Takeaways from the Fourth Annual Gathering for San Diego County Food Vision 2030

11/22/24

October 17, 2024, the San Diego Food System Alliance hosted its Fourth Annual Gathering at the California Center for the Arts in Escondido. The event brought together various food system stakeholders — producers, distributors, government officials, and other participants — to explore cooperative strategies for building a more resilient and equitable food system in San Diego County. The goal is to create an open, inspiring space for those working on food justice, climate action, and community resource building, within the food system and other social movements.

 

Taiko drumming at the Annual GatheringTaiko Drumming as part of the opening ceremony (Photo credit: SDFSA)

This year’s theme, “Cooperation,” underscored the essential role of collaboration in transforming how we grow, distribute, and access food while protecting our region’s agricultural and natural resources. The concepts of storytelling, building capacity, and mobilizing together were discussed by panelists from farms and organizations across the region, local tribal members, next-generation farmers, rancher, and fisherman, and many others.

At the gathering, the County’s Office of Sustainability and Environmental Justice (OSEJ) led a session to collect community input on the Food Justice Community Action Plan. This session allowed participants to offer input that will shape the development of the plan. The draft plan will be posted online for public review soon. If you are interested, please subscribe for project updates.

County Efforts to Support the Food System

Staff tabling at the Annual GatheringStaff Tabling at the event (Photo credit: SDFSA)

In addition to developing the Food Justice Community Action Plan, the County is supporting local agricultural producers and ranchers through initiatives, such as the Purchase of Agricultural Conservation Easement (PACE) Prog ram, the SALC 2.0 grant effort, and the Compost Voucher Program. All of which were represented at a County-hosted table at the event and wouldn’t be successful without the close coordination and cooperation of our local agricultural partners.