To learn more about the Clinical Curriculum and Registration, please visit our Clinical Registration Center. You can also find more information on How to Register for Clinics and How Clinical Credits Work.

For more information about this clinic, please visit the Clinic Website, Clinic Q&A and OCP Blog Highlights.

Enrollment in this clinic will fulfill the HLS JD pro bono requirement.

Required Class Component: Students in the spring clinic must enroll in either Food Law and Policy (2 spring classroom credits) or Policy Advocacy Workshop (2 spring classroom credits), or must have taken one of those courses in a prior semester. Students who enroll in the spring clinic will be enrolled in one of the required courses by the Office of Clinical and Pro Bono Programs. Students are guaranteed a seat in one of these two required courses, but are not guaranteed their first choice. Students enrolled in either course under a clinical seat will lose their seat if they choose to drop the clinic.

Additional Co-/Pre-Requisites: None.

By Permission: No.

Add/Drop Deadline: December 12, 2025.

LLM Students: LLM students may enroll in this clinic through Helios.

Placement Site: HLS.

The Food Law and Policy Clinic (FLPC) offers students the opportunity to develop a robust law and policy skillset while engaging in a wide range of cross-cutting issues that address the health, environmental, economic, and social impacts of food and agriculture. FLPC combines legal research and analysis as well as policy advocacy to assist community members, clients, partners, and government agencies to understand and improve laws impacting the food system. 

Students enrolled in the clinic will have the opportunity to work on the following types of projects: 

• Identifying and promoting innovative policies to reduce food loss and waste in the United States and across the globe 
• Commenting on federal regulations, such as the Food and Drug Administration rules around health claims and healthy labels, or U.S. Department of Agriculture rules to improve farmer livelihoods and environmental outcomes 
• Researching and recommending strategies to integrate food and nutrition into the healthcare system and healthcare coverage in support of Food is Medicine programs 
• Advocating for increased support for farmers who do not currently benefit from USDA programs or have suffered historical discrimination, including small-scale farmers and socially-disadvantaged farmers  
• Collaborating with and supporting community-based organizations to uplift and strengthen local food sovereignty and food system justice efforts 

Students are typically assigned 1-2 projects over the course of the semester. Work in the clinic is often a combination of independent tasks, team-based projects, in-depth legal research and writing, and oral and written legal analysis and policy advocacy. Clinic partners and clients are located around the United States and the globe, and some students may have the opportunity to travel. 

FLPC students practice a variety of transferable skills not otherwise gained in the classroom, including:  

• Interviewing clients and/or stakeholders 
• Writing formal legal or policy memos, explanatory guides, toolkits, or public-facing reports 
• Drafting and reviewing legislation and regulatory comments 
• Community organizing and coalition building 
• Public speaking 
• Writing communications/media material (e.g., blog posts and op-eds)

For more information about FLPC, please email Professor Broad Leib at ebroad@law.harvard.edu or visit our website at https://chlpi.org/food-law-and-policy/.   

Successful completion of appropriate written work in this offering satisfies the professional writing requirement for matriculants to the J.D. program from 2023 onward.