Food Policy Council and Urban Food Policy in North America

Abstract

In North America, we can find various attempts to change local food systems by considering the viewpoints of multiple stakeholders. In particular, the concepts of food policy (Tim Lang) and citizen's engagement are key. In this paper, I will describe how these ideas have been discussed in North America by referring to various practical attempts to solve issues of local food systems, such as food policy councils, urban food policy, food charters, and so on. After describing the details of these activities and implications to food access issues, I argue that we need to consider the multi-functionality of food in urban society, and that this idea encourages us to develop a more coordinated relationship between food systems and urban planning in local contexts. Understanding the multi-functionality of food leads us to reconsider the nature of food from the viewpoint of “food as commons” rather than food as commodity.