Georgia Organics Board Member Nominations Open, Member Nominations Due Aug. 1

The Georgia Organics Governance Committee is excited to announce that nominations are now open for Georgia Organics Board Members. This is a process whereby Georgia Organics members (click to become a member) submit names for the individuals across Georgia who they feel would serve the farming and good food community well through a leadership voice with Georgia Organics.

The Governance Committee (pictured above) is comprised of Georgia Organics Board Members Rebecca Williams (Chair) of the Rodale Regional Resource Center at Many Fold Farm, CheFarmer Matthew Raiford of Gilliard Farms, Joe Reynolds of Love is Love Farm at Gaia Gardens, and Eric Simpson of New Eden Ecosystem.

Georgia Organics members are encouraged to submit nominations by August 1. If you are a Georgia Organics member and you did not receive the email for nominations (with the nominations link), please email Mary Elizabeth, Georgia Organics Communications Manager, at maryelizabeth@georgiaorganics.org. If you would like to become a member and to participate in the nominations process, click here to become a member; you will receive reminders leading up to the August 1 deadline to submit your nomination.

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To better understand the role, value, and responsibilities of Georgia Organics Board Members, we heard from Governance Committee Chair Rebecca Williams of Rodale Regional Resource Center at Many Fold Farm:

It's that time of year again, our Board nominations are open! We are prioritizing racial equity to add more Black voices to our Board of Directors, and we'd love your help in identifying candidates to help shape the future of Georgia Organics.

The work of non-profits is important to the overall health and well-being of communities everywhere—they do the good work in the world other organizations can’t. All non-profits that are strong and effective have one thing in common: a strong and effective board. Governance is the work of selecting and managing a non-profit board so that the best voices have a seat at the table and those voices can be put into action. I love the work of seeking out great people and developing practical ways of engaging them on behalf of an organization I believe in. That is why I agreed to chair the Georgia Organics governance committee in 2020.

One of my primary duties (with my esteemed committee members pictured above), is to guide our board election process and provide you, as a member, with a voice in shaping the leadership of our organization. Our members are the bedrock of our organization. We always want to hear your voice. As a member, you have the power to nominate candidates for the board of directors. This is one of the most important ways to make Georgia Organics an organization that serves you in our mission to grow healthy foods, farms and families.

Board members meet quarterly, serve on committees and shape the strategic direction while helping us connect with new people, partners, and members. Do you know somebody who works hard every day to benefit organic agriculture, farm fresh food access or farm to school in Georgia? Do you know someone who has amazing leadership skills, political savvy, or who is gifted with outside-of-the-box thinking around food systems? You probably do and we want to know them too!

As you start to scroll through your contacts, please consider what the board has identified as our top five priorities for the 2020-2021 election cycle:

1. Farmers: We can’t be a farming organization without farmers on our board.

2.  Racial Equity: We are digging deep to support racial equity and food justice and are prioritizing more voices of Black, Indigenous, and People of Color (BIPOC) from across Georgia.

3.  Geographic Diversity: We get it, not everyone lives in Atlanta.

4.  Fundraising: No funds, no non-profit.

5.  Legal: We have contracts and agreements to review.

If you are a Georgia Organics member and know of someone who meets one or more of these priorities and might be interested in serving, we would love to hear from you (deadline is August 1).  Now, truthfully, not everyone will make it to the final slate, so we will also explore committee service as a starting place with your nominee.  That is yet another way a person can serve the organization with skills and talents and be part of a great leadership team.”

Rebecca Williams

The Rodale Regional Resource Center at Many Fold Farm

Chair, Governance Committee

Georgia Organics Board of Directors

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We spoke to Governance Committee member Joe Reynolds of Love is Love Farm at Gaia Gardens for a quick Q&A about what it means to them to be a Georgia Organics Board Member:

Joe Reynolds of Love is Love Farm at Gaia Gardens (photo courtesy Love is Love Farm)

What do you think is the most important role you play in the success of the organization?

I have loved supporting Georgia Organics as we created more opportunities for direct services to farmers.  It has been great to serve while our Farm to School work has continued to thrive with statewide partnerships and half of all school systems participating.  Schools are teaching each other place-based strategies!!!  
What are three characteristics that make a good board member?

I believe commitment to community, a desire to learn, and participation are great characteristics in a board member.

What has been your favorite aspect of being a Georgia Organics Board Member?

I have enjoyed being more aware of the good food work taking place across Georgia.

What do you most look forward to for Georgia Organics in 2021?

In 2021, I look forward to us pushing our organization, continuing to strengthen our mission, and growing our impact.

