Full title: Promoting Healthy Eating and Sustainable Local Food in BC: An Action Framework for Public Institutions - Health Authorities, Educational Institutions, Childcare Facilities, and Local Governments

This action framework provides a broad range of ideas that health authorities, educational institutions, childcare facilities, and local governments can take to support the determinants of healthy eating while promoting a local and sustainable food supply. These actions, sourced from local initiatives as well as national and international policy documents, offer ideas for: enhancing food knowledge and skills; increasing affordability and availability of healthy food; and, providing adequate incomes and fostering work-life balance so families have the money and time to eat healthy.

This is the product of a collaboration between PHSA, Vancouver Coastal Health, the Uni0n of BC Municipalities and the ThinkandEatGreen@School Project at the University of British Columbia.

In 2010, during the development of the Obesity Reduction Strategy for BC, we learned of the imperative to shape healthy living environments where people live, work, learn and play in addressing the obesity epidemic. This Action Framework has been designed to engage public institutions in implementing this strategy. It provides a menu of ideas that health care, educational, childcare and recreational institutions can action to create healthy eating environments for children, students, patients and employee. These action ideas are meant to promote food knowledge and skills, affordability, availability and accessibility of food – the determinants of healthy eating.

We hope that this framework will inspire you to take action on some of the ideas where you live, work, learn and play.