Douglas County Food Policy Council met with the County Commission Wednesday to highlight its goals for the upcoming year.

The Food Policy Council has made great strides since its creation about a year ago, council member Tom Buller said. It has made community presentations and invited local stakeholders to join the organization’s meetings. It has also created outreach efforts to support other community food efforts, such as Liberty Hall’s Our Local Food festival, the formation of Free State High School’s community garden and ECKAN’s hunger free community grant project.

The council’s future goals include providing continued support for local producers of sustainable food, increasing public outreach, providing access to and greater distribution of local food, as well as identification, preservation and sustainable development of local resources.

The council is also collaborating with Kansas State University to develop a report that will identify what residents of Douglas County currently consume, what they produce and the economic implications of refocusing the food system on local products.