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New York University / Steinhardt
Department of Nutrition, Food Studies, and Public Health
FOOD-GE 2015 FOOD POLICY: FALL 2013
30 hours: 3 points. Meets Mondays 4:55 to 6:35 p.m. in Tisch LC-9
Instructor: Marion Nestle, Paulette Goddard Professor of Nutrition, Food Studies, and
Public Health
Office hours: Usually from 3:30 to 4:30 on Mondays (but check first), and by appointment,
at marion.nestle@nyu.edu. 411 Lafayette, 5th floor.
Blog: www.foodpolitics.com Twitter @marionnestle
Teaching Assistant/Co-Instructor: Daniel Bowman Simon
Office hours: Thursdays 3:30-4:30 p.m. at 411 Lafayette, Carrel 5F, or by appointment
E-mail: dbs207 AT nyu dot edu
Note: When sending e-mails to instructors, please put FP13 in the subject line.
COURSE DESCRIPTION
This course is based on the premise that a rational and desirable goal for any society is to
develop and maintain a food system that promotes health, protects the environment, is
sustainable, and supports the livelihoods of its participants.
The course deals with how governments—particularly that of the United States—design and
implement policies and programs to foster social goals such as ensuring a sufficient,
nutritionally adequate, safe, affordable, and sustainable food supply. It examines why and
how governments do or do not decide to set policies; reviews how stakeholders in the food
system become involved in and influence policy development; identifies the social, cultural,
economic, and political factors that influence stakeholder and government positions on
policy issues; and describes the ways in which these factors promote or act as barriers to
policies aimed at promoting public health, agricultural sustainability, and the environment.
Throughout the course, students are encouraged to question assumptions and premises and
to consider whether food choices should be matters of policy or should be left to
individuals. Should governments have a role in food policy? If so, what should that role be?
The course emphasizes analysis of the:
 Research and other evidence used as a basis for food policy development.
 Context (nutritional, political, economic, cultural, etc.) in which food policies are
developed.
 Processes through which stakeholders influence policy decisions.
 Methods through which government agencies translate policies into regulations and
programs.
 Consequences (intended and unintended, positive and negative, measurable and not)
of policies promoting healthful and sustainable food.
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COURSE OBJECTIVES
1. Define what is meant by policy, and explain how policies differ from programs.
2. Describe the principal areas of domestic and international nutrition, food, and
agriculture policy and the most important current issues related to those policy areas.
3. Identify the government agencies primarily responsible for each area of food and
nutrition policy, explain their roles, and describe their principal policy goals and methods for
achieving them.
4. Explain what is meant by “food system,” the policy and political issues raised by this
term, and the principal stakeholder groups and positions on food system issues.
5. Identify the ways in which social, cultural, economic, commercial, and institutional
factors promote or act as barriers to the design and implementation of agriculture, food,
and nutrition policies and programs, and the ways in which these policies and programs
affect health.
6. Identify the principal health–related problems linked to food and nutrition. Explain how
these problems, in both U.S. and international populations, may (or may not) be linked to
domestic and international food policy.
7. Identify and apply the methods by which stakeholder groups affect the design and
implementation of agriculture, food, and nutrition policies.
8. Describe arguments that support and counter the position that government should or
should not be involved in the food choices of individuals.
COURSE READINGS
Required texts: available at the NYU Bookstore, online, and in the library on reserve.
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Jayaraman S. Behind the Kitchen Door. ILR Press, 2013.
Nestle M. Food Politics: How the Food Industry Influences Nutrition and Health,
2013.
Poppendieck J. Sweet Charity: Emergency Food and the End of Entitlement. Viking,
1998.
Nestle M. Safe Food: The Politics of Food Safety, 2010.
Albritton R. Let Them Eat Junk: How Capitalism Creates Hunger and Obesity. Pluto
Press, 2009.
Recommended optional texts for students interested in international food policy:
 Pinstrup-Anderson P, Watson DD. Food Policy for Developing Countries: The Role of
Government in Global, National, and Local Food Systems, 2011
 Fan S, Pandya-Lorch R, eds. Reshaping Agriculture for Nutrition and Health.
