Humboldt State University hosts the Humboldt Food Policy Council’s Food Summit 2016 on Saturday, February 27, in the Kate Buchanan Room (download a campus map here). The event is open to the public, and registration is available online at foodsummit2016.org.
“We’re focusing regionally on what a healthy food system looks like. We want to gather to ask what makes a food system sustainable, and think about how can we make sure we are working towards that. The ultimate goal is making sure everyone in this region has access to healthy food and the resources for creating best business practices,” says May Patiño, one of the summit’s organizers and an HSU Anthropology graduate student.
According to the Humboldt Food Policy Council, a food system encompasses all the activities that take place from farm production to consumption to waste management—in other words, “farm to table” and beyond. The availability, cost, transport miles, quality of food and waste diversion are all linked to these processes, which have far-reaching impacts.
Best-selling author and educator Anna Lappé, who has written extensively on food systems at the national level, delivers the summit’s keynote address at 9:45 a.m. Lappé is the author of multiple books on sustainable food systems and has been featured in The New York Times, Gourmet, O magazine, and more. Her most recent book is Diet for a Hot Planet: The Climate Crisis at the End of Your Fork and What You Can Do About It.
A wide range of non-profit organizations and food-focused organizations will host breakout sessions at the summit. They include:
- Executive Director of Food for People, Humboldt County’s food bank, Anne Holcomb will host a session on access to healthy, affordable and culturally appropriate foods with oncologist Dr. Ellen Mahoney to explore the impact of food on health outcomes.
- Jacques and Amy Neukom of the Neukom Family Farm, along with Humboldt Farm Bureau board member and local farmer John LaBoyteaux, will host a session on economic viability and opportunity, especially in regards to land access and maintaining family ownership of agricultural land.
- Rhonda Wiedenbeck, owner of Beck’s Bakery, and Natural Decadence’s owners Rosa Dixon and Milia Lando will talk about local production, processing and distribution from the vantage points of both sourcing locally and exporting local products.
- HSU’s Sustainability & Waste Coordinator Morgan King and Juliette Bohn, owner of Strategic Solutions for a Sustainable World, will provide clarity on current local waste diversion efforts and upcoming opportunities.
- Humboldt County Office of Education’s Nutrition Education Coordinator Linda Prescott and Farm to School Coordinator Erin Derden-Little team up with Meagan Baldy, Klamath Trinity Resource Conservation District Coordinator, for a talk on agricultural literacy and food education, with an emphasis on eating healthy in Indian country and farm to table nutrition in schools.
- Blake and Stephanie Alexandre of Alexandre Farms and Melanie Cunningham of Shakefork Community Farm will showcase their successes in sustainable agricultural practices. Raising families on the farm and reducing environmental impact will be the focus of this informative talk.
Fueling the day’s activities is a farm to table lunch served by the North Coast Co-op, featuring local greens, grain salads, protein options, and more. Vegan and gluten-free options will be available. A Zero-Waste Certified event, participants are encouraged to bring their own clean containers to take home leftovers.
The Humboldt Food Policy Council is hosted by the California Center for Rural Policy (CCRP). The council is a network of food systems stakeholders, including grocers, farmers, public health, hospitals, economic developers, local food advocates, planners, food pantries, elected officials, and consumers.
To register and for more information, visit foodsummit2016.org, or contact Barbara Browning with CCRP at Barbara.Browning@humboldt.edu. Space is limited and registration must be completed by Sunday, Feb. 21. A $10 donation is suggested.
Persons who wish to request disability-related accommodations should contact the CCRP at (707) 826.3409 or ccrp@humboldt.edu.