Over the past five years, Oregon Food Bank, in partnership with the University of Oregon RARE AmeriCorps program, has been conducting community food assessments in rural communities throughout Oregon. These assessments are collaborative processes that engage citizens in the local community. Participants systematically examine a broad range of local food issues and assets. Communities can then use this information to improve local food security by implementing systems tailored to their location, including improved distribution, gleaning practices and connecting farmers with local markets.
The State of Our Community Food System provides a summary of the 13 assessments completed as of May 2013. The report highlights themes, issues, and opportunities seen throughout Oregon’s rural communities. Special focus is given to groups or organizations that have created model programs or initiatives to address specific concerns. The conclusion section draws from recommendations identified in the community food assessments and provides suggestions for moving Oregon communities towards more resilient community food systems.
Conversations Across the Food System explains the underlying theories behind the community assessment approach and highlights specific methodologies. The report includes useful tips from previous community food assessors. To date, 15 assessments covering 22 counties have been completed with plans to complete assessments for all of Oregon’s rural counties by 2015. Links to completed reports can be found on Oregon Food Bank’s website.
Grocery stores play an integral role in ensuring the food security of rural communities. But as David Proctor and his team at the Center for Engagement and Community Development at Kansas State University have found, they are also “important cogs in the economic engine of rural America” and provide “a sense of cultural and civic identity to a community.” Sustaining Rural Communities presents findings based on 70 rural grocery store owner surveys that were completed as part of the Community Food Assessments. Like other parts of the country, many rural grocery stores in Oregon face challenges in keeping their business running. This report tells the story of rural grocery stores – their challenges and successes – in the hope that other organizations will join in supporting our rural grocery stores.
For more information about Oregon Food Bank’s Community Food Systems efforts, visit: http://oregonfoodbank.org/cfs
About Oregon Food Bank
With sufficient public will and support of the entire community, we believe it is possible to eliminate hunger and its root causes. Oregon Food Bank collects and distributes food through a network of four Oregon Food Bank branches and 17 independent regional food banks serving Oregon and southwest Washington. The Oregon Food Bank Network helps nearly 1 in 5 households fend off hunger. Oregon Food Bank also leads statewide efforts to increase resources for hungry families and to eliminate the root causes of hunger through advocacy, nutrition education, garden education, and helping communities strengthen local food systems.