International Food Policy Research Institute (IFPRI)
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Additional course readings
These are listed in the course outline by category.
 Required readings—books, articles, reports—are indicated by this symbol: 
 Background information and specific sources are listed under Browse.
 Add-ons: If especially relevant documents are released during the semester, these
may be added as announced by e-mail and in class (but will be kept to a minimum).
Current events
You are expected to read (in print or online) a national daily newspaper influential in policy
matters—for example, the New York Times, Wall Street Journal, or Washington Post, and
relevant blogs and online sources—as a basis for discussion and analysis of food and
nutrition policy events as they occur.
EXPECTATIONS
 Inform instructor in advance by e-mail if you are not going to be in class.
 Class begins on time: arrive on time.
 Cell phones off; No unrelated Internet activity during class time.
 Inform instructor in advance if you need to leave early.
 Complete assigned work on time; there will be penalties for late work.
 Plan ahead: no incomplete grades are given (except in dire, documented
emergencies).
 Your voice matters: Participate. Take responsibility for your own learning. If you
don’t understand something, ask!
 If something isn’t working for you, complain (politely, of course).
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FOOD POLICY CLASS, READING, AND ASSIGNMENT SCHEDULE, FALL 2013
CLASS
DATE
FOOD POLICY TOPIC
ASSIGNMENTS
Readings should be completed and ready to discuss by the
indicated class date. Links are live. Papers on NYUClasses are
under Resources.
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Sept 9
Introducing food and
nutrition policy
Frieden TR. Government’s role in protecting health and
safety. New Engl J Med, May 16, 2013 (NYUClasses)
Pinstrup-Anderson & Watson, Ch. 1, 2 (NYUClasses)
Start reading Jayaraman, Behind the Kitchen Door
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Sept 16
Food and nutrition policy
categories; Protecting
food workers
Jayaraman S. Behind the Kitchen Door.
Flanders L. Serving up justice. The Nation, September 2-9,
2013 (NYUClasses)
Browse
 Food Chain Workers Alliance. The Hands that Feed
Us…, June 6, 2012.
 Bon Appétit and United Farm Workers. The Inventory
of Farmworker Issues and Protections in the United
States. March 2011.
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Sept 23
Educating the public:
Dietary guidelines and
food guides
 Food Politics: Prefaces; Introduction; Part 1; Afterword
pages 375-389; Appendix.
The 2010 Dietary Guidelines for Americans
Selected messages for consumers
Browse:
 History of Dietary Guidelines
 The 2010 Dietary Guidelines Advisory Committee
report (especially Part D, Section 1)
 MyPlate resources
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Sept 30
Setting and evaluating
domestic policy goals:
Preventing obesity
Food Politics: Parts 2 and 3; Afterword pages 389-412.
Healthy People 2010:
 About Healthy People
 History, Healthy People process
 Nutrition objectives.
White House Task Force on Childhood Obesity. Solving the
Problem of Childhood Obesity within a Generation, May 2010.
Wilson D, Roberts J. Food fight: How Washington went soft
on childhood obesity, Reuters special report, April 27, 2012.
Browse:
 CDC site on adult obesity
 CDC site on childhood obesity
 Let’s Move site
DUE: First thoughts on Policy Analysis topic (Problem and
Policy)
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Oct 7
Influencing food and
nutrition policy:
stakeholders, lobbying,
and expenditures
Food Politics: Parts 4 and 5; Conclusion
Browse
 Food & Water Watch. Cultivating Influence - The 2008
Farm Bill Lobbying Frenzy
 Center for Responsive Politics: Open Secrets:
Influence and Lobbying
DUE: Open Secrets assignment
ALERT: October 21 is last chance to turn in short paper #1.
Oct 14
FALL RECESS
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Oct 21
Regulating the food
industry: Food labels,
health claims, marketing
to children, soda
consumption
PLoS series on Big Food, July 2012
 Editorial: The food industry is ripe for scrutiny
 Stuckler D, Nestle M. big food, food systems,
and global health
 Brownell KD. Thinking forward: the quicksand of
appeasing the food industry
 Browse: Other articles in the series
FTC, CDC, FDA, USDA. Interagency Working Group report
on food marketed to children, April 2011.
