- June 2005: Mayor Jerry Brown’s Office of Sustainability initiates a study in order to begin a process of evaluating each element of the food system in Oakland, and to provide key baseline information on the various activities that represent it.
- January 10, 2006: The Oakland City Council Life Enrichment Committee unanimously passes a resolution authorizing “...the Mayor’s Office of Sustainability to develop an Oakland Food Policy and Plan for thirty percent local area food production, by undertaking an initial food system assessment study, conducted by a research team from the Department of City and Regional Planning, University of California at Berkeley, at no cost to the City.”
- June 2005 – May 2006:Research for the study, called the Food Systems Assessment for Oakland, CA: Toward a Sustainable Food Plan, is conducted by Serena Unger and Heather Wooten, both graduate students in the Department of City and Regional Planning at UC Berkeley. Local food groups provide critical input on the study’s research and recommendations, and support the development of the proposed OFPC throughout the process of its creation.
- July 11, 2006: Food Systems Assessment for Oakland, CA is presented to the Life Enrichment Committee, with positive public response (including the support of local businesses such as the Nomad Café) and positive response from the committee. One of the main recommendations from the Food Systems Assessment for Oakland, CA is that Oakland should form a Food Policy Council.
- December 12, 2006: Oakland City Council Life Enrichment Committee unanimously passes a resolution to allocate start-up funding for the establishment of an Oakland Food Policy Council, with the mission to establish an equitable and sustainable food system in Oakland. (Download the Resolution here, and the accompanying Agenda Report here.)
- Spring 2007: The HOPE Collaborative, a Kellogg-funded Food and Fitness Initiative, is founded. HOPE is made up of individuals, agencies, and organizations working to improve food access and places for physical activity in Oakland’s underserved neighborhoods, and will be a major partner for the OFPC.
- October 17, 2007: City of Oakland Department of Human Services issues a Request for Proposals (RFP) to determine which organization will receive the allocated funding in order to incubate and launch the OFPC.
- January 2007: OFPC Working Group formed, made up of Stakeholders from Oakland’s food system, including representatives from local community based organizations and government agencies.
- May 13, 2008: Food First/Institute for Food and Development Policy is selected to incubate the OFPC, and immediately begins fundraising and searching for a Coordinator. Additional funds are provided by the Alameda County Public Health Department, the San Francisco Foundation, the HOPE Collaborative, and the Friedman Family Foundation.
- October 20, 2008: OFPC Coordinator begins work of fundraising; reaching out to partners within the City, the County, the HOPE Collaborative, and other local organizations; designing the processing for identifying and selecting potential OFPC members; and planning for the OFPC’s first full year of operation.
- March 1, 2008: OFPC website and listserv launched
- March 23, 2009: OFPC Introductory Meeting / Kick-off event is attended by over 80 people.
- May 27, 2009: Application to become an OFPC member released at the recruitment meeting
- August 3, 2009: Applications for OFPC membership due.
- August 28, 2009: First class of OFPC members announced. The OFPC will be responsible for building new alliances and dialogues across different sectors of the food system, and developing annual Strategic Plans designed to transform the Oakland food system.
- September 30, 2009: First meeting of the OFPC.
