Dane County  
Minutes - Final Unless Amended by  
Committee  
Food Council  
Consider:  
Who benefits? Who is burdened?  
Who does not have a voice at the table?  
How can policymakers mitigate unintended consequences?  
Wednesday, March 22, 2023  
5:30 PM  
Hybrid Meeting: Attend in person at the Lyman  
Anderson building 5201 Fen Oak Dr; Meeting Room  
Drumlin: attend virtually via Zoom.  
A. Call To Order  
9 -  
Present  
Supervisor MICHELE RITT, Vice Chair SHEENA TESCH, Chair BILL WARNER,  
MARCIA CATON CAMPBELL, DANIEL CORNELIUS, SHIRLEY NENNIG, ABHA  
THAKKAR, Supervisor RICHELLE ANDRAE, and ERICA JANISCH  
OTHERS PRESENT: Sarah Elliott, Jill Carlson Groendyk, Luthien Niland, Jess Guffey  
Calkins, Joseph Mingle, Alder Regina Vidaver, Carrie Edgar, Catie DeMets, Devika Suri,  
Dustin Lundt, Nan Fey, Hedi Rudd, Jamie Bugel, Jennifer Conroy, Laura Scandurra,  
Mariela Quesada Centeno, Nicholas Leete, Nick Heckman, Rebecca Kemble, Taylr  
Johnson, Yimmuaj Yang, Addison Vang, Allison Lindsey, Clarice Martell, Cathryn  
Herlihey, Yusuf Bin-Rella, Lindsey Day Farnsworth, Patrick Nehring  
B. Consideration of Minutes  
3.1.2023 FOOD COUNCIL MINUTES  
2022  
MIN-630  
Attachments: 2022 MIN-630  
A motion was made by ANDRAE, seconded by NENNIG, that the Minutes be  
approved. The motion carried by a voice vote 9-0.  
C. Public Comment on Items not on the Agenda  
D. Presentations  
Dane County Pandemic Food System Study – Sift Consulting  
Sift Consulting members presented information about the study and the final report.  
Questions and discussion followed the presentation.  
E. Action Items  
Dane County Pandemic Food System Study Report  
A motion was made by CATON CAMPBELL, seconded by JANISCH, that the Dane  
County Pandemic Food System Study Report be approved. The motion carried  
unanimously 9-0.  
DCFC Work Groups  
Members discussed the option to sunset DCFC work groups in their current form, and  
change them into independent community coalitions.  
A motion was made by TESCH, seconded by CATON CAMPBELL, that the motion  
to change the DCFC Regional Agriculture & Food Sovereignty work group to a  
community coalition be approved. The motion carried unanimously 9-0.  
A motion was made by CATON CAMPBELL, seconded by NENNIG, that the to  
change the DCFC Food Plan work group to a community coalition be approved.  
The motion carried unanimously 9-0.  
F. Reports to Committee  
Work Group Reports  
- Food Access, Relief & Economic Support  
No report  
- Food Plan – CATON CAMPBELL  
USDA Regional Food System Partnership grant application is open; due May 2. REAP  
Food Group is planning to be the lead applicant. Next meeting is April 19, 3-4pm.  
- Regional Agriculture & Food Sovereignty – TESCH, CATON CAMPBELL  
Currently supporting and assisting the City of Madison Farmland Preservation Task  
Force. Task Force updates: developing maps showing depletion of Madison/Dane County  
farmland over time. Task Force will have recommendations written up by May; Task  
Force has been extended through June 30.  
REAP Food Group is finalizing and will be sharing a Vegetable Processing Facility Study  
document.  
Staff Reports  
- City of Madison  
No report  
- Public Health Madison & Dane County – Nick Heckman via Guffey Calkins  
COVID-19 cases remain stable. Hospitalizations are at the lowest levels since May,  
2022. CDC Transmission Level and Madison-area wastewater surveillance suggest low  
COVID-19 transmission at the moment.  
SNAP Emergency allotments have now expired, creating new challenges for many  
families that had been receiving additional benefits since 2020 to help offset economic  
uncertainty and inflationary pressures on rising food costs. Dane County emergency food  
providers were already reporting increased demand in early 2023 compared to the same  
period in 2022, and individuals and families now dealing with reduced SNAP benefits may  
present additional demand for emergency food.  
- Dane County/Extension – Guffey Calkins  
Upcoming food systems educational events on the UW-Madison Extension Dane County  
website (https://dane.extension.wisc.edu/) include a FEED (Food Entrepreneurship  
Ecosystem Development) virtual Spring 2023 Workshop Series: Tips for Food and Farm  
Business Success – dates are Mondays March 13-April 24. There will also be a Green  
Thumb Gardening Spring class series in March-April.  
Regular Business Reports  
- Double Dollars – Guffey Calkins  
The team may be applying for a 2023 federal nutrition incentive support grant (called  
GusNIP).  
- Community Gardens – Nicholas Leete via Guffey Calkins, TESCH  
The city of Fitchburg will be hosting a second community input session for plans for the  
Terravessa Ag Park, on March 29th, 6:30 PM at the Fitchburg City Council Chambers,  
5520 Lacy Road, to review and provide feedback for concepts developed for this  
community space. For further details or to attend via Zoom contact Scott Endl at  
scott.endl@ftichburgwi.gov. Please find the Terravessa Ag Park Concepts at  
https://bit.ly/tvagparkconcept. Please share with anyone you think would be interested in  
helping develop ideas for the final structure of the park!  
Community gardens will be impacted by rising water rates.  
- Johns Hopkins Center for a Livable Future - Community of Learning Practice –  
TESCH  
The last session addressed networking and relationship-building, and connects to the  
Sift study and report.  
Council Discussion  
- 2023 PIE Food Project grant process – NENNIG, JANISCH, RITT  
$20K will be awarded in PIE grants; to be announced from the Office of Equity &  
Inclusion. A discussion was held about further adjusting the PIE grant process to  
respond to recommendations in the Food Study Report, as well as input from the report  
discussion about increasing inclusion of BIPOC communities.  
CORNELIUS left at 6:51pm.  
- Work Groups  
Discussed under E.  
G. Announcements  
H. Future Meeting Items and Dates  
April 26, 2023  
I. Such Other Business as Allowed by Law  
J. Adjourn  
A motion was made by NENNIG, seconded by TESCH, that the meeting be  
adjourned. The motion carried unanimously 8-0.  
Minutes respectfully submitted by Jess Guffey Calkins, pending council approval