2020 Michigan Good Food Charter
Summary Draft
Updated March 2021What is the Michigan Good Food Charter?
The Michigan Good Food Charter is a roadmap for a food system that is rooted in local communities and centered on good food.
The Charter outlines a vision, a description of a good food system and six priority areas to advance the vision.
Initially published in 2010, the Michigan Good Food Charter helped build momentum for efforts across Michigan to advance a food system that promotes equity, health, sustainability, and thriving economies.
These efforts have grown and deepened over the past decade and now we are engaged in a process to ensure the updated Charter provides a robust foundation for the road ahead!
how can we use the charter?
Explore ideas that advance a good food system in Michigan
Identify common ground and connect systems for collaboration within & across sectors
Organize collective action & measurement for greater impacts
Inform policymakers of statewide and local priorities
Our Vision for Michigan Food Systems
Michigan has a thriving food economy distinguished by equity, health, and sustainability.
What is a Good Food System?
(Working Definitions)A good food system is characterized by the following conditions that support the economic, mental, and physical wellbeing of our communities:
Accessible
Everyone has the resources to access and afford healthy, culturally appropriate food where they live, work, learn, and play and the ability to shape the food system(s) that impact them.
Equitable
The food system promotes just and fair inclusion in a society in which all people can participate, prosper and make decisions to reach their full potential.
Fair
People who plant, harvest, process, pack, transport, prepare, serve, and sell food have living wages, benefits, safe work environments, and pathways for career advancement and leadership.
Healthy
The food system supports opportunities for everyone to be as healthy as possible, physically, mentally, socially and spiritually.
Diverse
The food system supports a dynamic mix of local, regional, national and global food sources that offer opportunities for food and farm businesses of all scales.
Sustainable
The food system protects air, water, and soil now and for future generations.
Our Priorities
The Michigan Good Food Charter and its priorities are designed to foster collaboration among many partners at many scales.
To create a good food system, we must recognize that all components in a system work together and affect one another.
The following areas of focus guide us toward achieving our vision. Each Priority Area has a results statement that relates directly back to our vision and definition of a good food system.
Everyone has the resources to access and afford healthy, culturally appropriate food where they live, work, learn, and play and the ability to shape the food system(s) that impact them.
The food system supports a dynamic mix of local, regional, national and global food sources that offer opportunities for Michigan food and farm businesses of all scales.
People who plant, harvest, process, pack, transport, prepare, serve, and sell food have access to living wages, benefits, safe work environments, and pathways for career advancement and leadership.
The food system supports opportunities for everyone to be as healthy as possible, physically, mentally, socially and spiritually.
The food system protects air, water, and soil now and for future generations.
Communities are resilient in the face of climate change and the food system actively mitigates its impact on the climate.
Common Threads in Each Priority Area
There are a number of common threads or overarching questions we need to be asking while considering each priority area.
Advancing Equity & Justice
How can we ensure that everyone is equitably able to participate in decision-making about our food systems?
The Role of Education in Food Systems
How do we create educational opportunities that increase the capacity of individuals and communities to shape their food systems and contribute to individual and collective wellbeing?
Advancing Good Food Policy
How can Michigan residents work together to advance policies that support local/regional food systems that are equitable, accessible, fair, diverse, and sustainable?
COVID-19 and Food System Resilience
As Michigan continues to face the challenges of life during and after a global pandemic, what lessons are we learning about resilience in food systems and beyond? What can other efforts to build resilience in the food system teach us?
Values-Based Purchasing
How can institutions and consumers use their substantial purchasing power to affect positive changes in the food and agricultural systems?
Collaboration Infrastructure
What partnerships, relationships, and networks help make things happen in this system?
About the Process
We created a working draft of the core elements of the 2020 Michigan Good Food Charter to introduce broader audiences to the proposed updates and seek feedback while the full narrative is still being drafted. This working draft was developed in collaboration with representatives from over 30 organizations across MI whose reach includes local, regional, statewide and national work in farm and food business, health, community development, education, food justice, policy, funding, and more!
This fall, we presented a summary version of the 2020 Michigan Good Food Charter informed by public feedback and launch a renewed effort to advance a good food system in Michigan at the 2020 Michigan Good Food Summit