Statewide Emergency Food Distribution: The New Frontier

Kristin GuntherWisconsin Department of Agriculture, Trade

and Consumer Protection

Food for Thought: System Vulnerabilities

• Food production and distribution operate on a just-in-time delivery system

• Warehouses do not store food supplies for any length of time

• The food system is increasingly compressed: fewer facilities processing/distributing food; remote disruptions can be felt immediately close to home

Emergency Food

Understanding the food system enhances preparedness and response planning

Food Facts:

• Most American cities have less than a 1-week supply of food in their warehouses

• Most retail stores have less than 3-4 days supply of food on their shelves

• Most households have less than 3-days supply of food

• First Steps:

• Identifying Wisconsin’s most economically significant food sectors

– Identifying key players in each sector (producers, processors, distributors

Full report: “Characterizing WI's Food Systems

from Production to Consumption: A Reference Document”

www.datcp.state.wi.us (publications: food

safety)

Learning Wisconsin’s Food System:Beginning the Process

Assuring Access to Food

• What are the most likely disruptions to the movement and availability of food in the State/Region?

• Who is responsible for assuring safe and reliable food availability in WI?

• What resources/capabilities exist for maintaining continuity of operations in food distribution in WI?

Lessons from Neighbors

• “Kentucky Ice Storm” – DATCP conducted extensive interviews with

retail, emergency response and VOAD groups in Kentucky

– Findings were documented, providing context for Wisconsin’s preparedness efforts

• Large-Scale Disruptions Include:– Natural Disasters

• flooding • ice storms• tornadoes• animal disease

– Man-Made Disasters• intentional/unintentional contamination

of food supplies

Food System Disruptions

Responding to Food Emergencies

• The Issue:– DATCP: lead agency for food emergency response,

coordinates multi-agency efforts at state and local levels, BUT

– Private Sector:• owns and controls the distribution of food • Has a complex and dynamic supply chain• many players involved from farm-to-fork

• The Challenge: bringing public and private sectors together for effective response to food emergencies

• Purpose: Begin the planning process for assuring availability of food and water in large-scale disruptions

• Objectives:– Document existing capabilities and gaps

within the food distribution system– Identify tools for closing gaps/enhancing

emergency response – connect industry, VOAD and government

stakeholders as response partners in food emergencies

Food Distribution Focus Group

Participants:• Industry: Wal-Mart, Wisconsin Grocers Association,

Reinhart FoodService, Sysco, Wisconsin Petroleum Marketers and Convenience Store Assn., Kwik Trip, American Transmission Corp., Midwest Food Processors

Assoc.

VOAD: American Red Cross Badger Chapter; America’s Second Harvest Food Bank; Salvation Army; Southern Baptists Convention

Government: DATCP, DOT, WI National Guard, State Patrol, DHS, WEM regional and county directors

Food Distribution Focus Group

To assure steady food supply, you must have:» Power (backup generators)» Fuel » Transportation

Lessons Learned

Lessons Learned cont’d

Capabilities:– Strong partnerships exist among VOAD Groups and

Industry– Industry (large distributors and retailers) are fairly self-

sufficient re: power, fuel and transportation– Wal-Mart has an extensive distribution network,

regional emergency supply warehouses and its own EOC

– Many County Emergency Managers have existing agreements with VOADS

– WI DOT Motor Carriers Division has access to MCMIS database identifying refrigerator truck inventory

Lesson’s Learned cont’d

Vulnerabilities – limitations or gaps in the system

– Fuel cannot be pumped without power– Fuel, transportation and backup power are

interdependent– Most retail stores and service stations are not

generator-ready (cannot maintain food supplies/provide fuel for local communities)

– Generator availability is limited/prioritization needed– Need to differentiate between protecting critical

resource and supporting private industry– Retailers and local emergency managers need to

establish contacts

Focus Group Outcome:

Toolkit for Stakeholders• Food Emergency Checklist and Contact Sheet for

Emergency Response• Stakeholder Capabilities and Responsibilities

Table -- documenting who does what• Food Distribution Diagram• Establishing a network for food distribution

stakeholders to share information (forthcoming)• Toolkit online: http://www.datcp.state.wi.us/

• Continued discussion/exercises requested

Food Distribution Stakeholder Relationships

Agricultural Emergencies: Food and Beyond

• Current DATCP efforts include:

– Developing COOP plans with ag industry to minimize impacts from disasters (natural or intentional)

• Wisconsin Agro-Security Resources Network (WARN)

http://www.wisconsinagroresource.net/

– Partnering at a regional level (Multi-State Partnership) to address broad scope of food and ag emergency response planning http://www.agpartnership.org/

• Know your food and agriculture community– who/where are the critical points of contact?

• Planning and training efforts need to include your local food and ag industries– identify existing capabilities and gaps

Food and Agriculture: Interconnected Systems

The $26.5 Billion Dollar Dairy Business:What’s Moving Through Your County?

13 % of nation's milk and 26 % of nation's cheese

25.5 billion lbs of milk from 1.2 million dairy cows on 12,929

dairy farms

2.5 billion lbs of cheese from 200 dairy plants

Any Questions?