Healthy Food Access

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HEALTHY FOOD ACCESS

Affordable healthy food. Working farmland. Thriving food businesses. Sustainable fisheries.

These are all vital to the health of communities and residents, and they’re aspects of a strong food system. Cultivating them on the local level requires thoughtful planning and policy and an understanding of how the food system functions as a whole.

MAPC helps municipalities with all aspects of food system planning, whether that means identifying policies and steps to increase healthy food access, keeping farms farming, growing food business opportunities, or getting local vegetables into schools.

QUESTIONS?

To learn more about healthy food access and food systems planning at MAPC, contact Heidi Stucker at hstucker@mapc.org or 617.933.0739.

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LEARN MORE ABOUT OUR WORK

Food Systems Planning

Led by the Public Health Department, our food systems planning work integrates land use, economic development, and the environmental perspective to help municipalities with:

Supporting community health and food access
Getting more vegetables and fruits into schools
Preserving agriculture
Encouraging urban agriculture
Connecting transportation systems to food retail
Growing food business opportunities

To learn more about how MAPC can support your community’s food system planning, contact Heidi Stucker at hstucker@mapc.org or 617-933-0739.

Food Systems Planning

Led by the Public Health Department, our food systems planning work integrates land use, economic development, and the environmental perspective to help municipalities with:

Supporting community health and food access
Getting more vegetables and fruits into schools
Preserving agriculture
Encouraging urban agriculture
Connecting transportation systems to food retail
Growing food business opportunities

To learn more about how MAPC can support your community’s food system planning, contact Heidi Stucker at hstucker@mapc.org or 617-933-0739.

Our Work

Massachusetts Local Food Action Plan

In 2015, MAPC and its partners completed the Massachusetts Local Food Action Plan on behalf of the Massachusetts Food Policy Council. The Plan lays out statewide goals for increasing agricultural and seafood production, food security, workforce training and employment, and protecting natural resources, and serves as the guide for state food policy priorities and action. The Massachusetts Food System Collaborative was established at the completion of the Plan, and coordinates its implementation.

Learn more about the Massachusetts Local Food Action Plan here.

Local Fresh Food Purchasing For Schools

MAPC partners with school districts across Eastern and Central Massachusetts on procuring healthy and regional food for students. Through this, schools are sourcing more local produce and seafood – streamlining students’ health and making them better learners. Learn more about our work here.

Promoting Health Through Urban Agriculture

Cambridge is developing an urban agriculture policy to allow for beekeeping, henkeeping, farming, and related urban agriculture activities in the City. Through these policies it hopes to promote equitable availability of healthy food, among other benefits.

MAPC’s Public Health Department partnered with the Cambridge Public Health Department to conduct a health lens analysis (HLA) of its urban agriculture policies. The HLA assesses the potential social, environmental, nutritional, and economic impacts of the proposed policy, and makes recommendations for implementing the policy to maximize benefits and equity. Read the Health Lens Analysis of Urban Agriculture Policy.

Everett: Advancing a Healthy and Just Food System

MAPC worked with the City of Everett, Everett Community Growers, and other project partners to conduct a community food assessment and developed an action plan to guide food system policymaking and aligned efforts in Everett. Through a participatory process with city representatives and community and food system stakeholders, the project assessed local food system assets and generated policy and program goals to advance public health, health equity, and racial equity through improving Everett’s food system. The planning process included a PhotoVoice project - community-based participatory research to further articulate the vision for a better food system in Everett.

Access the Everett Community Food Assessment & Plan here.

Get the PhotoVoice Project magazine here.

Food Policy

The Public Health Department and the Government Affairs Division partner to identify and advance state food policy that align with MAPC priorities and Public Health objectives. (Read more about MAPC's Legislative Priorities here.) In recent years we have advocated for passage of legislation, including:

Closing the SNAP Gap: An Act Improving Public Health Through a Common Application for Core Food, Health and Safety Net Programs

This legislation addresses the fact that an estimated 680,000 people who are receiving MassHealth are likely also eligible for the SNAP program, but not enrolled. Delivering benefits to eligible individuals supports them in meeting their basic needs; lowers healthcare costs; and generates an estimated $1.5 billion in economic stimulus.

Breakfast After the Bell: An Act Regarding Breakfast in the Classroom

Breakfast After the Bell aims to address these barriers and increase participation by requiring that high poverty schools serve breakfast at the beginning of the instructional day, after the bell. Serving breakfast once class has started ensures all students are able to eat – especially important for the majority of the State’s most vulnerable students who are not currently eating school breakfast.