Browse: Label and health claims regulations
 FDA Food labeling and nutrition
 FDA Front-of-package initiative
 FDA Menu and vending machines label rules
 FDA Point-of-purchase background information
 FDA research proposal on fortification
 USDA Label policies
 European Union health-claims regulations
Browse: NYC Dep’t of Health Materials on 16-ounce soda cap:
 New York State Supreme Court decision 3-11-13
 Appeals court decision, 7-30-13 (starts on page 22)
DUE: Second thoughts on Policy Analysis topic
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Oct 28
Addressing food
insecurity
Poppendieck, Sweet Charity: Intro through Chapter 5
ACF International. Taking Action: Nutrition for Survival,
Growth & Development, White Paper, May 2010.
Kaufman F. Let them eat cash! Harpers, June 2009 (NYU
Classes)
Browse:
 USDA Food assistance home page
 USDA Food insecurity measurement page
 FAO hunger home page
 World Food Programme home page
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Nov 4
Addressing food issues in
low-income populations:
food insecurity and
obesity
Poppendieck, Sweet Charity: Chapter 6 through Conclusion
ACF International. Taking Action: Nutrition for Survival,
Growth & Development, White Paper, May 2010.
Moodie R, et al. Profits and pandemics: prevention of
harmful effects of tobacco, alcohol, and ultra-processed food
and drink industries. The Lancet 2013;381:670-679 (NYU
Classes).
Browse
 Center for Study of the Presidency and Congress.
SNAP to Health: A Fresh Approach to Strengthening
the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, 2012.
 Simon M. Food stamps: follow the money, 2012.
 WHO Controlling the global obesity epidemic
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Nov 11
Regulating the food
system: the farm bill
Nestle M. Utopian dream: a new farm bill. Dissent, 2012.
Morgan D. The Farm Bill and Beyond, 2010.
Food & Water Watch. Farm Bill 101, 2012
Khan L. Obama's Game of Chicken. Washington Monthly,
2012.
Browse
 U.S. Senate farm bill site: current status
 U.S. House farm bill site: current status
 National Young Farmers Coalition. Building a future
with farmers, November 2011.
 Union of Concerned Scientists. Policy brief: Toward
healthy food and farms, March 2012
 Food & Water Watch. Do Farm Subsidies Cause
Obesity?
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Nov 18
Ensuring food safety
Nestle, Safe Food: Prefaces; Introduction; Part I (Chapters
1-4); Epilogue 281-298
Browse
 FDA Food Safety Modernization Act home page
 FDA Fact sheets on food safety
 FDA website on food safety
 FDA recall announcements
 USDA recall announcements
 CDC outbreak surveillance
 Attorney Bill Marler’s blog
DUE: Third thoughts on Policy Analysis (only if needed)
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Nov 25
Regulating food trade and
aid: International food
policy
Love P, Lattimore R. International Trade, 2009. Read
Introduction (8-14), Chapter 5 (76-91), and Chapter 4 (54-75).
OXFAM on food aid reform in the farm bill
Press release: USDA Announces Export Promotion
Allocations for Fiscal Year 2013
FY13 Market Access Program (MAP) Allocations
Browse
 World Trade Organization (WTO) home page
 WTO Agriculture negotiations
 USDA Foreign Agricultural Service home page
 US State Department trade policies
 FDA Imports and exports home page
 Codex Alimentarius home page
 USAID Fact sheet on the future of food aid
ALERT: December 2 is last chance to turn in short paper #2.
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Dec 2
Regulating emerging
technologies: Food
biotechnology
Nestle, Safe Food: Part II (Chapters 5-8); Epilogue 277281. Browse: Appendix on the science of plant biotechnology.
Albritton, Let Them Eat Junk
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Dec 9
Advocating for policy
change
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Dec 11
Making policy work: class
discussion TBA
Dec 18
5:00 p.m.
