working for a sustainable future: nfca talks about healthy food access at nefu convention
DESCRIPTION
Neighboring Food Coop Association presents their Healthy Food Access Project at the 2013 Convention of the New England Farmers Union.TRANSCRIPT
Erbin Crowell & Bonnie Hudspeth, NFCA
New England Farmers Union Convention
6th December 2013 // Newport, RI
Partnering forHealthy Food
Access
Food Co-ops & Healthy Food Access
Food Security in New England
Between 2007 and 2011, participation in food
stamps (SNAP) increased by more than 50% in
every state in New England:
STATE Participation 2010 Growth 2007-2011
CT 10% 55%
ME 17% 54%
MA 11% 86%
NH 8% 88%
RI 12% 136%
VT 13% 78%
Source: “The Role of Food Stamps in the Recession,” Communities & Banking, Fall 2013, Federal Reserve Bank of Boston, http://www.bostonfed.org.
Some Questions
• Is there a role for food co-ops in
addressing food insecurity?• Do we have an obligation or legacy to
consider in this challenge?• Is there an opportunity for food co-ops in
addressing food insecurity?• Who are our partners in addressing food
insecurity?
The International Year of Co-ops
Recognizing the contribution of of co-ops to:
• Poverty reduction
• Employment generation
• Social integration
• Fairness & globalization
• Conflict resolution
• Food security
Co-operative Origins
What was the motivation of the Rochdale
Pioneers, who codified the values and
principles on which the co-operative
movement has based since 1844?
We know it today as food security.
Dame Pauline Green, PresidentInternational Co-operative Alliance
Challenges
Industrial England
• Dislocation of Local Economies
• Dramatic Shifts in Wealth
• Concentration of Economic Control
• Limited Sources / Markets for Food
• Contamination
• Unaffordable
Solution
Co-operation:
• Mutual Self-Help
• Local Ownership
• Democratic Control
• Affordable Membership
• Healthy, Basic Food
• Local Co-op Development
NEFU / NFCA Partnership
Food Co-ops & NEFU:• Shared Vision: Thriving regional food
system, co-operative enterprise• Stable market for local producers• Stable jobs, infrastructure for local
communities• Affiliate relationship: Collaboration on
policy and advocacy• Development: Accessing resources
Our Co-ops, Working Together...
• 34 member co-ops and start-ups
• 94,000+ member-owners
• 7,250 + new member-owners in 2012
• 1,500 + employees
• $225 million in annual revenue
• $30+ million in local purchases
• $2.2 million in Fair Trade purchases
• $2 million in purchases from other co-ops
Food Co-ops & Healthy Food Access
Jane’s Trust Grant through NEFUEF:
• Increase access to healthy food and
co-op member/ownership
• Support peer to peer collaboration
among member co-ops on programs
• Raise profile of co-ops as tools for
increasing food security in our region
“A Place at the Table”
• National awareness campaign
• Ten NFCA co-ops participating
• Coordinated screenings, community dialogs
Progress
• Resource development: Timeline
Financial planning
Toolbox
• Peer Collaboration
• New Partners
• Seeding national dialog
• Sharing our story
Next Steps
• Continued technical assistance
• Peer to Peer HFA Audits
• Presentations at Regional & National Conferences
• Supporting 5 food co-ops in rolling out HFA
programs in early 2014
• Continued resource development
• Exploring further partnerships
www.nfca.coop/healthyfoodaccess
Erbin Crowell & Bonnie Hudspeth
Neighboring Food Co-op Association
[email protected] // [email protected]
www.nfca.coop
www.facebook.com/neighboring