Healthy Incentives Program: An Act Establishing the Healthy Incentives Program

Healthy Incentives Program (HIP) applies a one-dollar incentive on every Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) benefit dollar spent on vegetables and fruits when purchased at eligible SNAP retailers. This bill would permanently establish an incentives program that would ensure sustainability of HIP, and establish an incentives fund.

Resources

(TO GET YOU STARTED)

Food Systems Data

MAPC's food systems database compiles Massachusetts food systems data and maps in easily accessible formats to encourage community-level understanding of local food systems, health, and demographics. Use this data to answe questions about food access in your area, map food retailers and demographic information, identify where residents are at a high risk of food insecurity, find nearby emergency food providers, and more.

Datasets include:

Food retailers, farmers markets, liquor stores, fast food outlets, tobacco stores, and pharmacies
SNAP retailers in Massachusetts
Healthy Incentives Programs (HIP) retailers
Massachusetts emergency food providers
Massachusetts Food Access Index scores
SNAP/Food stamp enrollment
Demographic information, including food insecurity rates and environmental justice populations
Transportation-related spatial data

Click Here for Food Systems Datasets

Massachusetts Community Food Plans

A community food plan synthesizes community members’ shared vision for their food system and serves as a guide for advocates and municipal officials to make strategic changes. The recommended policies and programmatic changes in food plans provide a framework for action. Their specific actions range from developing farmland preservation and urban agriculture policies to supporting school and municipal procurement policies to increase purchases of healthy and local foods. And, many food plans adopt overarching goals to advance racial equity, public health, the economy, and ecological sustainability through food system changes. Several Community Food Plans have been produced in Massachusetts. MAPC has provided technical assistance support on many, particularly those conducted by Mass in Motion Communities. We are available to support your community’s efforts as well!

Check out community food plans and assessments at the links below.

Massachusetts Community Food Plans

Berkshire County:

- Berkshire County Community Food Assessment (Mass in Motion*)

Bristol, Norfolk, Plymouth Counties:

- The Southeastern Massachusetts Food System Assessment

Concord:

- Building Local Food Connections: A Community Food System Assessment for Concord, Mass.

Dudley Neighborhood, Boston:

- Case Study of the Dudley Real Food Hub

Everett:

- Everett Community Food Assessment & Plan (MAPC)

Framingham*:

- Framingham Community Food Assessment (Mass in Motion)
- Recommendation Overview

Franklin County and North Quabbin*:

- Food Access in Franklin County and the North Quabbin (Mass in Motion)

Hampshire County:

- Healthy Hampshire Food Access Assessment Report (Mass in Motion)
- Appendices

Holyoke:

- Local Foods, Local Places Community Action Plan (Mass in Motion)

Lowell:

- The Lowell Community Food Assessment (Mass in Motion)

Medford:

- Medford Food Security Plan (Mass in Motion)

Revere*:

- Fostering a Local Food Economy in Revere, MA: Food Business Growth and Community Engagement (Mass in Motion)

Salem:

- Salem Community Food Assessment (Mass in Motion)

Somerville:

- City of Somerville Community Food System Assessment and Plan
- Next Steps Posters

*The Massachusetts Department of Public Health Mass in Motion Municipal Wellness and Leadership Initiative is a movement to lower the risk of chronic disease by supporting equitable food access and active living opportunities in cities and towns throughout Massachusetts. Working with a diverse network of partners, Mass in Motion Communities implement proven policies and practices to create environments that support healthy living. MAPC is the technical assistance provider on food access strategies advanced by Mass in Motion Communities.

Municipal Strategies to Improve food Access Toolkit

This resource presents over 50 things cities and towns can do to improve food access and build strong food systems. The toolkit includes descriptions of each strategy, relevant case studies, example model bylaws, and links to additional resources. The toolkit is a springboard for action for municipal staff and board members, Mass in Motion coordinators, and community advocates. Check it out here.

Produced by Pioneer Valley Planning Commission and MAPC, 2016

Municipal Food Systems Planning Toolkit for MAPC Communities

A toolkit for municipal officials working with agricultural producers, residents, and other stakeholders to identify food systems priorities in terms of economic development, health, conservation, equity, and education. It is intended to guide communities through the food planning process, and includes several additional tools and resources. Check it out here.

Produced by CLF Ventures and MAPC, 2013

A Legal Guide for Community Kitchens In Massachusetts

This guide provides advice for making shared use of kitchens a success in your community in Massachusetts. It provides an overview of the legal issues to consider when starting or using a community kitchen and is meant to serve a starting point for your planning process. The information is targeted to organizations that host community kitchens and the community groups and entrepreneurs that use them, as well as allies and partners seeking to facilitate connecting potential users and kitchen managers. Check it out here.

Produced by Conservation Law Foundation’s Legal Food Hub in partnership with MAPC, 2018