Browse
 FDA completed consultations on bioengineered foods
 FDA home page on genetically engineered salmon
 FDA nanotechnology home page
 FDA animal cloning home page
DUE: Policy Analysis and Advocacy Brief
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ADDITIONAL ONLINE RESOURCES
Blogs focusing on nutrition and food policy
 Marion Nestle’s blog: http://www.foodpolitics.com
 Michele Simon’s blog: http://www.eatdrinkpolitics.com/
 Parke Wilde’s blog: http://usfoodpolicy.blogspot.com
Organizations advocating for nutrition and food policies
 Agriculture and Food Policy Center at Texas A&M
 California Food Policy Advocates
 Center for Science in the Public Interest (CSPI): nutrition policy
 Food First policy publications
 Food & Water Watch: policy briefs
 Rudd Center for Food Policy and Obesity at Yale: obesity policy
 Institute for Agriculture and Trade Policy
U.S. government food and nutrition policy websites
 US House of Representatives. How our laws are made, 2007
 Office of the Federal Register. Guide to the rulemaking process
 USDA Center for Nutrition Policy and Promotion
 DHHS Office of Disease Prevention and Health Promotion
 USDA home page for policy topics
 FDA food regulation home page
 FTC regulations and policies
 Congress legislation
 Congressional Research Reports archived at National Agricultural Law Center
New York State food policy
 New York State Council on Food Policy
 New York City food policy
 City Council Foodworks report
 Scott Stringer Blueprint for a Sustainable Food System
International food policy organizations
 Food and Agriculture Organization (U.N.)
 World Health Organization (U.N.)
 International Food Policy Research Institute (IFPRI)
 United Nations Special Rapporteur on the right to food (Olivier De Schutter)
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The UNICEF Framework for Understanding Childhood Malnutrition
This diagram explains effective policy interventions may be far removed from immediate
causes of food-related problems and that food policy theory cannot always guide practice.
It presents a conceptual framework for identifying potential points of food policy
intervention. Governments can implement policies to address any cause of malnutrition (or
any other nutrition or food problem), but the interventions likely to be most effective—
those that deal with basic causes—are also most likely to encounter political barriers.
From: UNICEF. Strategy for improved Nutrition of Children and Women in developing
countries. New York, 1990.
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EVALUATION
PLEASE FOLLOW THESE WRITING INSTRUCTIONS: Write your name and NYU email ID on all work submitted. All work must be typed, double-spaced, single-sided,
leaving one-inch margins, clearly marked with your name and e-mail address, titled with the
issue you are discussing, and presented in a readable font (if you are using anything smaller
than 12-point, you must clear it with the instructor). Number all pages. Do not exceed
space or word limits. Write clearly. Use grammar and spell checks. Do not use right
justification. Turn in all work in a stapled hard copy unless negotiated in advance with
instructors.
1. ATTENDANCE AND PARTICIPATION (45%)
This is based on five elements: (a) your presence in class, (b) your contribution to class
discussion, (c) your completion of weekly questions based on the reading, (d) your completion
of the short papers, and (e) the Open Secrets assignment.
(c) The weekly questions: You will post at least two questions related to the readings on
the class NYU Classes Forum page. You should read your colleagues’ postings and either post
follow-up or related questions, or come up with new questions. Questions should address
matters covered in the reading that you think need clarification, explanation, alternative
hypotheses, or further discussion. These will help guide in-class discussions each week.
DUE: no later than 8:00 p.m. Sunday (anything later will not be credited).
(d) The short papers: Choose two class sessions that are most relevant to your
professional or research interests and write a short policy analysis of related issues raised
by the reading, class questions or discussion. The paper should do a quick “P’s” analysis,
explicitly stating the Problem, the Policy, the Program (if there is any implementation), the
People (stakeholders), the Politics, and your Perception (Analysis) of what’s needed. The
goal of these papers is to develop skills in policy analysis as well as to articulate coherent
answers to questions posed by the course objectives.
DUE: Turn in one hard copy of your paper in the class following the class dealing
with the issue you choose.
NOTE: last chance for #1 is Monday October 21; last chance for #2 is Monday
December 2.
