With support from the W.K. Kellogg Foundation, the International City/County Management Association (ICMA) and Michigan State University (MSU)’s Center for Regional Food Systems conducted a 2015 survey of local government activity around food systems. The survey sought to understand how local government policies, programs, plans, and other activities support food production, processing, distribution, access, or disposal. The survey was distributed to all counties and to all municipalities that are in ICMA’s database, which generally includes those with populations of at least 2,500.
West South Central regional profile summarizes key state- and region-level data points from our 2015 survey, and points to specific examples of how local governments in this region are engaged in food system planning, programming, partnerships, and policy. Also, it clusters survey and secondary data by community health and security, production and infrastructure, and economic development themes, and includes state-level statistics about health, income, employment that provide context for potential local food system interventions. The West South Central region is comprised of Arkansas, Louisiana, Oklahoma, and Texas.
