Mapping Food Policy Groups

Understanding Cross-Sectoral Network Building through Social Network Analysis

Abstract

Over the past decades, there has been a rapid expansion in the number of Food Policy Groups (FPG) (including food policy councils, strategies, networks, and informal alliances) operating at municipal and regional levels across North America. FPGs are typically established with the intent of bringing together food systems stakeholders across private (e.g., small businesses, industry associations), public (e.g., government, public health, postsecondary institutions), and community (e.g., non-profits and charitable organizations) sectors to develop participatory governance mechanisms. Recognizing that food systems challenges are too often addressed in isolation, FPGs aim to instill integrated approaches to food related policy, programs, and planning. Despite growing interest, there is little quantitative or mixed methods research about the relationships that constitute FPGs or the degree to which they achieve cross-sectoral integration. Turning to Social Network Analysis (SNA) as an approach for understanding networked organizational relationships, we explore how SNA might contribute to a better understanding of FPGs. This paper presents results from a study of the Thunder Bay and Area Food Strategy (TBAFS), a FPG established in 2007 when an informal network of diverse organizations came together around shared goals of ensuring that municipal policy and governance supported healthy, equitable and sustainable food systems in the Thunder Bay region in Ontario, Canada. Drawing on data from a survey of TBAFS organizational members, we suggest that SNA can improve our understanding of the networks formed by FPGs and enhance their goals of cross-sectoral integration.