FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE June 11, 2001 CONTACT: Neil D. Hamilton, (515) 271-2065 Lisa Lacher, (515) 271-3119 IOWA FOOD POLICY COUNCIL ISSUES REPORT CALLING FOR INCREASED PROMOTION OF IOWA-GROWN FOOD The Iowa Food Policy Council, chaired by Drake Law School professor Neil D. Hamilton, recently issued a report urging the state to increase the promotion of Iowa-grown food. The 24-page report, the first issued by the Iowa Food Policy Council, is posted on the Drake Agricultural Law Center Web site at www.law.drake.edu/lawCenters/agLawCenter. The report contains several recommendations, which include: o Encouraging Gov. Tom Vilsack to set in motion a state initiative to increase institutional purchases of Iowa-produced food products; o Supporting the creation of a position of statewide food security coordinator to encourage cooperation among the numerous state-funded or administered programs that address hunger and nutrition issues among Iowans; o Calling for development of an aggressive marketing plan to raise awareness of the economic and social benefits of buying Iowa-grown foods. In response to other recommendations made by the council, Gov. Vilsack recently issued an executive order directing the Iowa Food Policy Council to create two inter-agency task forces to recommend improvements in state activities as they relate to food security (hunger and nutrition), and the promotion of Iowa grown food products. "A consistent theme of our report is the need for Iowa to promote the use of Iowa-grown food, especially within state institutions," said professor Hamilton, who also directs Drake's Agricultural Law Center. "One of the important values of the council has been to increase communication between state agencies concerning how their policies shape Iowa's food system." Gov. Vilsack recently announced a one-year extension of the Iowa Food Policy Council, which was established in 2000 to advise the governor and lieutenant governor on all aspects of the food production system in Iowa. The council is composed of members appointed by the governor. Members come from a variety of backgrounds, including local producers engaged in direct marketing, local food processors, local food distributors, local food retailers, cooperative extension representatives, urban agriculture and extension representatives, agricultural policy and legal experts and experts in hunger prevention and food security. The council also includes non-voting representatives from the state's Department of Agriculture and Land Stewardship,Department of Economic Development, Department of Education, Department of Inspection and Appeals and Department of Public Health. Research, policy development and publication activities are coordinated by the council through Drake's Agricultural Law Center. Funding for the council's activities comes from private donations, state and federal grant assistance and institutional support from Drake University. The Agricultural Law Center devoted $20,000 to the startup of the council. The council will continue its work and will submit a final report outlining findings and recommendations to the governor's office by April 2002.