By Dewey Terrill
JC Post
Live Well Geary County has announced that Juncton City and Geary County Commissioners have signed resolutions to adopt the Geary County Food System Plan.
Live Well Geary County Food Policy Council initiated the process of creating a food system plan for the local area in 2021. To support the residents of the County, the food system plan elaborated action steps to achieve the following goals:
- All residents have equal access to healthy, local food and food insecurity is reduced.
- Farmers, food entrepreneurs, and food chain workers thrive in our local economy
- All residents have equal opportunities for food and agriculture education
- Build and design our communities to ensure that making the healthy choice is the easy choice
This plan will serve as a guiding document for the next ten years (2022–2032). It will help guide community policies and programs that will build a more resilient food system. To view the document or learn more information, visit https://www.livewellgearycounty.org/food- policy-council.
Thanks were extended to the Live Well Geary County (LWGC) Food Policy Council, who initiated this planning process; to the Food System Plan Steering Committee, who provided input throughout; to the public who helped shape the plan by responding to surveys and participating in round-tables, to the city and county commissioners who encouraged and helped develop the plan and to Blue Cross Blue Shield of Kansas Pathways to a Healthy Kansas implementation grant, which provided funding for the effort. New Venture Advisors consultants provided structure, facilitation, and strategic direction throughout the process.
Pathways to a Healthy Kansas is the largest community grant program ever funded by Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Kansas. The program provides 24 community coalitions with the tools and resources needed to remove barriers and engage their communities in ways that enable healthy eating and tobacco-free, active living to become a way of life. The grant funding for each community includes a coordination grant along with the opportunity to apply for non-competitive implementation and achievement grants. For more information, visit bcbsks.com/pathways.
Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Kansas is an independent licensee of the Blue Cross Blue Shield Association and is the state’s largest insurer, serving all Kansas counties except Johnson and Wyandotte. For more information, visit bcbsks.com.