Title
2025 Phoenix Food Action Plan
Description
This report provides the 2025 Phoenix Food Action Plan and requests City Council approval to adopt the plan. The plan is a community blueprint for achieving the Council-approved 2050 local food system goal to maintain a sustainable, healthy, equitable, and thriving local food system.
Report
Summary
In 2015, Phoenix residents approved a Healthy Food System goal in the City’s comprehensive general plan, PlanPHX, to promote growth of a healthy, affordable, secure and sustainable food system that makes healthy food available to all Phoenix residents. In 2016, Phoenix City Council adopted the 2050 Environmental Sustainability Goals, including a Local Food System Goal to maintain a healthy, sustainable, equitable, and thriving local food system.
A healthy, sustainable, equitable and thriving local food system creates economic opportunity, and improves health and quality of life by: increasing Phoenix residents' ability to access healthy, affordable food; strengthening the economy through connections among growers, distributors, and consumers; encouraging consumers to grow their own food; providing opportunities for urban farmers to grow food; and supporting various methods that make healthy food available, such as community gardens, urban farms, farmers markets, community-supported agriculture, aquaponics, retailers, and other unique opportunities.
Phoenix has made a healthy food system a priority; to support this effort, the City has created this first 2025 Food Action Plan to implement actions and policies, develop and enhance partnerships, to support people most impacted by food insecurity and hunger, all toward achieving the goal of healthy food for all in Phoenix. This plan begins to address the entire food system and focuses on short term strategies to be accomplished by 2025. Annual evaluation of the goals and strategies included in this plan is recommended as necessary to respond to changing conditions, technology, and to continue to strengthen the viability of the plan.
Status of the Local Food System
In gathering input for the plan, the common thread was that food is an important means of connection. Sharing food is a way to show love, and people also feel that food connects them to their community. Achievement of local food system goals results in reduced rates of hunger, obesity, and diet-related diseases through elimination of food deserts, increasing urban agriculture, and adopting zoning, land use guidelines, and other policies to improve the food system. A food desert as defined by the U.S. Department of Agriculture as an area without ready access to fresh, healthy and affordable food. Of the 55 food deserts in Maricopa County, 43 are in Phoenix, encompassing nearly half the Phoenix population.
The City’s Office of Environmental Programs (OEP), in partnership with the Maricopa County Food System Coalition (MarCo), received a grant from the Gila River Indian Community to complete a regional Community Food Assessment to understand the current state of the food system in Maricopa County. Major findings from the assessment:
Agriculture and food influence major social, health and economic problems, as well as opportunities. Maricopa County is a national leader in agriculture. The regional food system is working very well for a small number of large producers and those exporting their products out of the region. An estimated $1.95 billion total sales of on-farm agricultural production were contributed to the Maricopa County economy in 2015.
Despite our agricultural capacity and national leadership, our food system is not working for many people in Maricopa County, especially low-income, ethnic minorities, seniors, and children. Regardless of income, consumers were concerned about the quality of the food they eat. People want education on nutrition, community resources, gardening, and how to cook. Overall, affordability is an issue.
We face serious challenges in sustaining regional agriculture and community food, especially with regard to land, water and relationships. Farmers in Maricopa County are among the most productive vegetable growers in the United States; yet they may very well be the most isolated farmers.
Key Strengths: Growers are capable; independent distributors are engaged; food system leaders are strong; consumer markets are strong and diverse. Key Weaknesses and Gaps: Farmers feel isolated; too few growers are serving the local market; declining margins and skills gaps threaten growth; dedication to local food is limited; access to supportive infrastructure and resources is limited; and civic officials hold limited interest. Water and sprawl also can drive decline in county farmland.
South Phoenix Food Action Plan Development
An opportunity arose in the South Phoenix area to define more specific action and strategies for the area through a grant received from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency Local Foods, Local Places program. The outcome was a South Phoenix-specific Food Action Plan that details recommended actions targeted for the unique and rich history of this geographic area. The work completed contributed to the overall city-wide plan and is included within that plan.
Plan Development
The OEP is the local food system goal leader and is tasked with developing and implementing actions to achieve the goal. In 2017, OEP convened an interdepartmental food action team to understand existing food system work across departments, to learn from external food system stakeholders, and to coordinate development of a food action plan. The team consisted of staff from the following departments: Community & Economic Development; Human Services; Housing; Parks & Recreation; Planning & Development; and Public Works. OEP then initiated work on the plan with numerous organizations currently working on food system issues and with community members. Additionally, an online survey was conducted and input was gathered from residents at public events. Development of a Food Action Plan was the recommendation from the interdepartmental team and external stakeholders. The data collected was used to establish priorities for goals, strategies, and recommended actions to be achieved within the five-year timeframe, that is, by 2025.
