City IDs progress, funding needs to carry out area food plan

A pair of recent city memos shows progress and the need for additional funding sources to implement the first comprehensive food plan for the Austin area. The two memos were released last week, outlining nine goals and 61 strategies aimed at strengthening the local food system, addressing food insecurity and improving food resilience.

​The plan, adopted unanimously by City Council in October 2024 and supported by Travis County, includes actions such as creating a regional food hub to connect local farmers with institutional buyers, expanding urban farming through community land stewardship, increasing food disaster preparedness, and promoting “Food as Medicine” programs in partnership with health care providers. The plan also seeks to address food insecurity by funding grocery co-ops in underserved areas and establishing workforce development programs for food and farm workers.

According to the memos, 62 percent of the plan’s strategies are in progress, while the remaining 38 percent have yet to begin. Funding constraints remain a major hurdle, with 62 percent of the strategies requiring additional resources for full implementation. The memos emphasize the importance of securing long-term funding and partnerships to sustain progress.​

A key next step is the launch of an Implementation Collaborative, funded by Travis County and expected to begin in fall 2025. That initiative will coordinate efforts among city and county departments, nonprofit organizations and other stakeholders to ensure effective execution of the food plan.

Additionally, city staffers are working with the University of Texas Dell Medical School to develop publicly accessible asset maps of food-related infrastructure, which are slated for release later this year.​

Among the strategies currently underway, the city is reviewing land development regulations to promote agriculturally focused neighborhoods, funding a refugee farming initiative, and exploring the creation of a regional food hub. The Central Texas Food Bank has also secured federal funding to develop a regional food system council, aligning with the city’s broader efforts.​

The memos make note of several pressing challenges. While Austin Homeland Security and Emergency Management has assessed food disaster preparedness, recruiting for key roles remains difficult due to staffing and budget limitations. And efforts to expand food worker surveys and create a regional Good Food Fund to support local food businesses remain unfunded.

Among possible next steps, the memos said the city is considering bond funding, private philanthropy, and state and federal resources to bridge these funding gaps.​ Also, city staff plans to continue tracking legislative changes at the state and federal levels to identify new opportunities for resources. In accordance with City Council’s directive, the Office of Climate Action and Resilience will provide biannual updates as implementation continues.

With food insecurity and displacement concerns growing in Austin, city staff and related officials stress the need for sustained collaboration and investment to achieve the food plan’s long-term goals.​ According to recent data, approximately 16.8 acres of farmland are lost daily to development pressures, underscoring the critical need for dedicated agricultural land preservation efforts.

Additionally, less than 0.6 percent of the food consumed in Travis County is produced locally, highlighting the fragility of the region’s food system. Those challenges are amplified by the region’s ongoing development, which has made it increasingly difficult for local farmers to secure affordable land.

The food plan also addresses the uneven access to food throughout the county. As of 2022, 18 out of 47 ZIP codes in Travis County lacked a grocery store, leaving low-income areas of eastern Travis County to qualify as food deserts. To mitigate food insecurity, the food plan proposes strategies such as increasing access to reliable transportation to bridge the gap between food deserts and markets, increasing infant feeding options through collaborations between government and schools, and funding the expansion of food delivery services that prioritize households facing food insecurity.

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