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Olivia Amos of Bare Roots Champions "Food as Medicine" in Columbus

On the latest Georgia Foodcast, Skye Estroff spoke to Olivia Amos with Bare Roots about their amazing work feeding Columbus and championing the concept of “Food As Medicine” during the pandemic. During these daunting times, Olivia and the team have maintained their commitment to serving Columbus, a Georgia Food Oasis community, with the freshest, healthiest food.

Tune in below to learn more.

While every day requires pivoting to adjust to the ever-changing pandemic landscape, Amos and her team have not stopped serving.

They now offer pickup and delivery of family meals at Bare Roots Bibb Cafe & Catering (follow to learn more & order), while also delivering meals for MercyMed Columbus patients and kicking off amazing campaigns like Nourish Columbus:

“#NourishColumbus is a campaign started by Columbus Botanical Garden that gives you an opportunity to donate produce from the CBG garden to Bare Roots for us to turn into healthy prepared meals for our neighbors at Truth Spring Academy in North Highland, who are food insecure.

…Showing compassion, kindness and love through food is where our heart is.”

- via @eatbarerootsbibb

To learn more about Bare Roots Bibb Cafe & Catering, visit www.eatbareroots.com/ and follow them on Instagram and Facebook. For more information and to support the Nourish Columbus, DM the Columbus Botanical Garden on Instagram @columbus_botanical_garden.

Donated produce via Columbus Botanical Garden (Courtesy Bare Roots Bibb Facebook)

Preparing and packing medically-tailored meals for MercyMed Columbus (Courtesy Bare Roots Bibb Facebook)

Farm to School Tips for Caring for a Garden with Young Children

Need a break from the virtual world?

Get your hands dirty by starting a garden with your little ones - no green thumb needed!

Here are some simple tips for gardening with toddlers to five-year olds courtesy of Georgia Organics and Georgia Farm to Early Care & Education with help from Jenna Mobley of @tendingourcommonground and @jennasheaphotography, Nuri Icgoren of Urban Sprout Farms, and our friends at Little Ones Learning Center!

Learn how to engage kids in planting, watering, monitoring growth, and harvesting, all while teaching patience, responsibility, and developing fine and gross motor skills.

Engage your little sprouts today with these hands-on planting activities!

Georgia Food Oasis Awards “Mobilizing Food Funds” Mini-Grants to Coalitions across the State

By Caroline Croland

Georgia Food Oasis seeks to convene and engage local leaders to address their community’s food access issues.

Now more than ever, these local markets and good food organizations are providing essential access points to food insecure communities across Georgia during the COVID-19 pandemic.

ABOUT THE GEORGIA FOOD OASIS

The Georgia Food Oasis (GFO) is a growing network of towns and cities that recognize food is a powerful tool for driving positive change in their communities. GFO is a designation that seeks to recognize local food coalitions who are working to improve access, supply, and consumption of healthy local food.

In May, the program awarded $22,700 in mini-grants to 10 recipients dedicated to serving the rapidly shifting needs of their communities bought on by the COVID-19 pandemic by mobilizing the distribution of locally-farmed food. 

Suzanne Girdner, Georgia Organics Community Outreach Manager, leads the program and says of the Mobilizing Food Funds Mini-Grant funding:

“What I am still processing about this latest grant round is just the tremendous amount of need that the communities were seeing firsthand and trying to figure out how to respond as best we could. The level of gratitude and care that they have taken for their neighbors and residents — it really impresses me.

These organizations from across Georgia provide innovative solutions to food scarcity caused by the pandemic. In doing so, they have made it a priority to actively shift the emergency food relief paradigm away from providing only shelf stable, prepackaged food towards fresh, nutrient dense fruits and vegetables sourced from local farms.

It is incredible to be able to work alongside somebody and say ‘I recognize how hard you're working, and we want to support you,’ and we can do that in a material way.”

Georgia Food Oasis began in 2016. One of the fiscal goals of the program is to provide small grants for coalitions and residents within communities. These non-traditional funds allow residents to respond in real time to community needs without being over burdened by a tedious application process.

The Mobilizing Food Funds Mini-Grant Awardees are listed below, where you can learn more and connect with the amazing work they’re doing within their communities.

To learn more about the Georgia Food Oasis, visit gfo.georgiaorganics.org/.

MOBILIZING FOOD FUNDS AWARDEES

SAVANNAH ($5,000)

1. The Farm Truck 912, Forsyth Farmers Market is a mobile market that brings locally sourced produce to Chatham County’s low income, low food access neighborhoods. Funds will also assist in piloting a new home delivery service for elders and differently-abled individuals, who are among the most food insecure members of the community.  A portion of the funds will help with increased personnel hours, materials, and sourcing from 25 whole food vendors.     

