The Development of a Local Food Environment Policy Framework and its Application in Several Ontario Municipal Jurisdictions

Governments can influence diet quality through policies that improve the state of the food environment. While national and state/provincial obesity prevention efforts have been well documented, monitoring at the municipal level has not been widely explored. This thesis aimed to develop a framework and inventory to monitor municipal food environment policies and government action, and apply it in three municipal jurisdictions in Ontario, Canada. The collection of implemented policies within US and Canadian municipalities suggest that local governments have the authority and capacity to introduce novel policies in many food environment domains to promote healthy food choices. Currently, municipal governments in Ontario are using a variety of approaches to create healthy food environments, but local government and non-government experts agreed there are areas for further improvement. These findings will help municipalities identify the strengths and opportunities to address weaknesses in their food environments to improve population health.M.Sc.2021-07-28 00:00:0