Emergency Food Distribution System Urban Ag Policies and Projects Workforce Pathways Other Food Access/Literacy Projects

Food Access

Emergency Food Provider Network Four major food banks serving 22.5 million pounds of food, including 7.5 million pounds of fresh produce Serving 245,000 people through 400 distribution sites, but gaps and inefficiencies Moving to fresh produce model, more cold storage and hub capacity needed Community Foundation funded feasibility study to increase efficiencies, build infrastructure capacity matched to food desert and hunger gaps

Emergency Food System Map – Sacramento County >400 food service providers in the emergency food system network Gaps in emergency food distribution in food deserts Food banks as change agents - leading the way toward a fresh produce model Organizational & infrastructure capacity needed to increase ability to handle fresh produce, address food insecurity, improve health

Urban Ag Sacramento Urban Ag Coalition - City and County of Sacramento adopted urban ag ordinances; includes Incentive Zone, with tax incentives for landowners (vacant, blighted parcels) Soil Born Farms and Yisrael Family Urban Farm are leaders – focusing on youth education to expand the movement, and giving residents tools to grow their own food Soil Born – 55 acre American River Ranch site, runs a school garden program at 10 campuses in 2 school districts (in food deserts) supported by California Endowment Building Health Communities; sells organic produce at farm stand, through CSAs, and to stores, restaurants, etc.; Harvest Sacramento

West Sacramento Urban Farm Program Managed by the Center for Land-Based Learning Public and Private sites, 5 urban farms with 8 farm entrepreneurs Sponsors: City, banks, grocery stores, private developers, and ag businesses Leasing reduces barriers to entry but still costs for soil remediation, irrigation, water hook ups and other fees Contributing to community redevelopment, environmental remediation, food desert access

Education/Workforce Development – Pathways out of Poverty Valley Vision identifying career pathways in high demand occupations to address critical skills gaps, working with Los Rios Center of Excellence and SACOG GAPS: next generation farmers and farm mangers; in-field and off farm technicians and mechanics; drivers; food processing, packaging and distribution workers; ag and food science technicians More than 1,000 projected job openings a year K-12, Strong Workforce Program pathways

More Cluster Urban vs. Rural Jobs

To Increase Local Food Production We Need Farmers Developing 1st Certified California Ag Apprenticeship Program, building on current farm academy programs

Other Food Access, Food Literacy Strategies Food hubs/food incubators: SACOG food hub case studies, Alchemist CDC incubator feasibility study for underserved communities (place-based job creation) Sac City Unified School District Central Kitchen project, Healthy Food Task Force/School Wellness Policy The Farm to School Network to help identify school district procurement capacities and needs for locally sourced foods (Procurement policies are a barrier) Food Literacy Center – weekly after-school programs in elementary schools, new urban farm and Literacy Center

Contact: Trish Kelly, Managing Director, Valley Vision 2320 Broadway, Sacramento, CA 95818 (916) 325-1630 Trish.kelly@valleyvision.org http://valleyvision.org/projects/food-system-action-plan http://valleyvision.org/sites/files/pdf/coe-los_rios_food_and_ag- web.pdf https://www.sacog.org/rural-urban-connections-strategy