About Connecticut Food System Alliance

Connecticut Food System Alliance (CFSA) has been working to strengthen food justice and food systems change work in the state since 2012. CFSA’s mission is to work toward a just, sustainable food system by fostering collaboration and alignment among the state’s food system actors and advocating for food policy and systems change informed by food justice.

Our Vision

Connecticut Food System Alliance envisions a state and regional food system that enriches the lives of everyone involved – people, plants, animals, and land. In this vision, food is a right – all communities are food secure and can enjoy culturally relevant locally and/or regionally produced food; all people can connect with food and land in ways that are meaningful to them; and agriculture, food processing, and food distribution have a net positive effect on the environments and communities they are practiced in.

Motivation

CFSA is committed to food justice – recognizing that issues of food and land access are deeply intertwined with issues of race, class, and social justice. The dominant US food system was built on Indigenous genocide and land theft and the enslavement and exploitation of Black people; injustices continue today through food apartheid, inequitable land access, and environmental degradation. Our dominant, increasingly consolidated food system exploits people, animals, and land to generate profits for a smaller and smaller number of larger and larger corporations.

CFSA recognizes that, in complexity and scope, the transition from our dominant food system to our vision is too great for any one nonprofit, business, or government to bring about. We work toward this food system dream by collaborating with and learning from food system actors in the state and around the world, advocating for food policy rooted in systems change and informed by people most heavily impacted, encouraging a shift toward systems thinking and food justice, and building connectivity and alignment among the state’s food system actors in service of our shared vision.

History

CFSA was founded in 2012 as an outgrowth of the Farms, Food & Jobs Working Group. This group met in 2011 and 2012 to develop the white paper “A Proposal for Growing Connecticut Farms, Food & Jobs.” The Working Group included Billings Forge Community Works (now Forge City Works), CitySeed, Common Ground High School, Connecticut Department of Agriculture, Connecticut Farm Bureau Association, Connecticut Food Policy Council, Connecticut Northeast Organic Farming Association, Eastern Connecticut Resource Conservation & Development Area, End Hunger CT!, Jones Family Farms, New Haven Food Policy Council, Sustainable Food Systems LLC, University of Connecticut College of Agriculture & Natural Resources, USDA Natural Resources Conservation Service, Wholesome Wave, and Working Lands Alliance.

The report identified many opportunities and challenges that resonate a decade later, including:

  • Rising demand for locally grown food as an opportunity to grow local agriculture and develop local food processing infrastructure
  • Food retail (including grocery stores and corner stores) as a major opportunity for increasing local food consumption, since most Connecticut residents get most of their food at grocery stores
  • Federal nutrition programs such as SNAP (Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program) and WIC (Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants, and Children) and the Senior Farmers’ Market Nutrition Program as opportunities to improve food security and nutrition while supporting local agriculture
  • The Hartford Regional Market as an opportunity for increasing local food processing and distribution in addition to food processing and distribution facilities at New Haven’s Long Wharf
  • The need for baseline data about the state’s food system, including local food sales, school gardens, and community gardens
  • The need for more processing infrastructure to support value-added local food production
  • The need for more training opportunities and technical assistance services for food entrepreneurs and farmers
  • The need for education about local food systems, nutrition, and agriculture

The white paper made several recommendations for action and strategic planning, including:

  • Collect baseline data about and set targets for local food consumption, production, and other data about the state’s food system
  • Consider the development of a state food action plan
  • Support and foster innovative local food enterprises
  • Increase training and technical assistance for farmers and aspiring farmers
  • Develop an inventory of land suitable and available for agricultural use, particularly in urban areas
  • Incorporate local food systems and agriculture education into K-12 curriculum

CFSA’s Work

Connecticut Food System Alliance was established to build connections among the state’s food system actors to collectively address the issues identified in “A Proposal for Growing Connecticut Food, Farms,& Jobs.” Since 2014, Hartford Food System has served as CFSA’s fiscal sponsor. CFSA’s work has included:

  • Convening Connecticut food system actors at statewide gatherings to discuss our priorities and challenges and foster collective learning; hosting webinars, panels, and workshops to build advocacy skills
  • Fostering a state food systems network to share information about local food projects, jobs and events, and news
  • Tracking Connecticut legislation that impacts the food system
  • Supporting and participating in local food system planning, such as the Hartford Advisory Commission on Food Policy and Eastern Connecticut Regional Food Systems Partnership
  • Participating in regional food systems planning through the New England Food System Planners Partnership
  • Advocating for the development of a state food action plan rooted in food justice and climate resilience

CFSA Listserv

Join CFSA’s listserv to stay connected with our work, community members’ work, Learn more and request to join the listserv using this form.