BILL ANALYSIS                                                                                                                                                                                                    Ó



                                                                  AB 2413
                                                                  Page  1


          ASSEMBLY THIRD READING
          AB 2413 (John A. Pérez)
          As Introduced  February 21, 2014
          Majority vote 

           AGRICULTURE         7-0         APPROPRIATIONS      16-0        
           
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          |Ayes:|Eggman, Olsen, Lowenthal, |Ayes:|Gatto, Bigelow,           |
          |     |Dahle, Pan, Quirk, Yamada |     |Bocanegra, Bradford, Ian  |
          |     |                          |     |Calderon, Campos, Eggman, |
          |     |                          |     |Gomez, Holden, Jones,     |
          |     |                          |     |Linder, Pan, Quirk,       |
          |     |                          |     |Ridley-Thomas, Wagner,    |
          |     |                          |     |Weber                     |
          |-----+--------------------------+-----+--------------------------|
          |     |                          |     |                          |
           ----------------------------------------------------------------- 
           SUMMARY  :  Creates the Office of Farm to Fork (OF2F) within the  
          California Department of Food and Agriculture (CDFA) to work  
          with various groups and organizations involved in promoting food  
          access, to increase the amount of agricultural products  
          available to schools and underserved communities in the state.   
          Specifically,  this bill  :  

          1)Makes declarations and findings relating to food access in  
            California.
           
          2)Creates OF2F to work with public and private organizations  
            interested in food access, to increase the availability of  
            agricultural products to underserved communities.

          3)Creates a Farm to Fork (F2F) account in the CDFA fund.   
            Requires funds to consist of money made available from  
            federal, state, industry and other sources. 

          4)Allows funds deposited in the F2F account to be used for OF2F,  
            without regard to fiscal year.  

           FISCAL EFFECT  :  According to the Assembly Appropriations  
          Committee, minor and absorbable incremental costs.
           
           COMMENTS  :  F2F is a term that encompasses efforts that bring  
          local or regionally produced foods to people who want or need  








                                                                  AB 2413
                                                                  Page  2


          access to these products.  F2F is currently being accomplished  
          in many different ways in California.  It can be seen in farmers  
          markets, community supported agriculture, and other venues where  
          people can buy food directly from growers.  Other examples are  
          farm to school programs that increase access and awareness of  
          fresh fruits and vegetables through the use of school gardens  
          and education, and community and urban gardens that help  
          communities grow their own foods.  

          By creating OF2F within CDFA to coordinate with state and  
          federal agencies, along with private and public organizations,  
          this bill will help streamline F2F efforts.  CDFA is uniquely  
          situated to administer OF2F due to CDFA's knowledge of the  
          agricultural industry, and CDFA's ability to bring farmers  
          together with a variety of public and private organizations to  
          increase the supply of healthy food.

           
          Analysis Prepared by  :    Victor Francovich / AGRI. / (916)  
          319-2084                                               

                                                                 FN:  
                                                                 0003449