(e) The Open Secrets assignment. To encourage you to use this database, you should
complete one of these options.
Guideline: Present as a table (See below. Copy and fill in).
DUE: Turn in one hard copy in class October 7.
Option 1: Explore the Center for Responsive Politics’ (CRP) Open Secrets Lobbying
Database. Choose a food or agriculture company, advocacy group, or trade association that
interests you. Review the group’s lobbying disclosures for the past 2 years (2011-2013).
List five issues they've lobbied on, and explain why you think they've lobbied on each of
those issues. Speculate on the impact their lobbying may have had on federal policies.
[Note: reports are filed quarterly, and Open Secrets lags a few months in processing them.
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If you want to see the most recent disclosures, go to the Senate Site: “Query the Lobbying
Disclosure Act Database.” If you like, you may use this database instead of Open Secrets.
Query by “Client Name” and “Filing Year”].
Title. State the name of the company, advocacy group, or trade association.
LOBBY ISSUE
DATE(S) OF
DISCLOSURE
(i.e. Q1, 2013)
RATIONALE
EFFECT?
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
OR
Option 2: Explore the Center for Responsive Politics’ (CRP) Open Secrets Lobbying
Database. Choose a food or nutrition policy issue. Use the database to identify groups that
have lobbied on the issue. List five such groups. Explain why you think they've lobbied on
this specific issue, and speculate on the impact the lobbying may have had on federal
policies. [Note: No protocol exists for naming a specific issue in the Lobbying Disclosure
forms (i.e., one lobbying group might report “fruit and vegetables” while another might
report “produce.” One group might report a bill number (e.g., S.510) while another might
report “Food Safety Modernization Act” or just “food safety.”] Brainstorm as many search
terms you can. Persist.
Title. State the issue in your own words.
LOBBY GROUP
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
DATE(S) OF
DISCLOSURE
(i.e. Q1, 2013)
SPECIFIC ISSUE
REPORTED BY LOBBY
GROUP
RATIONALE
EFFECT?
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2. POLICY ANALYSIS AND ADVOCACY POLICY BRIEF (55%)
Although food and nutrition policy analysis can be highly theoretical, it can and should be
applied to real-world issues
Policy analysis
For this assignment, you will pick a food-related issue that could be resolved or improved by
a new policy or a change in an existing policy (as approved by instructors). The policy should
be one that can be implemented by city, state, federal, or international governments or
agencies. You will do a “P’s” description and analysis. Begin your paper with a title page that
summarizes your topic in the format “A policy (state what it is) to address (state the
problem). Construct your paper in sections with the titles: Problem, Policy, Program,
People, and Politics. Conclude with a section titled Analysis: Does the policy have a
reasonable chance of fixing the problem? What alternatives might work better? What are
the realities (political, monetary, social, or whatever is relevant) of achieving your policy
objective?
You should draw on the class readings and additional research on your topic, and
include appropriate references—keyed to the text (use the numerical endnote referencing
system in your word processor)--and other materials to support your argument. In the
Analysis section, say what you think about the situation and provide your own arguments,
insights, and opinions.
Guidelines: Up to 10 pages of text. Endnote references, tables, figures, and other
supporting materials can be additional; they will not count toward the 10-page limit.
DUE: Two hard copies by December 18, 5:00 p.m.
Advocacy policy brief
Food advocacy groups often develop policy briefs on a wide range of topics to educate
members and guide their work. Your policy analysis should be easy to adapt to a slightly
different and shorter format that requires only one additional piece. Include a title page
that states the title of your topic in the format “Policy brief: the topic you are writing
about and the name of an appropriate advocacy group. Title the sections of your brief:
Summary, Background, Conclusion, Actions (this is the new piece: list advocacy actions
that should be taken and organizations working on the issue), Sources (list up to 5
references that would be most useful for beginners).
Guidelines: no more than 5 pages of text with References, Tables, or Figures
additional.
DUE: Two hard copies by December 18, 5:00 p.m.
GRADING: Grades will be based on depth and breadth of knowledge and research, cogency
of argument, adherence to format, quality of the policy plan, consistency with reality, and
quality of the writing.