1. EXECUTIVE COUNCIL
Approved ___________
Not Approved ________
MEMBERSHIP
Approved ___________
Not Approved __________
ILLINOIS PUBLIC HEALTH ASSOCIATION
RESOLUTION NO. 12
2011
SUPPORTING PRINCIPLES OF A HEALTHY, SUSTAINABLE FOOD SYSTEM
WHEREAS, people have the right to adequate food and to be free from hunger;1and
WHEREAS, food access is a feature of the built environment and a societal resource and as
such is a social determinant of health;2 3and
WHEREAS, ‘currently there is a great disconnect between public health diet-related
diseases and agriculture policy issues’ despite their being ‘intimately connected;’ 4and
WHEREAS, access to healthy food in Illinois and the United States is characterized by
inequities among people of color and low income people;4 5and
1
Golay, Christophe The Right to Food and Access to Justice. Food and Agriculture Organization of the United
Nations, Rome, 2009. ISBN 978-92-5-106384-2 p. 11. Accessed at
http://www.fao.org/righttofood/publi09/justiciability_en.pdf
2
Freil, Chopra, and Satcher, Unequal weight: equity oriented policy responses to the global obesity epidemic.
British Medical Journal, 2007. 335(7632); p. 1241.
3
Anderson, L.M. et al., IThe Community Guide’s model for linking the social environment to health. Am J
Prev Med, 2003. 24(3 Suppl): p. 12-20.
4
Story, Hamm & Wallinga (2009) ‘Food Systems and Public Health: Linkages to Achieve Healthier Diets and
Healthier Communities’, Journal of Hunger and Environmental Nutrition, 4: 3, 219-224.
5
Block, D., N. Chavez, and J. Birgen, Finding Food in Chicago and the suburbs; the Report of the Northeastern
Illinois Communuity Food Security Assessment Report to the Public. 2008. Accessed at
http://www.google.com/url?sa=t&source=web&cd=2&ved=0CB8QFjAB&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.csu.edu
%2Fnac%2Fdocuments
%2Freporttothepublic060308.pdf&ei=DjSKTYWSEujB0QHdxsWPDg&usg=AFQjCNH5xHxRkLNZA2Cg27l
Suaze3ZL2AQ

2. WHEREAS, communities of low food access or ‘food deserts’ exist in rural, suburban and
urban areas across Illinois;6and
WHEREAS, the present food system exacerbates climate change while at the same time is
vulnerable to the ill effects of climate change;7and
WHEREAS, farmers’ net income is decreasing, often below the costs of production:
‘farmers are receiving less and less of every food dollar spent—just 19 cents worth, today—
with food processors, handlers, and marketers getting the balance;’ 8and
WHEREAS, many of the 20 million salaried workers in the food chain are unprotected from
federal labor laws, lack access to healthy food, experience hunger and systematic racial and
gender discrimination in wages and job opportunities;9and
WHEREAS, calorie dense food is subsidized and more affordable while nutrient dense food
is unsubsidized and often unaffordable;10 11and
WHEREAS, the American Public Health Association (APHA), American Dietetic
Association, American Nurses Association, and American Planning Association support
Principles of a Healthy, Sustainable Food System described as health promoting; sustainable;
resilient; diverse; fair; economically balanced; and transparent;12and
THEREFORE BE IT RESOLVED, that Illinois Public Health Association (IPHA)
supports the ‘Principles of a Healthy, Sustainable Food System’ co-authored by the APHA;
and
THEREFORE BE IT RESOLVED, that IPHA will apply the ‘Principles of a Healthy,
Sustainable Food System’ to policy discussions at the local, state and federal level, and use
the Principles as criteria for supporting or opposing proposed policies; and
THEREFORE BE IT RESOLVED, that IPHA will educate and inform public health
practitioners, policy makers, advocates and members of the public about the importance and
6
Local Food Farms and Jobs: Growing the Illinois Economy March, 2009, p. 8. Accessed at
http://www.agr.state.il.us/newsrels/taskforcereport-outside.pdf
7
Wallinga, David(2009) 'Today's Food System: How Healthy Is It?', Journal of Hunger & Environmental
Nutrition, 4: 3, 251 — 281. Accessed at http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/19320240903336977, p. 263.
8
Ibid., p. 270.
9
Yen Liu, Yvonne and Apollon, Dominique “The Color of Food” (March 2011) Applied Research Center,
Oakland, CA. Accessed at http://www.arc.org/downloads/food_justice_021611_F.pdf
10
Townsned, M., Aaron, G., Monsivais, P., Keim, N., Drewnowski, A. “Less-energy-dense diets of low-income
women in California are associated with higher energy-adjusted diet costs,” American Journal of Clinical
Nutrition (2009); 89:1220-6.
11
Wallinga, op. cit., p. 270.
12
“Principles of a healthy, sustainable food system,” Accessed at
http://www.planning.org/nationalcenters/health/pdf/HealthySustainableFoodSystemsPrinciples.pdf .
APHA press release “New Food System Principles Emphasize Health Benefits-- Principles drafted by coalition
of planning and health professionals advocates for healthy, sustainable food systems accessed here
http://www.apha.org/about/news/pressreleases/2010/food+safety+system+coalition+release.htm

3. value of the Principles of a healthy sustainable food system, and build alliances with all food
system sectors in order to further the creation of healthy sustainable food systems.