The Greater Birmingham Community Food Partners is a grassroots organization whose mission is promoting access for all community residents to a safe, culturally acceptable, nutritionally adequate diet through a sustainable food system that maximizes community self-reliance and social justice.

The goal of the GBCFP is supporting the development and enhancement of sustainable, community-based strategies to improve the access of low-income households to healthy, nutritious food supplies, increasing self-reliance in providing for food needs, and promoting comprehensive responses to local food, farm, and nutrition issues.

The GBCFP strives to accomplish these goals by addressing the root causes of hunger and food insecurity and creatively pursues positive improvement by involvement in research, advocacy, education, and policy in Jefferson County.

History

In August 2004, Magic City Harvest, Society of St. Andrew (Alabama Gleaning Network), and Vestavia Hills UMC sponsored a statewide Hunger Summit.  As a follow up to that meeting, these partners decided to begin a Food Security Coalition in Birmingham as a model that might be implemented by other communities in the state.  In April 2005, a group of persons representing various agencies began to meet to discuss the formation/mission/purpose/goals of a Food Security Coalition.

Since 2005, the group has evolved into the Greater Birmingham Community Food Partners and is now transitioning into becoming a Food Policy Council.