2. Fresh Food Express, The YMCA of Coastal Georgia is part of Healthy Savannah’s CDC REACH strategy YMCA and hosts a bi-monthly produce donation market which has nearly doubled participants since the pandemic. Funds will be used to assist with sourcing fresh food from regional growers for 600 residents in a newly adapted drive-thru market. 

The Farm Truck 912, Forsyth Farmers Market.

Fresh Food Express, The YMCA of Coastal Georgia

WAYCROSS ($2,500)

WayGreen, Inc. in Waycross

WayGreen, Inc. provides healthy locally produced food to people living in the region of Southeast Georgia. The market has transitioned to a weekly online market with participating farmers from 6 surrounding counties. Funds will go towards supporting transportation needed to source from a larger more rural region between Nashville and Brunswick, GA.  Plans include retrofitting a trailer for cold storage transport and safe storage at market. A portion of the funds will also assist with the additional personnel hours in coordinating weekly logistics with 18+ regional farmers.

AUGUSTA ($4,900)

1. Augusta Locally Grown is an online market that supports small farmers by making locally grown produce available for sale to the surrounding Augusta community. The online market has nearly quadrupled in sales and pick up locations are having to adapt to handle the influx of orders. These funds will be used to help open new pick-up site at Ft. Gordon, and new markets in Columbia and Warren counties, and will increase sales of the 40 farmers that the ALG market supports.

2. The Veggie Park Farmers Market serves a low income, low food access neighborhood, Harrisburg in downtown Augusta.  After a postponed opening the market is reopening with advanced precaution due to a higher elderly and at-risk population in the neighborhood.  Funds will assist with adapting the market, piloting home delivery, and offsetting additional personnel hours needed to safely serve the neighborhood. This market directly supports 15+ farmers.

COLUMBUS ($2,500)

MercyMed Farm is an urban farm at MercyMed in the North Highland neighborhood of Columbus. The farm has been giving away all of their farm-grown produce to neighbors who are experiencing food insecurity and transportation issues, exacerbated by the pandemic. Previously the farm ran weekly markets and a farm stand but shifted to donation due to resident needs. These funds will be used to offset loss of some income assist with providing fresh fruits and vegetables to community members in need during this time.

MercyMed Farm

ROME ($5,300)

1. Between the Rivers Farmers Market is organizing a drive-thru and/or contactless market for its community in Rome. These funds will specifically help the market improve visibility in the community with additional signage.

2. The South Meadow Farm at the Davies Shelter will start supplementing donation food boxes of non-perishable items with 5 lbs of produce beginning in June. Funds will assist in providing produce to 400 boxes.

The South Meadow Farm at the Davies Shelter

The Farm Bus at Davies Shelter

3.  The Farm Bus at Davies Shelter was originally intended to serve the surrounding neighborhood of the Shelter as a mobile market, it has expanded since the pandemic to serve five additional neighborhoods and clients for partners Salvation Army and The Community Kitchen. Funds will be used to assist with additional operational and logistical expenses. 

WALTON COUNTY ($2,500)

The Mobile Farmacy Market, Walton Wellness is a free member-based market for financially-burdened families in Walton County. Due to the pandemic, they are 100% dependent on their garden, community garden donations and a local farm where they purchase eggs. These funds will go towards sourcing from local farms to provide produce to the community through the Mobile Farmacy.

The Mobile Farmacy Market, Walton Wellness

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Caroline Croland is the Fundraising Coordinator at Georgia Organics. To learn more about Georgia Organics, visit www.georgiaorganics.org and follow us on Instagram @GeorgiaOrganics, Twitter @GeorgiaOrganics, and at www.Facebook.com/GeorgiaOrganics.

Georgia Organics Kicks Off First of Its Kind Farmer Accelerator Program

Tianna Neal of Starlit Roots Farm (Photo courtesy of National Young Farmers Coalition).

By Porter Mitchell

Beginning farmers come in our doors eager to learn and to make a career from agriculture. They want to feed their neighbors, continue a family tradition of farming, steward the land, and care for their rural communities. We’ve seen many of these farmers succeed, but we’ve seen hundreds begin farming only to quit after a few years. Why?  

Farmers reach a point in which they need real investment to move their business from day-to-day survival mode to true sustainability. They need personalized services, investment in infrastructure, personalized education to develop a business or marketing plan, and training to access new markets—not the one-size-fits-all approach that is the current norm. 

