If you are clergy residing in the city or county of San Diego, California, please sign this letter to the San Diego County Supervisors, urging the County to adopt the Good Food Purchasing Program (
https://goodfoodpurchasing.org/program-overview/), or GFPP.
GFPP is a national framework for food procurement that encourages the production and consumption of food that is healthy, affordable, fair, more humane and sustainable. It has five value areas: Local Economies, Environmental Sustainability, Valued Workforce, Animal Welfare, and Nutrition.
Notable adopters of GFPP include Cook County, San Francisco City and County, and Alameda County, school districts including San Diego County’s own Escondido Union and Oceanside Unified, as well as San Francisco Unified, Oakland Unified, Los Angeles Unified, and Chicago Public Schools, and cities like Los Angeles, Boston and Chicago.
Locally, GFPP is endorsed by a broad coalition of local food and climate advocacy groups, like the San Diego Food System Alliance, which have recommended the GFPP as the best food procurement partner, based on years of vetting and collaboration involving multiple local stakeholder groups.
Thank you for your support!
Rev. John Millspaugh
Director of Education
Farm Forward and the Better Food Foundation
john@farmforward.com858-444-6727 (cell)
Letter text:
January 18, 2022
San Diego County Supervisors
Supervisor Nathan Fletcher, Chair
Supervisor Nora Vargas, Vice Chair
Supervisor Joel Anderson
Supervisor Jim Desmond
Supervisor Terra Lawson-Remer
Re: REQUEST FOR AMENDMENT - ARPA Food Procurement Spending for BOS 1/25 Agenda
Dear County of San Diego Supervisors,
This letter concerns the following recommendations of County HHSA:
“1. Develop a Sustainable, Equitable, and Local Food Sourcing policy and return to the Board within 180 days for policy adoption.
“2. In accordance with Section 401, Article XXIII of the County Administrative Code authorize the Director, Department of Purchasing and Contracting to issue a Competitive Solicitation for technical assistance services to implement a sustainable, equitable, and local food sourcing program for the County and, upon successful negotiations and a determination of fair and reasonable price, award a contract for an Initial Term of one year with two 1-year Options, and up to six additional months if needed, subject to the availability of funds; and to amend the contract as required to reflect changes in services and funding allocations, subject to the approval of the Agency Director, Health and Human Services Agency.
“3. Implement the Sustainable, Equitable, and Local Food Sourcing Program with a minimum of two pilot sites and return to the Board in two years with findings, outcomes, and potential recommendations to expand to all County food service operations.”
With appreciation for the work of County HHSA, as faith leaders in San Diego County, we are writing to request your support for the nationally-recognized Good Food Purchasing Program (“GFPP”) as a framework for food procurement that encourages the production and consumption of food that is healthy, affordable, fair, more humane and sustainable. Notable adopters of GFPP include Cook County, San Francisco City and County, and Alameda County, school districts including San Diego County’s own Escondido Union and Oceanside Unified, as well as San Francisco Unified, Oakland Unified, Los Angeles Unified, and Chicago Public Schools, and cities like Los Angeles, Boston and Chicago. With its commitment to attaining GFPP standards, the County of San Diego will elevate its role as a regional food leader, advance a more equitable food system and contribute to nationwide efforts to leverage the power of procurement for good.
As faith leaders, it is important to us that a county food policy be holistic in addressing both social justice and ecological needs. We are impressed by the five interconnected value areas that are central to GFPP: Local Economies, Environmental Sustainability, Valued Workforce, Animal Welfare, and Nutrition, which build upon the County’s existing Eat Well practices. GFPP adopters have found that these five value areas pair well with equity, transparency, and community accountability, which we consider vital to any food sourcing policy. Further, the five value areas were developed and updated by national coalitions of organizations and leaders with expertise in each of the five areas. As an institution with significant purchasing power, San Diego County’s application of the GFPP framework will maximize its positive impact on residents, while synergistically supporting a regional food system that is ecologically sound, economically viable, and socially responsible.
As one of the first counties in California to partner with GFPP, the County of San Diego will solidify its role as a leader in food innovation and community development. Value-based purchasing practices throughout the County can also have a national impact on the creation and availability of a local, equitable, and sustainable quality food system. Because of its breadth and depth of experience, the Center for Good Food purchasing has unparalleled expertise in components of any quality food sourcing policy, including baseline assessment, action planning, annual reporting on progress, supply chain traceability, and updating bids and contracts.
GFPP is currently adopted by 14 cities and county governments across the country, with 60 institutions enrolled in 24 cities and counties and over $1.1B in food spend impacted. As one of the first counties in California to partner with GFPP, the County of San Diego will solidify its role as a leader in food innovation and community development. Value-based purchasing practices throughout the County can also have a national impact on the creation and availability of a local, equitable, and sustainable quality food system.
In response to the recommendations of County HHSA, we would submit:
Rather than issuing a Competitive Solicitation for a sustainable, equitable, and local food sourcing policy, given its depth of expertise and experience, the Center for Good Food Purchasing should be considered the sole source and contractor to partner with the County of San Diego to provide evaluation and technical assistance around the implementation of the Good Food Purchasing Program, with an emphasis on two elements:
a. Annual mechanism for implementing the Good Food Purchasing Program, including an assessment report, action planning, target setting, and an annual review of the assessment report with the Board of Supervisors in a public setting, with reports easily accessible for community stakeholders.
b. Centering racial and worker equity through prioritization of businesses that are BIPOC-owned or consists of cooperative ownership structures.
As San Diego County faith leaders, we support the County committing to the Good Food Purchasing Program as its sole source for adopting and implementing a local, equitable, sustainable food policy. We support the County’s commitment to implementing the Good Food Purchasing Program as a key driver in ensuring the health and well-being of San Diego residents and our larger world. Thank you very much for your leadership.
Sincerely,
