“Everybody eats every day. We need food to live, and it’s one thing to bring people a meal, to bring them food, and we need those measures as well,” Kincannon said. The council, however, is more focused on large-scale planning and solutions.
“Sometimes you need to think bigger and think of those long-term solutions and how to fix the underlying problems. And that’s why I’m so proud of the work of this council,” she said.
“The reputation of the council is recognized nationally for its history and abilities,” Jacobs said via a representative. “The council serves an important role in the fabric of Knox County.”
COVID-19
Kimberly Pettigrew chaired the Food Policy Council during the pandemic’s early stages. The city asked her to chair the Knoxville Emergency Management Food Activist Committee as well, bringing in Centro Hispano, Bridge Refugee Services and Knoxville Community Development Corporation (KCDC).
“We really wanted to ensure we were meeting people where they already were and not requiring people to have to really look for food,” she said in an interview. She said the need for mobile meals “skyrocketed,” but the council met those needs.
Beardsley Community Farm is a Food Policy Council member. Adam Caraco, the community farm’s co-director, said his group also works with KCDC, Bridge Refugee Partnership and Centro Hispano.
Prior to the pandemic, the farm gave away most of its produce. During the pandemic the farm expanded the number of people it served, requiring even more food. So the group bought food from other farmers and distributed it to “where there are hungry people.”
“People got scared about what systems were going to fail and not fail,” he said, adding that some people started new gardens during the pandemic and came by Beardsley to get seedlings, seeds and plants. “There is this new push for people to try to grow their own food.”
Food Policy Advisory Council
The UT group traces its origins to a 1977 report by Robert L. Wilson’s “Synthesis” class at the UT Graduate School of Planning, which called for a council to address “urban food equity, supply and cost.”
Pettigrew said the policy council deals with issues including food deserts, where not enough food is available, and food swamps, where less healthy food is easier to get than healthier food.
“How does that place that you live work and play really affect your ability to access food and the food that you need?” she said, describing the question the council addresses. She said it’s not just about addressing hunger but also nutrition and equity. She said the group looked at whether different racial groups had the same access to food.