Find additional studies and books that provide in-depth information and specific background relevant to community food assessments.
Reports
These resources are meant to compliment the process of facilitating a CFA. If you’re looking for reports to help make the case with government agencies or policymakers why investing in a CFA is worthwhile, these are for you. If you’re looking for hands-on guides that walk you through conducting a CFA, check out the toolkits section. If you’re looking for examples of completed CFA reports, see case studies.
Bridging the Divide: Growing Self-Sufficiency in our Food Supply, Community Farm Alliance, 2007.
Community Food Assessment: A First Step in Planning for Community Food Security, Kami Pothukuchi, Journal of Planning Education and Research, Vol. 23, No. 4, 356-377, 2004.
Community-Based Participatory Research: A Strategy for Building Healthy Communities and Promoting Health through Policy Change, PolicyLink, University of California, Berkeley School of Public Health, 2012.
Getting Food on the Table: An Action Guide to Local Food Policy, Dawn Biehler, et al, Community Food Security Coalition, 1999. This is particularly helpful for insights into overlap with typical city and county government policies, programs and functions that affect community food security.
Healthy Food, Healthy Communities: Promising Strategies to Improve Access to Fresh, Healthy Food and Transform Communities, Rebecca Flournoy, PolicyLink, 2010.
Looking for more reports? For a comprehensive list of literature and studies, see pages 28-31 of The Grocery Gap: Who Has Access to Healthy Food and Why It Matters. PolicyLink, 2010.
Books
A Planners Guide to Community and Regional Food Planning: Transforming Food Environments, Facilitating Healthy Eating. Samina Raja, Branden Born, and Jessica Kozlowski Russell, 2008. Also available as a PDF download.
Community Organizing and Community Building for Health. Meredith Minkler, 1997. London, UK: Routledge. (Updated 2004)
Planning and Conducting Needs Assessments: A Practical Guide. B.R. Witkin and J.W. Altschuld, Sage Publications, 1995.
Updated 6/2013
