Community members are invited to participate in an online survey to gather input on Whatcom County’s food system and proposed goals for a revised food plan. The food system is a network of people and activities connecting production, transformation (processing), distribution, consumption, and food waste management. It also addresses policies, influences, and imbalances.
The survey will remain open through July 1. All Whatcom County residents are invited to participate.
The survey asks for feedback on five proposed food plan goals:
- Cultivate equity and justice.
- Protect and regenerate our soil, water and land.
- Build a resilient and vibrant local food economy.
- Ensure access to healthy food for all.
- Adapt our community food system to a changing climate.
"A Food System Plan is only as strong as the values that inform it," said committee chair Riley Sweeney. "Help us craft a plan that reflects the goals and values we all share around food and the ways it moves through our community."
Other engagement opportunities will happen throughout the next few months. The committee will also use results from the current survey to refine the goals before putting out a second survey in the late summer asking for more detailed feedback.
The Whatcom County Food System Committee advises the Whatcom County Council and County Executive. The purpose of this committee is to draft, implement, provide oversight for, and regularly update a county-wide food system plan to strengthen our local and regional food system.