News Feed
This week, five bills with potential food system impacts were introduced in the General Assembly. The majority of the legislation was introduced in the House of Representatives. A brief description of all new bills is below (a full description of the bills is...
On January 25, RIFPC Chair Thea Upham, Board President Diane Lynch, and Network Director Nessa Richman met with policy staff of Governor McKee, Policy Advisor Kelly Crawley, and Deputy Director of Legislative and Intergovernmental Affairs, Jason Natareno. RIFPC...
On January 26, RIFPC hosted a webinar to demonstrate our newly launched Data Dashboard. Attendees learned about how to use the charts, search for specific data, and found inspiration on how to to apply the information to their own work. The information provided...
The Rhode Island College Compost Conference and Trade Show will be held on Wednesday, March 8, 2023 from 9am-3pm. Convening for wasted food solutions. Join us to discuss food waste in RI and solutions that benefit our community along with the environment. There will...
Fourteen bills with potential impacts on our food system were added to the Bill Tracker this week. Many are continuations from previous years’ bills, including healthy school meals for all, the extended (30 mile) food waste ban, the ban on polystyrene in...
Food Solutions New England will host the 9th version of its food system-oriented 21-Day Racial Equity Habit-Building Challenge from April 3, 2023 to April 23, 2023. Each year, thousands of individuals and hundreds of officially participating organizations join in a...
Five new bills were added to the RIFPC Bill Tracker this week, representing potential impacts on our aquaculture industry, food packaging, using the word "compostable" on labels, and the definition of "solid waste". Three of these bills are highlighted below. Detailed...
What to Look For in the 2023 Legislative Session, a guide from RIFPC's policy experts: On January 3, the Rhode Island General Assembly began its 2023 legislative session. The Governor and House and Senate leadership have already staked out the key areas that they will...
Small and specialty crop producers - can we help you? The first of three cohorts starts January 25! RIFPC is partnering with Polaris MEP for a series of NO-COST group learning sessions to help your business grow and thrive! We’re offering ongoing one-on-one support...
The RI General Assembly began its 2023 session last week. The Senate and House are still getting organized and committee meetings will not start for at least another week. A few dozen bills were introduced last week but many of them were resolutions recognizing the...
The Rhode Island College Compost Conference and Trade Show will be held on March 8, 2023 as a convening of organizations and individuals that contribute to wasted food solutions. Come together to learn and network with the people doing the work to recover and recycle...
New “Environment, Sustainability, and Management” Degree at CCRI now enrolling for Spring 2023Innovative collaboration between RI Nursery & Landscape Association, RI Food Policy Council, and Community College of RI provides a clear path toward careers in RI’s...
Dear Hunger Elimination Task Force (HETF) Community, In 2022, many Rhode Islanders felt the impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic ease. But for residents experiencing food insecurity and the organizations trying to support them, relief never came. Inflation, gas and food...
Following the Council's decision on legislative priorities for the coming year, a set of strategic objectives has been developed. In 2023, Council Members, Work Groups, Board, and staff will work to: Increase food access, security, justice, and sovereignty for...
I love the RI Food Policy Council for many reasons. One of them is the way the organization continues its remarkable way of growing, evolving, and expanding. Watching this process is like watching a time-elapsed film of an acorn germinating, becoming a sapling, and...
The power of working together in groups, even very small groups, is always revealed over time. What seems impossible one day turns out to be doable; what sounds crazy idealistic becomes a possibility. Margaret Mead said it best: “Never doubt that a small group of...
UPDATED! In 2021, Hunger Elimination Task Force participants discussed the needs and uses for emergency and supplemental food delivery information. As a result, a guide was developed to help those who provide services to food insecure citizens get nutritious food...
This January, we're offering an opportunity specifically designed for small and beginning specialty crop producers. In 6-week cohorts, we'll cover: Business planning Financial management & securing funding Legal & regulatory requirements Production efficiency...
On December 6, State Representatives Lauren Carson, Terri-Denise Cortvriend, and Carol Hagan McEntee joined members of the Wasted Food Solutions and the Food Business and Economic Development Work Groups for a virtual meeting. Group members laid out RIFPC's...
On November 15, RIFPC hosted the third and final session of the Policy for the People virtual lunch and learn series. More than sixty attendees joined experts from the National Sustainable Agriculture Coalition and the Northeast Sustainable Agriculture Working Group...
Rhode Island Food Policy Council awarded $498K grant to fortify RI’s emergency food network while supporting local farms and fisheries PROVIDENCE, RI, OCTOBER 19, 2022 — The Rhode Island Food Policy Council has been awarded a $498K grant from the U.S. Department of...
On October 11, RIFPC hosted the second of a three-part series, Policy for the People: Food Advocacy 101 More than forty attendees joined the free event virtually, listening to a comprehensive overview of how laws are made in Rhode Island, learning about RIFPC’s 2023...
PROVIDENCE, RI – Governor Dan McKee and the Department of Environmental Management (DEM) are announcing today that the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) has awarded $161,158 to DEM through the Specialty Crop Block Grant Program (SCBGP) to help Rhode...
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Lets’ celebrate the people working in fields and over fires to feed us! Let’s recognize the many powerful programs, points of access, and opportunities that are improving equity and resilience for all Rhode Islanders! We’re hosting a social media photo contest. Join...
On September 1, more than 40 Board Members, Council Members, Work Group Members, and staff convened at the Farm Fresh Rhode Island facility on Sims Avenue in Providence for the annual retreat. RIFPC’s policy priorities are selected based on comprehensive data...
On August 31, RIFPC Board President Diane Lynch attended a meeting with Senator Jack Reed, Janet Coit, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration Fisheries Assistant Administrator; Bob Ballou, RI Department of Environmental Management Assistant to the Director;...
Understanding how and why our lawmakers are acting on food systems issues is important for everyone to understand. Join us for a detailed-yet-approachable discussion about the state of food policy in Rhode Island, issues that affect it, and how you can get involved in...
The Council recently published “Recommendations for Rhode Island’s Food System 2023-2030: A briefing book for candidates for elected offices in Rhode Island” to inform policy makers, officials, and other stakeholders of current priority areas and policy decision...
In 2021, more than 75 Hunger Elimination Task Force participants discussed the needs and uses for emergency and supplemental food delivery information. This guide was developed to help those who provide services to food insecure citizens get nutritious food delivered...
September – December 2022Tuesday evenings at 7Edwards Auditorium and online Food. Though we depend on it to survive and thrive, many Americans have become increasingly disconnected from the complex systems that provide our food. The Fall 2022 Honors Colloquium at the...
TUESDAY, JULY 26 — Network Director Nessa Richman joined RI Director of Food Strategy, Juli Stelmaszyk, to present a workshop about food systems and climate to Rhode Island’s Executive Climate Change Coordinating Council (EC4). The discussion explored how climate...
The RIFPC Bill Tracker followed 215 pieces of legislation with potential impacts on our food system during the 2022 General Assembly session. Grouping them by their primary areas of impact, there were: 114 focused on climate change/environmental protection 44 focused...