POC Bristol Food Policy Council, Bristol- UK
Redesigning city food governance
Cities don’t have any specific competences when it comes to food. The City of Bristol, inspired by Canada’s and America’s example, has created a Food Policy Council. The Council is an informal advisory group made up of about a dozen key stakeholders. It investigates food issues at the city level and advises local policy makers on food-related issues. It summarises its function and role as ‘validating, influencing, connecting, communicating and creating visibility’ on all aspects of sustainable food matters.
Food Policy Council
The Bristol Food Policy Council was launched in March 2011, becoming the first Food Policy Council within the UK. It has been established as an independent body that includes representatives from the local government and a board of local key players. International Food Policy Councils aim at educating officials and the public, shaping public policy, improving coordination between existing programs along with starting new programs, mapping and publicising local food resources, creating new transit routes in order to connect underserved areas with full-service grocery stores, persuading government agencies to purchase from local farmers, organising community gardens and farmers’ markets, etc.
Sustainable Food in Urban Communities
Bristol’s experience is part of 130 promising policy practices being experimented through the URBACT Thematic Network “Sustainable Food in Urban Communities”. The network, who’s been exchanging projects for 3 years now, is a collaboration between 10 European cities including Brussels Environment of the Brussels Capital Region (lead partner), Bristol’s City Council, the City of Messina, the Municipality of Amersfoort, the City of Lyon, the City of Gothenburg, Vaslui’s Municipality, Ourense’s City Council, the City of Oslo and Athens’ Development and Destination Management agency. These ten cities have joined forces to develop low-carbon, resource-efficient urban food systems by implementing Local Action Plans.
- Porteurs de projet/Project holders :ville de / city of Bristol
- Acteurs/Stakeholders : Ce cas provient du réseau Sustainable Food in Urban Communities cofinancé par l’Union européenne dans le cadre du programme URBACT / This case comes from the Sustainable Food in Urban Communities network co-financed by the European Union through the URBACT programme
- Crédits photo / photo credits : ville de / city of Bristol