Approach
The Food Action Plan recognizes that collaboration, coordination, and relationship-building are important to achieving the goals and will incorporate the following:
Create and sustain strong interdepartmental coordination on food issues.
Develop and enhance partnerships with other governmental, nonprofit and private sector organizations within the City and the County.
Encourage collaboration among community organizations, institutions, neighborhoods, and governments.
Focus on and support communities that are most at-risk for food insecurity, hunger, and diet-related disease and intentionally incorporate equitable practices.
Conduct inclusive community engagement.
Use data to evaluate effectiveness of goals and strategies, to inform priorities and to track progress.
Plan Goals
The Food Action Plan includes five goals for achieving a healthy, sustainable, equitable, and thriving local food system. After more than 1.5 years of gathering data and working on several food-related projects, it was clear that the City could impact food systems in a direct way through policies and indirectly through collaboration and advocacy. Below are the goals and associated strategies.
GOAL 1: Healthy Food for All
All people living in Phoenix should have enough to eat and have access to affordable, healthy, local, and culturally appropriate food.
Strategy 1: Incorporate healthy food access into existing and future land use plans, with initial focus on designated food desert areas.
Strategy 2: Use existing or develop new financial resources for food production and infrastructure.
Strategy 3: Partner with schools and others to support and promote education for youth and adults on health, nutrition, growing and cooking food.
GOAL 2: Strengthen the Local Economy
Businesses that produce, process, distribute, and sell local and healthy food should be recognized as integral to the economy and encouraged to grow and thrive in Phoenix.
Strategy 1: Recognize food production as a highest and best use of land.
Strategy 2: Incorporate agriculture, food processing and distribution into existing and future economic development plans.
Strategy 3: Establish a local food buying preference in future City contracts.
Strategy 4: Partner with stakeholders to support and promote a Buy Local Food campaign.
GOAL 3: Celebrate Local and Diverse Agriculture
Growing food in Phoenix and the region should be easy and valued whether for personal use or for business.
Strategy 1: Update codes and ordinances where appropriate to eliminate barriers and encourage developing a heathy sustainable food infrastructure (hydroponics, aquaponics, indoor farming.)
Strategy 2: Explore development of agriculture community land trusts and/or preservation mechanisms.
Strategy 3: Explore opportunities for food production, i.e., urban orchards, farms, and community gardens on City-owned land with focus on food desert areas within irrigation districts.
Strategy 4: Support the growth of land uses that contribute to a healthy and sustainable food system (grocery stores, community gardens, urban farms and other urban agriculture elements.)
Strategy 5: Use existing and explore new job training resources, where feasible, and partner with others to providing training opportunities for all areas of the food system.
GOAL 4: Maintain a Sustainable Environment
Food-related waste should be prevented, reused, or recycled. Sustainable food production practices that maintain a healthy environment are desired.
Strategy 1: Update zoning to clarify food waste diversion i.e., composting opportunities.
Strategy 2: Support and promote methods to prevent edible food from entering the waste stream.
Strategy 3: Promote and support sustainable practices in all areas of the food system.
GOAL 5: A Resilient Food System
Policies and actions that address local and global challenges posed by climate change, urbanization, political and economic crises, population growth and other factors, are needed.
Strategy 1: Research policies and actions that plan for future shocks related to changing population growth, hazards, economic conditions and climate.
Strategy 2: Convene local food producers with city staff, leaders, and elected officials to build trust and understanding.
Strategy 3: Explore funding opportunities from federal, state, and philanthropic organizations for food system activities and staff.
Measuring Progress
The following areas will be measured on an annual basis to report on the progress of the actions recommended through the following indicators:
Percent of Phoenix residents who are food secure.
Acres of city-owned land used for food production.
Value of food grown and purchased locally (Maricopa County-wide total.)
Value of local food sold at Phoenix farmers markets.
Value of Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program benefits redeemed at Phoenix farmers markets.
Number of businesses providing healthy food.
Percent of food loss prevented through food rescue.
Percent of residents reporting health-related behavior change or improvement.
Percent of residents reporting increased interaction with urban agriculture.
Concurrence/Previous Council Action
The Transportation, Infrastructure, and Innovation Subcommittee unanimously recommended approval of the item on Feb. 5, 2020, with an amendment that the plan include a schedule for completion of actions.
Department
Responsible Department
This item is submitted by Deputy City Manager Karen Peters and the Office of Environmental Programs.