The 2008 Food for All forum, the third in the series, was held on 1 August at the Sunshine Convention Centre in the City of Brimbank. The City of Brimbank is one of nine local government authorities participating in the Food for All program. The others are Cardinia Shire/City of Casey, Greater Dandenong City Council, Frankston City Council, Maribyrnong City Council, Melton Shire Council, Swan Hill Rural City Council and Wodonga City Council.

After a welcome by the Mayor of Brimbank, Cr Sam David, the CEO of VicHealth, Todd Harper, stressed the importance of food security and healthy eating for promoting health and summarised the current challenges and opportunities in Victoria.

Sue Cormack, VicHealth Board member and Chair of the Healthy Eating Advisory Panel, opened the forum and launched a series of case studies: Food for All: how local government is improving access to nutritious food.

Two panels were then facilitated by Dr Norman Swan. The first provided the context for food insecurity from the health, industries, welfare and environmental perspectives. Following six concurrent workshops and a presentation from the Food for All program evaluation by Dr Meg Montague, the second panel aimed to provide reflections, comments and suggestions for ways forward.

The six concurrent workshops which followed the first panel provided opportunities for projects from eight local government authorities to show case strategies implemented to improve access to food as well as discussions regarding challenges and learnings from implementing these strategies.

What's cooking? provided information on three recently commenced projects that will complement and support the work of the Food for All Program. Dr Meg Montague presented the highlights of the evaluation of the three years of the Food for All program.

Presentations

Welcome to Brimbank Cr Sam David, Mayor of Brimbank

Food for All Program and VicHealth's strategies to promote healthy eating Mr Todd Harper, VicHealth

Ms Sue Cormack, VicHealth Board Member
Opening and launch of the case studies. Presentation not available.

Food for All: how local government is improving access to nutritious food

Healthy eating postcards
 

Panel discussion: What is food security, why should we care?

Facilitator
Dr Norman Swan

Background
Food Insecurity-What do we know? Dr Cate Burns, VicHealth Research Fellow

Panel
Food Security, why should we care? Prof Boyd Swinburn, WHO Collaborating Centre on Obesity Prevention & Related Research & Training

Food for All, Address to learning from the Field Forum Mr Ian James, Economic Consultant to the Vegetable Industry

Mr Marcus Godinho, FareShare (formerly known as One Umbrella) Presentation not available.

Sustainability and Food Security, You can’t have one without the other Ms Kirsten Larsen, Victorian Eco Innovation Lab

Morning workshops

To market, to market

The Myuna Market Story Sara McAlister & Ms Tara Kelly, Cardinia Shire Council

Growing Robinvale Community Growers Market Lex and Glenda Fisher, Kingfisher Citrus; Sallie Amy, Swan Hill Rural City Council

Working with new arrivals
Issues and solutions to improving food security for new arrivals and people of a refugee background Ingrid Phyland, Brimbank City Council

Vivienne Colmer, City of Greater Dandenong; Ms Coralene Berkeley, Mona Tapo and Jill Gates, Mission Australia No presentation available.

Mapping food deserts
Mapping Food Security Lucy Marshall, Maribyrnong City Council

Afternoon Workshops

Community gardens

PDF Getting Grubby in Community Gardens Lucy Marshall, Maribyrnong City Council

Sallie Amy, Swan Hill Rural City Council No presentation available.

Principles to policies
Tracey Farrant & Jenelle Lewington, Wodonga City Council No presentation available.

Research/survey
Informing practice and policy, local food security research Ms Pamela Morgan, Melton Shire Council

What’s cooking?
A brief update of recently funded projects complementary to the Food for All program.

Food Insecurity...what do we know? Dr Cate Burns, VicHealth Fellow, Deakin University
Obesity Prevention among Low Income Families: Economic and Strategic Modelling,
Australian Research Council Linkage Project

Cr Darren Ray, Victorian Local Governance Association, Land Use and Community Food Security in Victoria: Implications and Response for the Future No presentation available.

Planning Liveability Jason Black, Planning Institute of Australia, Vic

Learnings from the Evaluation of the Food for All Program Dr Meg Montague, Consultant
 

Panel discussion

Reflection and response to opportunities and challenges.

Facilitator: Dr Norman Swann

Panel:

• Claire Hargreaves, Manager, Social Policy, Municipal Association of Victoria
• Dr Jim Hyde, Director, Public Health, Department of Human Services
• Wolfgang Haala, Director Planning Systems Management, Department of Planning and Community Development