We Shape policies that feed our city

In October 2010, the Denver’s Sustainable Food Policy Council (SFPC) was founded to advise the City on matters of food policy. Since 2010, we have advised the City on the following:

• Food Producing Animals (FAQ, Advisory, City Council Ordinance, and Link to Permits)

• Residential Sales and Cottage Foods (FAQ, Advisory, Guide to Getting Started, Link to Permits)

• City Food, City Land (FAQ and Advisory)

• City Food Purchasing (Advisory)

• Mobile Markets (Advisory)

• City Wide Composting (Advisory)

• Farm to Food Assistance (Advisory)

• Greener by Default (Advisory)

here are Our current policy areaS:

policy overview

The Public Land for Food Production working group is currently generating ideas to focus on expanding food production on public land in equitable, inclusive, and holistic ways. Over the next few months, we will choose a policy issue that will preserve and increase land dedicated to urban food production. We are considering zoning changes, public land/green space policy, financial incentives, landscaping standards, the formation of land banks and land trusts, conservation districts, and other policies. As a group, we are also committed to learning about the issue of reparations at the local level.

Potential next steps:

• Researching other city’s public land policies

• Potentially mapping public land across the City and production sites

• Generating pros/cons, costs, alignment with Denver’s existing goals for policies listed above

Meetings are generally held the last Tuesday of each month at 11am over zoom. Please contact denversfpc@gmail.com if you would like to be involved. We welcome interns, graduate students, policy experts, community members, producers, etc. in our meetings. Join the Public Lands for Food Production to address the (1 in 11) people in Colorado who are food insecure in an equitable, stakeholder-driven, community focused and wealth building way.

policy summary

This subgroup is working on a policy that would promote plant-based defaults at internal events and meetings of Denver government agencies where food is served. Through this policy, Denver government agencies would ensure equitable access to meals for people from all backgrounds. Serving plant-based meals with the option to opt into animal products includes everyone by default, such as the 30-50 million Americans who are lactose intolerant (who are predominantly BIPOC), folks with religious restrictions, young people who are eating more plant-based foods, people of color who are statistically more likely to be reducing their consumption of animal products, and those with allergies or medically prescribed diets. Plant-based defaults have proven to be a tremendously effective yet simple strategy to support people’s interest in consuming healthier and more sustainable foods - increasing their uptake by about 60 percentage points - thereby reducing catering’s water, land, and carbon footprints, while being inclusive of all dietary needs and protecting diner choice.

Integrating Food Assistance into Local Food Systems - SNAP Authorization at Farmers Markets

This subgroup seeks to encourage new and existing farmers markets in Denver to be Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) authorized vendors, through dedicated funding support– community development, support farmers, and address barriers to local and healthy food access for all community members, regardless of income level. Policy will support farmers markets of all sizes with technical assistance as they transition to authorized markets/vendors while expanding choice for recipients of public food assistance to purchase culturally relevant, nutritious, and local foods. The goal of this policy is to encourage community access to farmers markets by reducing stigma through thoughtful and responsive engagement and outreach for all communities in Denver.

The SNAP at Farmers Markets working group is examining ways to increase access for SNAP users at Denver farmers markets. Access to local food grown by Colorado producers is often perceived as unaffordable and inaccessible for Denver residents with lower incomes and experiencing chronic food insecurity. As a result, the SNAP at farmers market workgroup through the Sustainable Food Policy Council was developed to further examine perspectives from community members, farmers markets, and local producers. The goal of this issue brief is to expand community food access to local food systems through the expansion of federal nutrition benefit programs as payment models at Denver farmers markets.

In 2024 the SFPC voted to approve the SNAP at Farmers Markets Issue Brief, and is presently working on development of a Mayoral Advisory to make policy recommendations for Mayor Mike Johnson.

More information to come as we engage further with community members, local farmers, and market managers to inform an inclusive and equitable policy to support access to local food systems through expanding access to SNAP.

Your ideas can make a difference

We'd love to hear your ideas on how to improve Denver's food system. Let us know what you think is needed to improve our local food system.