Easier access to healthy food as well as stronger support to sustainable farming also through the recovery of the city's abandoned lands, are the main goals of the new comprehensive food policy issued by San Francisco mayor Gavin Newsom.  The plan includes a range of actions to be completed in the next six months, such as a requirement that all departments conduct an audit of land under their jurisdiction to create an inventory of land suitable for gardening, the introduction of new health and sustainability requirements for food sold by vendors under city permits, a "healthy meetings policy" requiring the purchase of healthy, locally produced foods for city meetings, and within two months, the introduction of a new law requiring that food purchased by the city has been grown regionally and through sustainable methods.

The proposals partly come from the outcomes of the San Francisco Urban-Rural Roundtable that took place in September of 2008, where a broad range of urban and rural representatives, including California Secretary of Agriculture AG Kawamura, were invited to start an unprecedented urban and rural collaboration to advance a sustainable "food shed" plan for the city and region.

"The stark reality is that hunger, food insecurity, and poor nutrition are pressing health issues, even in a city as rich and vibrant as San Francisco," said Mayor Newsom. "From the alleviation of hunger, to the need to support local and sustainable agricultural practices, these recommendations form a comprehensive and strategic approach to addressing pressing needs in all sectors of the food system."