The SC Food Policy Council, with funding provided by the Lowcountry Housing Trust, is hosting a day-long workshop discussing opportunities and ways to increase Access to Healthy Foods in Food Desserts throughout South Carolina.
Date: Tuesday, September 25, 2012
Location: The Phillips Market Center located at the State Farmers Market in West Columbia, South Carolina.
Time: 8:30 a.m. – 4:30 p.m. (Lunch will be provided)
What is a food desert?
Food deserts are communities where healthy, affordable food is difficult to obtain. Food deserts can be located in the middle of urban areas or in small rural towns, and everywhere in between. This workshop will identify food deserts in SC, highlight current initiatives and organizations that are addressing this problem, and present financial resources available for healthy food retail options in SC. The goal of the workshop is to explore challenges and opportunities leading to the decrease in food deserts across South Carolina, including key economic, environmental, food distribution and health aspects that are critical to ensuring healthy food access to all people in SC. The result of this workshop will be a set of written guiding principles and recommendations for conquering food deserts in SC and providing economic growth opportunities for both our rural and urban areas in the state.
What to expect from the workshop?
Presentations and panel discussions from experts will be made, highlighting current initiatives and organizations that are addressing Food Deserts. There will also be opportunities for participants to engage in focus group discussions, which will ultimately result in a written set of guiding principles and recommendations for conquering food deserts in SC.
Who will be in attendance?
Anyone interested in:
- increasing healthy food access for every citizen in rural and urban markets
- creating economic development
- creating healthy environments
Questions? Please contact Beth Crocker at bcrocker@scda.sc.gov or (803) 734.2193.
