The nationwide Good Food Purchasing Program is the first of its kind to encourage large institutions to direct their buying power toward five core values: local economies, environmental sustainability, valued workforce, animal welfare and nutrition. Here in the San Francisco Bay Area, the institutions participating in this important program — including schools, hospitals and jails — spend more than a combined $40 million annually on food. How can they work in tandem with local farmers, distributors, advocates and government to leverage their purchasing dollars to establish a better regionally-based food system? Come hear from some of the leaders of this colossal undertaking on the new strategy they plan to implement in order to achieve this paramount goal.