Local Food

Agriculture is a critical element of Michigan’s economy. It is also of vital importance to our local economy. Every year, over $1 billion dollars are spent in Washtenaw County alone on food. Statewide, agriculture accounted for a total economic impact of over $71 billion.

Food is a central part of all of our lives. The average American family spends almost $6,000 on food every year, representing a significant percentage of our purchases. Also, like clean water, healthy food is a prerequisite to a high quality of life. Sadly, 59% of Michigan residents have limited access to healthy food and there are areas in all of Michigan’s 83 counties that suffer from a lack of fresh fruits and vegetables.

Of course, the food we eat contributes to our overall health. Childhood obesity, diabetes and heart disease are a few of the more infamous outcomes of a food system too reliant on processed products. Fortunately, what’s good for our health is also what’s good for our pocketbooks and our palates.

Fresh foods are healthier, tastier and a boost to our local economy. When we eat locally, we usually eat less processed and therefore healthier food that contributes to local jobs. One of Michigan’s many advantages is our diverse agricultural economy. In fact, Michigan is second only to California in the diversity of agricultural products we produce. State government should be taking better advantage of this asset.

As your next State Representative, I will focus on creating incentives and opportunities for citizens to connect with local food, such as:

Implement Standards for Institutional Buyers

State funded operations should be required to buy some minimum percentage of fresh produce from nearby sources. As your state representative, I will propose requiring schools, prisons and universities to buy at least 10% of their produce from Michigan growers by 2015 and at least 20% of their produce from Michigan sources by 2020.

Incentives for Fresh Food in Schools

Michigan should dedicate a portion of its economic development budget to making fresh, local fruits and vegetables affordable for schools. Doing so will create tangible and immediate economic development. Specifically, Michigan should create an incentive for schools to purchase local, fresh foods. For example, the average school spends between $0.20-$0.30 on fruits and vegetables. Even a small incentive such as an additional $0.05/lunch for the purchase of locally grown produce could enrich our school lunches and keep tens of millions of food dollars in Michigan.

Expand Farm to Institution Programs

Institutional buyers usually have strict requirements that they must meet in terms of budget, food safety and nutrition. One barrier to purchasing local food is the insufficient scale of small growers to justify the financial investment in equipment to quantify safety and nutritional content. Michigan should make overcoming this barrier an economic development priority by assisting the formation of cooperative efforts to secure the necessary certifications and approvals to sell local food in large institutions.

Improve Access to Fresh Foods

There are a number of ways that Michigan can improve citizen access to fresh foods. For one, Michigan should provide technical assistance and start –up funding for farmers markets and provide assistance to farmers markets choosing to accept EBT. Also, Michigan should establish a Healthy Corner Store Initiative to raise the number of corner stores that provide healthy and fresh options for their customers.

An unreasonable percentage of federal food assistance dollars are spent on over-processed foods with no nutritional value. A successful Healthy Corner Store Initiative would focus on making more fresh, local food available on corner store shelves.

Protect Extension Funding

Local MSU Extension operations provide on-site, local support for farmers and growers. From Master Gardener programs to providing citizen access to lab work, MSU Extension provides a valuable service. The analysis, teaching and research performed by county MSU Extension offices across Michigan are an important link between citizens and one of the world’s leading agricultural research institutions. I will work to protect their local presence and the value they bring to our community.

Reform Regulatory Approaches

Michigan’s approach to food-safety regulations should be correlated with the relative risk of that product and the length and security of that specific supply chain. As your representative, I will propose auditing all Michigan food and agriculture laws to identify provisions that create unnecessary regulatory burdens or that impose transaction costs that overwhelm the ability of smaller producers to bring their products to market. For instance, I support HB 5837, which would permit the sale of some food products created in home kitchens.