Michigan’s food councils report modest success in policy advocacy
A majority of food councils across Michigan say that they are pushing for policy changes, and nearly half report at least one success, according to a study by Michigan State University’s Center for Regional Food Systems, co-written by our Megan Masson-Minock.
There are almost 30 food councils around Michigan. Some are formal governmental committees; others are coalition nonprofits that work closely with local government partners.
Fifteen councils participated in the study. This chart shows the top five topics driving their policy advocacy.
The study recommended three ways food councils can improve their results:
Mentoring or peer-to-peer training by more successful organizations.
Better fiscal management.
Formalizing and relying on institutional memory.