WHEREAS, in many low-income areas, access to healthy food is extremely limited, which can lead to an increase in diet-related disease and obesity; and,
WHEREAS, the Alemany Farmers Market, which is operated by the City and County of San Francisco, is located in an areas where residents that have limited access to healthy food can benefit from utilizing their food assistance; and,
WHEREAS, San Francisco Food Systems and the Department of Public Health Environmental Health Section, as well as Mayor Newsom’s transition team for Heath and Human Services, identified farmers markets and their acceptance of food assistance benefits as being an important issue for San Francisco residents; and,
WHEREAS, throughout 2004, through a partnership with the Department of Human Services and support from the Columbia Foundation and the California Nutrition Network, the Department of Public Health and San Francisco Food Systems have worked to support farmers markets throughout San Francisco with the transition of paper food stamps to Electronic Benefits Transfer cards; and,
WHEREAS, the Department of Public Health and San Francisco Food Systems have conducted widespread community outreach to inform food assistance recipients of the markets that will accept their benefits; and,
WHEREAS, the acceptance of food assistance at all farmers’ markets would further the Department of Public Health’s Strategic Plan objective to increase attention to social and economic factors that affect health status; now, therefore, be it
RESOLVED, that the San Francisco Health Commission urges Alemany Farmers Market to accept food assistance.
Michele M. Olson, Executive Secretary to the Health Commission