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Supporting local governments and other stakeholders who are working towards improving access to healthy food and food security for all residents and visitors.
This website aims to provide support for local governments and other stakeholders, who are working with their communities to reduce barriers to local food access for healthy eating, and to improve food security.
Local governments have a whole of population mandate and can improve community health and well-being through support for equitable and local food chain systems, and by ensuring that shopping, transport and other infrastructure barriers do not affect the ability of the residents to achieve quality lifestyle and independence.
This is a traditional local government role, and can be achieved through local food policies and municipal public health plans linked to Municipal Strategy Statements and Corporate Plans. These provide leadership and a structural framework for the environments and amenities which affect the residents ability to access healthy food, and make healthy food choices on a lifelong basis without resort to local government community services and/or emergency foods.
These environments include the natural, built, economic, social-cultural, and health environments for residents in all neighbourhoods. Other important local government stakeholders are the residents, self-help groups and clubs, primary health care partnerships, primary health care agencies (community health promotion plans and direct services), community services, welfare organisations, and even health institutions such as local hospitals. These organisations have a traditional and established role in addressing the social and health needs of many groups, households and individuals.
The VicHealth initiative Food for All: Improving access to food for healthy eating. A food security program will progress Victorian improvement in food security. The focus is on building the integrated planning and policy approaches of local governments to municipal and community food security. In turn, these actions will improve household and individual food security of residents in the municipalities.
The establishment of a Food Security Network to support the officers and municipalities who are participating in the VicHealth Food for All program, and the many others who are also addressing food security issues in their local areas, is expected to enhance the uptake of integrated strategies throughout the sector.
The Food Security Network is supported by a funding agreement with The Victorian Health Promotion Foundation and auspiced by VLGA.

Discussion Forum


 A key communication channel for the Network is its online discussion forum.
 [ Click here to view current forum discussions. ]
At present, only Victorian residents and organisations may contribute to the forum. To become a contributor, you must apply to the forum moderator, Beverley Wood, for membership. Please indicate in your email which organisation you work for and what your interest is in the discussion forum.
[ Click here to apply for membership of the discussion forum. ]

See our News or Library section for information about the Food Security Network. You can add documents or links to the Library.