September 2023 Newsletter- Grace
Greetings, Friends!
You might have noticed that our newsletter was missing in August (and that September is already coming to a close)….Why is it that the transition from the end of summer to the beginning of Autumn always seems to come with so much to do? From back to school time, to giant harvests of the best fruits and vegetables of summer, to festivals and opportunities for connection- there’s been no shortage of places to be and tasks to get done. As we moved through the close of the summer season into the transition of the equinox, I took a moment to reflect on the simultaneous speeding up and slowing down of Mother Earth’s tempos as well, as plants and animals prepare for the colder and darker months ahead. Wildflowers going to seed, spreading their bounty for the next season; squirrels collecting winter stores of nuts; and bees busily collecting pollen to make honey that will get them through the winter; in our household, the garden has been coming on strong too, and the kiddos have seemingly been collecting dirt and sunshine as they soak up all of the warm weather energy with their friends.
There’s a certain beauty in the synergy of these preparations and in the many opportunities for connection, as we all prepare for autumn and the slowing down that comes with cooler weather and more darkness. Many of our farmers will still be harvesting through the autumn and winter, but for others we are nearing time to put the garden to sleep and ready it for next year. (Check out the Farmers Almanac for 3 easy tips on how to build soil now for abundant harvests next year!) Some farmers markets in our region are coming to a close too, though many will run through October. Make sure to check in with your favorite farmers about where they’ll be- and keep an eye out for more information soon on “off” season markets!
I hope you’ll allow us some grace for our absence in August, as we share all of the exciting work we’ve been doing!
Cheers!
Virginia Pleasant, PhD
Co-Executive Director
NWI Food Council
P.S. Farmer Appreciation week is just around the corner! We're looking for local partners and individual donors to show some love to the hardworking farmers that put food on our tables.We do our best to share small gifts of gratitude with all of our partner farmers. If you’d like to send something to share with a farmer (gift cards, self care items, discounts for local restaurants and businesses), please reach out to virginia@nwifoodcouncil.org. If time is short in this season of life, you can donate for us to purchase gifts on your behalf here!
Region Roots Local Farm & Food Hub
Our Region Roots Local Farm and Food Hub is buzzing with excitement! We continue to add new producers and buyers to our hub, and the Local Food for Schools program is officially underway! The NWI Food Council/Region Roots is one of two organizations within Indiana to receive the Local Food for Schools (LFS) grant. For the 2023-2024 school year, schools participating in the National School Lunch Program and with Free & Reduced Lunch rates of 50% or higher are eligible to receive locally grown and produced food from NW Indiana farms – for free! This program prioritizes socially disadvantaged farmers in the NWI region and supports farm viability with fair purchases at market price with grant funding provided by the Indiana Department of Health.
This work is so incredibly important for our NWI community and our state as a whole. The LFS program brings fresh, nutritious, local food to underserved schools and their students, many of whom rely on schools for their main – and sometimes only – source of food during the week. With back-to-school in full swing, our team is so excited and thankful to be involved in providing quality foods to incoming K-12 students. Further, since funding through this program provides marginalized farmers and producers with fair prices for their products, we are able to continue to highlight our mission of farmer viability and the importance that this holds in cultivating a just, thriving, and regenerative local food system. If you know a school or district in NWI that is interested in participating in the LFS grant, would like more info, or would like to start offering local food as part of their meal program, please have a school administrator reach out to us at info@nwifoodcouncil.org.
Here’s to new farm to school connections!
Becca Tuholski
Local Food Access Coordinator
NWI Food Council
Policy Updates
Farm Bill:
With the September 30 deadline upon us, it seems pretty certain that passing the new Farm Bill will be pushed back until at least the end of the year. Check back with us next month for more updates on what this means and advocacy opportunities!
For a quick overview of the missed deadline and new December target, you can read more from Will Bauer here.
Partner Spotlight- Farmed & Forged Market
When the opportunity to revitalize the La Porte Farmers Market was presented, we had about two months before opening day. As you can imagine, there is A LOT that needs to be done to rebrand and coordinate a weekly event, especially within a short timeframe. We had to prioritize the things we wanted to accomplish the first season, and we knew two major things needed to be at the top of that priority list: healthy, local food options and making sure those options were accessible to everyone.
Knowing time was of the essence, we reached out to Becca Tuholski, Food Access Coordinator for NWI Food Council, and Anna Martinez, Food Hub Coordinator for Region Roots (a program of the NWI Food Council). When sharing our objectives of the market, we realized our goals were in line with each other’s, and that’s when our amazing partnership began.
Both Becca and Anna saw our vision of making the event a producers-only market, which would help facilitate the relationship between the shopper and the producer, as well as giving the shopper transparency into the food they are eating. When shoppers can directly ask the person who grew/harvested their food what processes and practices they used producing the product, it makes them more mindful of what they are consuming.
On top of making sure the market is full of healthy options, we had to figure out ways to make that healthy food is available and accessible to everyone, regardless of financial status. Becca was instrumental in helping us get SNAP approval for our market and launching a “Double Up” program where grant funds allow shoppers to double their EBT purchase to receive additional produce items.
During the process of setting up this program, things got a little more interesting when local farmer, Tom Eich, owner of Kankakee Valley Homestead, reached out to see how he could participate. Tom had noticed when we launched our initial SNAP program, and since La Porte is his hometown, he wanted to be involved. After a few conversations, Tom took it upon himself to provide the funding to start our Community Match Fund.
