Food Justice Community Action Plan

Food is a basic need for people’s health and wellness, and it reflects our cultural identity. San Diego county has a robust food system, with a strong farm and fishing industry, over 15,000 diverse food facilities, a year-round growing season, and more than 30 farmers markets.

But food security only exists when everyone has regular access to enough food to meet their needs.

In June 2024, the San Diego County Board of Supervisors (Board) directed the development of a Food Justice Community Action Plan (FJCAP) to identify actions the County could take in the near-term to improve food access and reduce food insecurity, as well as increase collaboration between the County and the community. While not comprehensive, the action plan integrates community ideas into a next steps-guide to bolster momentum for collaborative change to improve food access and reduce food insecurity in the region.

Key Milestones

• Between summer and fall 2024, the County received over 1,500 comments from community and translated them into more than 200 unique ideas that informed development of 20 distinct actions the County could take in the near-term to bolster momentum in increasing food access and food security in the region.

• In December 2024, the action plan was presented to the Board and the Board selected 11 actions to analyze for fiscal and implementation feasibility. More information is available on the Board of Supervisors Meeting agenda and materials
• In May 2025, County staff shared out implementation timelines and resource needs for the 11 Board selected actions, along with a listing of key County departments involved.
• With the approval of the County’s recommended 2025-2027 budget, the 11 Board-selected actions described in the May memo are being implemented. To learn more about the County’s budget process, visit https://engage.sandiegocounty.gov/budget-2025-27.

Community participation has been and continues to be central to this effort.

Five key themes were explored through outreach and engagement in summer 2024 and frame the FJCAP:

1. Government, community-based organizations, and private interests working together
2. Better access and food options from government programs, charitable organizations and school meals
3. Investments in food education, including nutrition education
4. Supporting food as medicine, including breastfeeding
5. Root causes, such as support for broad financial stability

Community roundtables were held throughout the region in August and September 2024 and online input was collected through October 7th. Additionally, the County held a workshop and tabling activity at the 4th Annual Gathering for Food Vision 2030 on October 17th.

Next Steps

Community participation remains central to this effort, and your voice matters. Stay tuned as the County works to create a more just, equitable, and sustainable food system for all!

The County will be holding a virtual community food system meeting Friday, December 12th, 2025, from 2:00-3:30 PM. The meeting will be to learn about the progress of San Diego County’s Food Justice Community Action Plan (FJCAP), and to hear your ideas and experiences to help improve food access and food security across the region. Your input will help guide future County action.

All are welcome, and advanced registration is appreciated.

Meeting details with steps to register and join the virtual Zoom meeting:

• Registration
• Link to join the meeting

If you cannot make the meeting, additional opportunity to review meetings material and provide your feedback will be made available online after the meeting.

Related News

The County’s Office of Emergency Services (OES) is engaging with community to inform an update to the Emergency Operations Plan – a comprehensive guide that details how the region will respond to major emergencies and disasters. During FJCAP engagements, food system stakeholders emphasized the importance of integrating food security considerations into emergency planning.

Food system stakeholders and the community are invited to provide feedback to inform the Emergency Operations Plan update.  

By participating in the update process, you help: 

• Shape emergency response priorities  
• Identify service gaps and access barriers  
• Strengthen coordination across organizations and communities  

Survey Link: Emergency Operations Plan Engagement Survey | Engage San Diego County

The survey will be open until November 21. The survey should take approximately 20 minutes to complete.

Please share this engagement opportunity with organizations, stakeholders, and partners in your network!

Questions may also be submitted via email to:  Nicholas.Zubel@sdcounty.ca.gov