Richmond Food Asset Map: Grocery Stores + Public Markets

 

 

 

 

 

Project Summary

Title

Richmond Food Asset Map – Grocery Stores + Public Markets

Purpose

This project focus is the development of a Richmond Food Asset Map and has 3 main goals.

  1. To provide a current, dynamic and easy to use tool for community members and agencies to locate community food assets
  2. To increase awareness of some types of food access retail locations in Richmond
  3. To make it easier for Richmond community partners and advocates to view and determine food asset gaps in the community.

Areas of Focus

  • Food Asset Maps
  • Strategies for supporting food insecure individuals and households
  • Municipal-level, multi-partner collaboration on health-related issue
  • Grocery Stores
  • Public Markets

Skills

  • Good computer skills
  • Familiarity with Microsoft Excel spreadsheets
  • Good verbal communication skills (for speaking with members of the public and organizations either in-person or over the phone)
  • Skills in collecting current, accurate, consistent information using a variety of approaches (e.g. internet searches, phone calls, in-person)

Location

Location will vary based on where the food assets you are mapping are located. Some work can be done over the phone or computer, whereas other work will involve visiting locations in Richmond (all locations are expected to be accessible to the public and by transit).

Organization Information

Name

Vancouver Coastal Health

Vision + Mission

  • Our mission

We are committed to supporting healthy lives in healthy communities with our partners through care, education and research.

  • Our vision

We will be leaders in promoting wellness and ensuring care by focusing on quality and innovation.

Guiding Principles + Values

Our Strategic Framework: Putting People First

  • Our people first strategy shapes how we approach our vision, mission, values and goals.
  • Our VCH strategic priorities is a guiding framework for operational planning, priority setting, and identifying opportunities for strategic investment of time, people and financial resources.
  • (Information available at: http://www.vch.ca/about-us/strategy/)

Our Values:

  • Service: We will provide outstanding service and respond to needs in a timely and innovative manner.
  • Integrity: We will serve openly and honestly in a caring and compassionate environment
  • Sustainability: We will focus on effectiveness, efficiency, best practices and health outcomes, holding ourselves responsible for results

Our Goals: We are guided by four organizational goals to achieve our vision.

  • Provide the best care
  • Promote better health for our communities
  • Develop the best workforce
  • Innovate for sustainability

Primary Contact

  • Contact Person(s): Anne Swann, MSc, RD
  • Email: anne.swann@vch.ca
  • Address: Richmond Public Health, 8100 Granville Avenue, Richmond, BC V6Y 3T6
  • Phone: 604-233-3103
  • Website: http://www.vch.ca/public-health/nutrition
  • Best time(s) method(s) to contact: Monday – Friday, e-mail or phone

Project Description

Overall this project is intended to gather information about community food assets across the city of Richmond. This information is being used to create a Richmond Food Asset Google map. Vancouver Coastal Health Public Health dietitians are working with community partners to create the mapping tool. Key end users of the map will include: community members seeking food resources, service providers and promoters of more food assets.

Students will be involved in gathering information on the following food assets:

  • Grocery Stores (i.e. Stores that offer a wide selection of food and non-food household products. Examples of these would be Safeway, T&T Supermarket or Save-On- Foods.)
  • Public Markets (i.e. Markets that include fresh fruits, vegetables, and other products from farms. Examples of these would be Kin’s Farm Market or Coppersmith Farm Market.)

The key student deliverables include:

  • Gather information on the above mentioned food assets. Update an Excel document of the above food asset categories with information on available food assets in the city of Richmond. This part of the project will most likely involve contacting businesses and researching information online to ensure that the information in the excel document is correct and formatted consistently. Some on-the-ground confirmation of food retail outlets may be required. For food retail, getting permission to post a food retail outlet’s information on-line is usually not

necessary. In the case of a business that is not already advertised on-line, getting permission is a good idea. In case it is needed, a discussion script, including an introduction to the tool and guiding questions, will be provided to UBC students for them to use when contacting food assets. Students will also be provided with instructions on how to add data and update the excel document.

  • Interview interested community partners and organizations (e.g. community agencies and food networks, Richmond Family Place, Family Services of Greater Vancouver and Richmond community centres) and VCH Richmond Public Health staff to trial the Richmond Food Asset Mapping tool and gather their feedback. Feedback forms will be given to students to interview interested staff or community members when gathering feedback.
  • Write a summary of feedback received from Richmond community partners and VCH Public Health staff. Provide recommendations for next steps of the project, based on both the overall map and specific food asset category assigned. (Feedback and recommendations will hopefully be used to assist Vancouver Coastal Health and future LFS 350 students to improve the mapping tool).

Goal and Project Scope

This project focus is the development of a Richmond Food Asset Map and has 3 main goals.

  1. To provide a current, dynamic and easy to use tool for community members and agencies to locate community food assets
  2. To increase awareness of some types of food access retail locations in Richmond
  3. To make it easier for Richmond community partners and advocates to view and determine food asset gaps in the community.

Skills Preferred

  • Good verbal communication and interviewing skills (you have an interest in speaking with members of Richmond community and healthcare professionals). Comfortable in communicating with people over the phone and in person.
  • Good written communication skills (you will be contacting people overseeing various Richmond food assets by email as well as by phone)
  • Good observation skills (you will have an opportunity to observe a community kitchen or food skills program)
  • Good computer skills and proficient in working with Microsoft Excel spreadsheets (you will be using Google Maps and Microsoft programs)
  • Data collecting skills (you will be obtaining current, accurate and consistent information using a variety of approaches possibly including internet searches, phone calls, in-person)
  • Understanding of what community food assets are and how they serve the community

Preferred Days of Week and Hours

  • Timing is flexible. Students may need to work during business hours in order to contact some VCH staff or community partners. However, most of the work can be organized to fit the student’s schedule. Students need to interview VCH Staff and community members to review the tool and get their feedback.

Project/Partner Orientation

  • Date/Time: January 22nd, 2018, 2-3 pm
  • Location: Richmond Public Health, Room 905, 8100 Granville Avenue, Richmond

Student should review the following before the first orientation meeting:

Community Service Opportunities

  • To observe (and may assist in) a community kitchen or food skills program to gain an understanding of this food asset.

Expected Outcomes

Learning Outcomes

  • I hope students will learn how to find food assets in the community and complete the first steps of a community food assessment.
  • I think students will come to appreciate and better understand the wide variety of types of food assets that have the potential to improve the health and nutrition of community members.
  • Students will develop their interviewing and communication skills.

Organizational Outcomes

  • That all of Richmond’s grocery stores and public markets will be added to the VCH Richmond Food Asset Map.
  • That key members of our staff and community partners will become aware of the VCH Richmond Food Asset Map and the food assets available for the Richmond population.
  • Richmond Public Health will have a listing of current food assets in Richmond and can then move on to the next part of completing a community food assessment.
source: https://wiki.ubc.ca/Course:LFS350/Projects/W2018/RFAMgrocery_public_markets