City Harvest Programs » Advocacy

Terms

The goals of our advocacy work overlap with those of other organizations seeking equitable access to healthy, safe, affordable food for all people, and a healthy, economically viable food system. Below are some terms that describe the values at the base of this work.

Food Security: Access by all people at all times to enough food for an active healthy life. Food security includes at the minimum the ready availability of nutritionally adequate and safe foods, and an assured ability to acquire acceptable foods in socially acceptable ways. Conversely, people who do not meet the above definition are considered “food insecure.”

Community Food Systems: A community food system is comprised of the all those parties involved in different functions from food producer to consumer, and how their interactions affect food security and the nutritional status and health of the community. This includes, for example, how those involved in producing, marketing, processing, distribution, and consumption of food (both emergency food and marketed sources of food) function and interact.

City Harvest works with communities to improve the food system to achieve food security for all people.

Farm to School: Farm to School programs connect schools with local farms with the objectives of serving healthy meals in school cafeterias, improving student nutrition, providing health and nutrition education opportunities that will last a lifetime, and supporting local small farmers.

In the effort to improve school meals so that more children consume them, City Harvest advocates for increased funding for Farm to School programs.