National Conference on Food and Farm Policy Held in Baltimore

From Cafeterias to Capitol Hill: Growing Healthy Kids, Farms and Communities

March 16-19, 2007
9 a.m.-5 p.m.

Radisson Plaza Lord Baltimore
20 West Baltimore Street
Baltimore, MD

March 16-19, 2007, leading food policy advocates and farm-to-cafeteria supporters will come together for “From Cafeterias to Capitol Hill: Growing Healthy Kids, Farms and Communities,” a national conference to discuss effective farm policy and learn about innovative farm-to-cafeteria programs. The conference was organized by the not-for-profit Community Food Security Coalition (CFSC) and co-hosted by the Center for a Livable Future at the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health.

Since 1996, farm-to-cafeteria programs have been addressing the dual issues of improving children’s health and providing new marketing options for family farmers by using locally grown seasonal produce, dairy and meat in schools and other institutions. Farm-to-cafeteria initiatives have proven to build markets for small and limited-resource farmers, while improving the quality of meals served at schools and colleges.

Featured speakers will include Dr. Joshua Sharfstein, Health Commissioner for Baltimore City, Dr. Roberta Sonnino, sustainable food researcher at Cardiff University, and Kelly Brownell, a renowned obesity researcher from Yale University.

The conference will also focus on U.S. farm policy and reauthorization of the farm bill.

For additional information, contact Anne Palmer with the Johns Hopkins Center for a Livable Future at 410-502-7578, or Andy Fisher with the Community Food Security Coalition at 310-487-0249.