Combining Tom’s funding with the Double Up program, EBT users are able to triple their SNAP benefits. Basically, if a shopper purchases $20 worth of SNAP vouchers on their EBT card, they receive an extra $20 in vouchers for produce from the Double Up program and another $20 in vouchers to use on any SNAP-eligible items from the Community Match Fund. In total, EBT users can receive an additional $40 in SNAP vouchers free of charge to spend at the market on fresh, local food.
Since launching the matching programs, we have seen a noticeable increase in SNAP usage at the market, with over $2,000 worth of vouchers distributed and redeemed. Not only is this getting fresher, healthier food to low-income families, it helps strengthen the local economy, as money is now going directly to local producers instead of big corporations.
Another thing we are excited to have this year is our partnership with The Pax Center (Pax), a food-providing nonprofit organization serving LaPorte County. Representatives from Pax pick up any unwanted food items from vendors at the end of the market that would otherwise go to waste. They are then able to get those items to people in the community who need them the most.
We are still in awe that there was so much giving (time, money, product, etc.) from everyone to make our goals of healthy food access a reality! Not only that, along with members of The Collective, our vendors and shoppers, we were able to raise & donate over $4,000 during the market season to local nonprofit organizations that serve LaPorte County! It has been truly amazing to see so many people and organizations come together to make such a positive impact in the community.
When you bring good people together, great things happen!
Mandy Krickhahan
Founder
The Collective | Farmed & Forged Market
Food Council Updates
We may have missed our August newsletter, but our team has been busy behind the scenes!
Please give a warm welcome to Veronica Jalomo, our new Farm to School Coordinator! Veronica seems to create more hours in a day with her tireless work tackling food insecurity across NW Indiana, with a long career supporting community wellness in her time with Purdue Extension and the Indiana Minority Health Coalition. Her adventurous spirit is sure to make her a wonderful champion of the growing farm-to-school movement in our region.
In August, some of our Region Roots team visited Janie's Mill in Ashkum, Illinois to learn more about how they grow and mill the beautiful organic grains they sell through the hub! We were excited to learn more about the process and to share it with all of the restaurants, schools, and our food distribution programs.
Virginia joined a panel at Earth Charter Indiana's 8th Annual Climate Leadership Summit. She was joined by Jim Haniford from Shirley Heinze Land Trust and Kathy Sipple with Earth Charter. They discussed the importance of nature based climate solutions, partnerships and collaboration, and food and farming in climate plans. Keep an eye out for more information on our food and climate action plan in the coming months!
Porchea, Veronica, Anne, and Virginia joined the kickoff meeting for the Lake Michigan School Food Systems Innovation Hub in Chicago. Hub partners had the opportunity to meet one another and engage in conversations about how to make the Innovation Hub and its resource accessible and meaningful for stakeholders doing innovative farm to school work.
Becca traveled down to Atlanta, Georgia, for the annual USDA Farm to School meetings earlier this month. While there, she was able to connect with and learn more about the efforts of Farm to School Grantees in Indiana and throughout the United States! She's pictured here with Brianna Goode, from the Indiana Department of Health.
Veronica, Becca, Anne, and Virginia represented the Food Council and Region Roots at Farm Aid last week. We were thrilled to be a part of the Homegrown Village, where we invited festival goers to decorate a rain barrel that will be donated to Oases Botanic Gardens in Gary. Our region's farmers and their produce were also featured in the youth market at Farm Aid, and Virginia moderated a panel with Indiana farmer about the past, present, and future of farming in Indiana.
Local Food for Schools is here and off to a fantastic start! In the first month of distributions (which are free to high need schools), we purchased $85,000 in food from local farmers! We are thrilled to welcome our new team of LFS drivers, Lecreia, Sherri, and Sarah!
In August, Porchea, Anna, Allyssa, Virginia, Anne, and Becca conducted a Lunch Box and Produce giveaway at Flavors of the Region, hosted by Decay Devils.
Grant Opportunities
USDA Community Food Projects Grant Program
Community food projects, powered by a network of stakeholders from across the food system, support small to medium farmers, producers and processors in urban, rural, tribal and insular areas. The program provides communities a voice in food system decisions and supports local food markets to fully benefit the community, increase food and nutrition security and stimulate local economies. Due October 30, 2023.
USDA Meat and Poultry Processing Expansion Program
The Meat and Poultry Processing Expansion Program (MPPEP) provides grants to help eligible processors expand their processing capacity, which create new, better and more processing options for meat and poultry producers. Due November 22, 2023.
Sand County Foundation Pollinator Habitat Grant Program
Are you a high school educator looking for a hands-on pollinator habitat project for your students? Sand County Foundation invites your proposal to engage your students in growing native forbs (wildflower plants) indoors and planting them on an appropriately prepared site. Teachers involved with agricultural and/or environmental education are especially welcome to apply. Due November 17, 2023
Seed Money Challenge
Each year, SeedMoney offers challenge grants to diverse food garden projects through a 30-day crowdfunding challenge running from Nov 15 to Dec 15. Our grants are open to all types of public food garden projects (youth gardens, community gardens, food bank gardens, etc.) regardless of their location. Due November 12, 2023.
Support NWI Food Council
All funds raised go toward programming and outreach to support Northwest Indiana's local food system. We're a a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization and donations are tax-deductible.
Donate by Card
You can easily pay by debit or credit card right now using PayPal.
Donate by Check
Please make checks payable to “NWI Food Council” and mail to:
PO Box 530
Crown Point, IN 46308
