Why A Food Plan?
Across Dallas County, too many families face barriers to getting the food they need. The support system is large, but without coordination, many people still fall through the cracks. This affects health, increases medical costs, and deepens inequities.
By building the Dallas 2035 Food Plan, we’re working to create a clear path forward, helping partners work together and making it easier for all residents to access good, nourishing food.
Key Facts:
- Nearly 1 in 8 residents and almost 1 in 5 children in Dallas County lack consistent access to enough affordable, nutritious food.
- In 2022, 25% of children in Dallas County lived in households with food insecurity—higher than the Texas (16%) and U.S. (14%) averages.
- The volume of outpatient services for diabetes in Dallas County is projected to grow by 22% through 2024, underscoring the rising burden of chronic disease tied to poor nutrition.
The Impact of Food Plans
Cities across the country and world have built food plans to align resources, policies, budgets, and stakeholders around shared goals. By developing these plans with their local residents, these plans have helped to create lasting improvements to how people engage with their local food system, with real results:
- Reductions in food insecurity and increased healthy food access
- Economic and social benefits
- Opportunities to build partnerships, share and use data, and amplify efficiencies
- Community empowerment and wellbeing
In building a food plan for the City of Dallas and Dallas County, our aim is to bring together local leaders, food producers, institutional buyers, researchers, public agencies, and residents to create a roadmap that expands healthy food access for everyone and brings these same results to our own community.