Los Angeles Food Policy Council

Join us on Linkedin Live for a meet-and-greet with our Executive Director, Alba Velasquez, where she'll be sharing her story and the collective wins we've made over the last fiscal year thanks to your support. You'll have the opportunity to ask questions and learn about ways to join our good food movement!

Thank you to everyone who joined us for our 13th annual Food Day Series in October, "Building Bridges to Healthy Food Access." The week was filled with great conversations with an LA Foodscapes panel, farmer workshops, a full day summit with Los Angeles County Department of Public Health, and a resolution and celebration at City Hall with City of Los Angeles Councilmembers Eunisses Hernandez and Tim McOsker. Together we acknowledged the good work throughout the region being done by Good Food Champions in each City of LA Council District, LA County Supervisorial District, and highlighted partner organizations creating healthy food access for the community of Los Angeles. Thank you to our community partners: Dipa Shah-Patel, MPH, RD of Los Angeles County Department of Public Health Abigail Marquez of City of Los Angeles Community Investment for Families Department USDA Gu Grocery HUNGER ACTION LOS ANGELES Los Angeles Community Garden Council Food Access LA Hollywood Food Coalition Asian Pacific Islander Forward Movement LA Compost Grow Good Ignite the Light of Hope Thai Community Development Center City Hall Farmers Market Cielo Food Finders Food Bank, Inc. Food Forward Inc. Farm2People Larta Institute Food For Health Black Women Vend PHFE WIC Doug Smith of Inclusive Action for the City Brittney Valles of Regarding Her Food Mona Holmes of Eater Guelaguetza Alexandra Suh of Koreatown Immigrant Workers Alliance (KIWA) Bobby Kobara of TMC Community Capital Thank you to our sponsors: Kaiser Permanente Cedars-Sinai Children's Hospital Los Angeles (CHLA) Butterfly Equity Foundation Councilmember Eunisses Hernandez Councilmember Tim McOsker Check out the entire recap, here: https://lnkd.in/gBPCHJXV

Did you know the LA Regional Food Bank’s Extra Helpings Program redirected more than 28.3 million pounds of food in 2023? As a result of over 500 food donors, the Extra Helpings Program helped ensure that 28.3 million pounds of food went to our neighbors in need of food instead of landfills through 220 partner agencies across LA County. Community partners could collect nutritious, perishable, and prepared food from grocery stores and other local sources in their neighborhoods. Learn more about this vital program and how to get involved. https://lnkd.in/g4Sku53u

Cultivating Farmers is building a stronger regional foodshed by empowering our local farmers! This year, we held 5 workshops covering topics ranging from on-farm water recycling to connecting with schools, farmers markets, and restaurants. LAFPC is proud to be serving farmers and ranchers who have been historically underrepresented, especially those identifying as BIPOC and Veterans. Looking forward to 2025, where we’ll dive deep into the business side of farming, with sessions on business planning, taxation, bookkeeping, and more. Let’s foster our region’s food systems together!?? To learn more about our Cultivating Farmers program, visit: https://lnkd.in/gay_Ze52 ?? Photography by: Tony Torres?

We’re thrilled to announce Paula Daniels, founder of the Los Angeles Food Policy Council, as the first Executive Director of the Los Angeles County Office of Food Equity. Paula’s leadership marks a new chapter for food justice, building on LAFPC’s 15 years of work to create a fair, resilient food system for all Angelenos. Starting in January, she will work closely with County leaders to address food inequities and strengthen our local food system. I first met Paula when I joined LAFPC seven years ago. She has a powerful presence and a depth of expertise that inspires everyone around her to learn, grow, and take action. I feel fortunate to have worked alongside her, and in my role as LAFPC’s Executive Director, I am proud to uphold the values and foundation she helped establish. With Paula now leading the Office of Food Equity, I’m excited to see our shared work deepen with County agencies as key partners. The Office has incredible potential for innovative growth as a dedicated County department, and we’re thrilled to work together to achieve this goal and advance our shared food equity mission. -Alba M. Velasquez, Executive Director https://lnkd.in/gfFiPdeA

?? Office Hours! ?? Missed our Farm-to-Restaurant discussion or have more questions? We’re hosting a follow-up session! ??? Friday, November 8th at 11 am Join Sam Rogers and Bethany Harris for an open Q&A, where you’ll get tailored advice on building Farm-to-Restaurant partnerships that boost sales and strengthen our local food system. ?? Sign up: https://lnkd.in/gqq-bWTF Don’t miss out! #FarmToTable #CultivatingFarmers #Gjusta #OfficeHours

Vote YES on Prop 4! The Climate Proposition 4 bill provides significant benefits by enhancing environmental sustainability, protecting infrastructure against wildfires, reducing water pollution, and building resilience against extreme heat, which is crucial for the food system. The bill helps protect agricultural lands from extreme weather, drought, and soil degradation by funding climate resilience projects, ensuring a stable food supply. Its investment in clean drinking water and improved water infrastructure ensures that communities and agricultural producers have reliable access to water, essential for growing crops and maintaining food security. To Learn more visit, yesonprop4ca.com

Councilmember Eunisses Hernandez is our official 13th annual Food Day sponsor who will be leading our City Council meeting Resolution and South Lawn Celebration this Friday, October 25 from 10am -2pm. Our Executive Director, Alba M. Velasquez, got to catch up with the Councilmember at Yue Wa Market in Chinatown, who is a part of our current Healthy Markets LA Cohort, to learn more about the store, our program, and to celebrate our Food Day partnership! To attend Food Day at City Hall, register here: https://lnkd.in/gXiCiQH7 https://lnkd.in/gXeQ4Ufe

We're excited to announce our speakers for this Friday's Food Day celebration on South Lawn at City Hall! Each one of these speakers bring a wealth of knowledge on how to best support healthy food access for all Angelenos -- we're honored to have them join us this Friday, October 25 with our speaking portion commencing at 12:10pm with our Executive Director and host Alba M. Velasquez. Councilmember Eunisses Hernandez, City of Los Angeles Council District 1 Councilmember Tim McOsker, City of Los Angeles Council District 15 Abigail Marquez, General Manager of Community Investment for Families Department at City of Los Angeles Dipa Shah-Patel, MPH, RD, Director of Nutrition and Physical Activity Program at Los Angeles County Department of Public Health To learn more and register, visit: https://lnkd.in/g5PK_33a

HEAL demands corporations be held accountable for exploiting children and workers! According to the U.S. Department of Labor, there has been a 69 percent increase in the illegal employment of children by companies across the United States. Recently, at least two dozen children (minors under 18 years old) were illegally hired to clean meat processing facilities by a Tennessee-based sanitation company. The HEAL Food Alliance, along with 65 organizations representing farmers, ranchers, food and farm workers, Indigenous groups, scientists, public health advocates, animal welfare organizations, policy experts, community organizers, and activists, sent a letter to Senate and House ranking members of the?Agriculture, Nutrition & Forestry Committee and the?Committee on Agriculture urging their support of The Child Labor Exploitation Accountability Act?(S.1288/ H.R.2822), introduced by Senator Booker and Representative Casar. https://lnkd.in/dvFW_9db