Beat News Article Summary

'Locavores' Want Power to Shape Food Policy
Article Published: Tue, May. 26, 2009 02:00AM
Article Summary:
The North Carolina State Legislature is crafting a legislation to create a 24-person Sustainable Local Food Policy Council. The senate bill passed in early May and the House is now taking up that version. The idea of a policy change came after a series of regional meetings across the state on how to support in-state food economies.
The regional meetings culminated in a two-day statewide summit in Raleigh on May 11 and 12 sponsored by the Center for Environmental Farming Systems. Nancy Creamer, director of CEFS, says those meetings were used to determine the best ways to support local sustainable farmers. But now, Creamer says, a food policy council is needed to put those ideas into action.
"Now the work has to happen to get things done," Creamer said.
The Senate bill directs the food policy council to study policies such as, public school food programs, public assistance such as food stamp usage for sustainable foods amongst other issues.

Analysis:
I do agree that some type of uniformity is needed in order to identify and educate all parties involved in the sustainability of local food economies.

There is one thing I found contradictory in the story, probably through no fault of the reporter, but more likely the policy writers; one of the directives of the senate bill was to study, “How to overcome regulatory and policy barriers for farmers and entrepreneurs who produce local sustainable food.” So part of the new policy would be how to overcome the new policy.