|
GOV. BLAGOJEVICH ANNOUNCES
INAUGURAL MEETING OF THE ILLINOIS FOOD SYSTEMS
POLICY COUNCIL AT RICHLAND COMMUNITY COLLEGE
Council Will Advance Illinois
Food and Agriculture Industry through Focus on Food
Safety and Security
DECATUR – Following through on his continuing
efforts to partner with business and educational
leaders to accelerate growth in Illinois’ homeland
security industry, Gov. Rod R. Blagojevich’s
administration convened the inaugural meeting of the
Illinois Food Systems Policy Council (IFSPC) at
Richland Community College in Decatur today. Gov.
Blagojevich recently awarded nearly $107,000 in
funding to Richland Community College to establish
the IFSPC, a public/private partnership that will
help develop and implement strategies to improve
food and agricultural security and safety in
Illinois and support the growth of Illinois food
producers. Richland administers the IFSPC with the
support of the Illinois Department of Commerce and
Economic Opportunity’s (DCEO) Homeland Security
Market Development Bureau (HSMD). DCEO Director Jack
Lavin chaired today’s meeting.
“As a leading producer and exporter of food
manufacturing and agricultural products across the
world, we need to do everything within our power to
assure the safety and security of the food we supply
for our families and for families across the world.
The Food Systems Policy Council will provide
critical leadership and expertise to increase food
access and security in order to protect the health
and well being of our citizens. This is the
beginning of a very fruitful partnership to address
problems and find solutions that will make for more
profitable, sustainable and resilient food and
agricultural production in Illinois,” Gov.
Blagojevich said.
In June of 2005, Gov. Blagojevich signed into law
legislation creating the Illinois Food Systems
Policy Council. Representatives on the council
include leading private sector firms ADM, Kraft,
John Deere, Growmark and Hill & Knowlton.
Participating state agencies include DCEO, the
Departments of Public Health, Human Services,
Agriculture, Central Management Services, the State
Board of Education and the Food Nutrition and
Education Program at the University of Illinois. Top
industry associations represented on the Council
include the Illinois Beef Association, the Illinois
Farm Bureau, the Institute for Community Resource
Development and the Association of Official Seed
Certifying Agencies. The Springfield Office of the
Federal Bureau of Investigation and the University
of Illinois’s food security initiative are also
members.
“I am very pleased to see the Illinois Food Systems
Policy Council get off the ground and Richland
Community College is the perfect place for it,”
State Senator Frank Watson (R-Greenville) said. “Our
area gives the Council the opportunity to tap into
the expertise of ADM, Growmark and other industry
leaders and associations from around the state. This
public/private partnership will help promote our
food-producing industry and enhance efforts to
protect our food supply.”
This first meeting provided a forum for IFSPC
members to review and adopt the Council’s mission,
goals and organizational structure, as well as to
address the roles and duties of Council members. In
order to best ensure that IFSPC initiatives with be
put into practice in both the public and private
sectors, several task forces were established to
oversee and implement the Council’s main functions,
including Designing and Implementing a new Food and
Agr-Security Information Clearinghouse; Conducting a
Food and Agri-Security and Safety Summit Series;
Coordinating Public-Private Training efforts related
to food security and safety; Discussing Access to
Fresh, Healthy, Sustainable Food Sources; and
providing suggestions on potential programs that
could be adopted to advance Illinois’ leadership in
the agricultural industry.
“When we talk about food policy to help keep people
in Illinois safe, it is important to have local
experts to whom we can turn for advice and answers,”
State Rep. Bob Flider (D-Mt. Zion) said. “I want to
thank Gov. Blagojevich and DCEO for taking the
initiative to develop this Council and for
recognizing the important role that Central Illinois
institutions like Richland Community College and ADM
will have in the development of food safety and
security policies.”
Food production is one of the state’s top
manufacturing activities, adding $14.4 billion to
the economy each year. Illinois is a leading
exporter of food manufacturing and agricultural
products, which totaled more than $2 billion in
2005. Additionally, Illinois ranks third nationally
in the export of agricultural commodities.
“Gov. Blagojevich and I believe that nothing is more
important to the lives of people across Illinois and
the vitality of our economy than the safety of our
food and water supplies,” said DCEO Director Jack
Lavin, who addressed Council members as IFSPC
chairman. “Economic development is most effective
when it utilizes collaboration and innovation, and
that’s exactly the strategy behind the Food Systems
Policy Council. Launching this advisory panel allows
us to keep our ears to the ground and ensure that we
are implementing the most efficient and effective
policies to provide for the security of our food
supply and the safety of our citizens.”
Richland Community College is a major provider of
agricultural and food systems workforce training.
Located in Decatur and home to several leading agri-products
firms, Richland’s ongoing working relationship with
major food production and processing companies in
Illinois makes it well positioned to take a
leadership role in the development of a food and
agro-security program.
“Richland Community College is proud to administer
the Illinois Food Systems Policy Council,” said
Richland Community College President Dr. Gayle
Saunders, who spoke at the Council meeting. “By
bringing public and private agricultural leaders to
the same table, we can make our food systems more
secure while also making our state’s agri-industry
more successful.”
DCEO’s Homeland Security Market Development Bureau (HSMD)
is focused on supporting businesses engaged in the
homeland security industry. HSMD offers a variety of
investment tools designed to help existing Illinois
companies expand operations and utilize available
state and federal programs and services. For more
information on HSMD, visit
www.hsmd.illinois.gov.
To increase the dialogue about proactive steps that
can be taken to protect the food supply, HSMD held a
food security conference last June to bring together
leaders in this important industry. The formation of
the IFSPC builds on that effort by bringing food
producers, distributors and companies engaged in
protecting our food supply together to discuss
additional protections for our nation’s food supply
and to learn new ways to compete in today’s
security-conscious world. HSMD also sponsors
homeland security forums across Illinois in key
industry sectors, including information technology
and electronics, manufacturing and transportation
security.
Gov. Blagojevich's Opportunity Returns regional
economic development strategy is the most
aggressive, comprehensive approach to creating jobs
in Illinois' history. Since a one-size-fits-all
approach to economic development just doesn't work,
the Governor has divided the state into 10 regions -
each with a regional team that is empowered and
expected to rapidly respond to opportunities and
challenges. Opportunity Returns is about tangible,
specific actions to make each region more
accessible, more marketable, more entrepreneurial
and more attractive to businesses. It is about
upgrading the skills of the local workforce,
increasing the access to capital, opening new
markets, improving infrastructure, and creating and
retaining jobs. Opportunity Returns is about
successfully partnering with companies and
communities, both large and small, to help all of
Illinois reach its economic potential.
|
