The food council is dedicated to creating a healthy, accessible, and sustainable food system in Dane County. Over the past several years, the council has been hard at work through a variety of initiatives:
- Initiated the development of the Silverwood Farm County Park agriculture program.
- Hosted an annual food summit that brings together community members to discuss important food system issues.
- Supported an ordinance to create a purchasing preference for locally made goods that was passed by the County Board.
- Sponsored the Food as a Human Right resolution passed by the County Board.
- Authored the Local Food Purchase Program Policy, which was approved by the Dane County Board of Supervisors to explore options for purchasing and serving locally produced foods in the county's food service facilities.
- Partnered with the Institutional Food Market Coalition on a pilot program with the Badgerland Produce Auction to get consolidated food service to serve more than 7,500 lbs. of fruits and vegetables.
- Organized "Planting Seeds for our Future" conference which brought together more than 150 people from diverse sectors of Dane County to focus on social, environmental, and economic linkages within the county food system and discuss a wide range of food topics.
- Recognized as a finalist in the National Association of Counties (NACO) Sustainable Community Awards program and was also highlighted by NACO as a model program in its publication Counties and Local Food Systems: Ensuring Healthy Foods, Nurturing Healthy Children.
- Partnered with other groups in co-sponsoring the "Southwest Regional Hunger Forum" attended by 100 people in Richland Center which focused on hunger, nutrition, and food access issues.
- Co-sponsored and helped facilitate the Community Food Security Coalition Midwest regional training for emerging food policy councils.