Sed Rowe of Rowe Organic Farm (Photo Credit Southern Styles and Steeds)

Jenny of Jenny Jack Farm harvests onions (photo courtesy of Jenny Jack Farm)

These critical services are out of reach for many smaller growers. They may not qualify for FSA loans, they may not have the credit to access a small business loan, they may not have family or personal wealth or property to use as collateral. Black growers specifically face an uphill battle due to decades of discrimination from banks and the USDA. Or many beginning farmers, often already saddled with student loan debt, may simply not want to take on debt in a profession not known to be particularly lucrative.

The Georgia Organics Farmer Accelerator Program is the first of its kind to fill these resource gaps. Ten farmers enter a yearlong cohort and each receives nearly $10,000 in on-farm infrastructure investment and labor stipends, plus an additional $3,000 in professional consulting from experts. Farmers also receive coaching on food safety and organic certification from the Farmer Services team.

“We’ve got the best coaches in the country for this program,” says Farmer Services Director Michael Wall who has spent the past year securing these consultants. “By going deep with these coaches, these farmers can really strengthen their operations.”

About sixty farmers applied for the ten spots available. Choosing which farmers would receive support and which ones wouldn’t was incredibly difficult. Kayla Williams, Farmer Services Coordinator at Georgia Organics, led efforts to build a complex application scoring system. 

“When deciding how to choose Accelerator cohort members, we wanted to recognize the fact that race and place are two very real factors that can and do affect a farmers’ ability to succeed. By giving extra points to and prioritizing our farmers of color and rural farmers, it holds us accountable to our mission of ‘Good Food for All’” she explains. At least five of the Accelerator spots are reserved for BIPOC farmers and at least five spots are reserved for rural farmers

 After lengthy inner dialogue and presenting the list of finalists to a panel of farmers and outside experts, the Farmer Services team chose ten farmers from across the state. They range from fourteen years of farming experience to three, from large scale row crop and commodity production to small market vegetable farms, from chicken and cattle to flowers and fruit, from several hundred acres to three acres. In other words, the 2020 class of Accelerator farmers represent the diversity of Georgia’s agriculture. The inaugural Accelerator class is:

• Deep Grass Graziers, Fitzgerald (www.deepgrassgraziers.com/) – Beef cattle

• Hearts of Harvest Farm, Arnoldsville (www.heartsofharvestfarm.com) - Mixed fruit and vegetables, flowers

• Four Bellies Farm, Bowdon (http://fourbelliesfarm.com/) - Beef, rabbit, chicken, lamb

• Jenny Jack Farm, Pine Mountain (https://www.jennyjackfarm.com/) - Mixed fruit, vegetables

• Narrow Way Farm, McDonough (https://narrowwayfarm.com/) – Vegetables, berries, fruit

  New Eden Ecosystems, West Point (www.facebook.com/westgeorgiafarmerscooperative/) - Fruit, vegetables, livestock

• Rag and Frass Farm (Jeffersonville) - Mixed fruit and vegetables, flowers https://www.ragandfrassfarm.com/ 

• Rolling Branch Farm, Naylor (www.rollingbranchfarms.com/) - Pecans flowers

• Rowe Organic Farm, Albany (ga.foodmarketmaker.com/business/4914917-rowe-organic-farm) - Peanuts, sunflowers, melons

• Starlit Roots Farm, Keysville ( www.Instagram.com/starlitroots) - Vegetables

After an intense intake process that gathered extensive data on the farm and farmer, the Farmer Services team collectively drafted plans for each farmer for coaching and infrastructure spending. These plans were based on priorities listed by the farmer, a SWOT analysis (strengths, weakness, opportunities, threats), a formal business analysis, and lengthy conversations with the farmers. Each plan is wholly unlike the other ones, just as each farmer is different. For the next nine months, the farmers will work closely with a Farmer Services staff member as their case manager. “The success of our Accelerator farmers is our number one priority,” explains Michael Wall. 

Dan Glenn of Deep Grass Graziers (Courtesy of Deep Grass Graziers)

Eric Simpson of New Eden Ecosystems (Courtesy of Black Farmers Network)

Georgia Organics hopes that this program will not only help these farmers grow and strengthen their businesses and their skillsets but can also be used as a model to replicate across the country. 

Interested in learning more about these farmers and keeping up with their progress? Keep checking in for extended profiles and interviews on The Dirt!

Check out where our Accelerator farmers are on the map!

Sign for updates from Georgia Organics.

Click to view Accelerator Program farms around the state.

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Porter Mitchell, Farmer Services Coordinator at Georgia Organics. To learn more about Georgia Organics, visit www.georgiaorganics.org and follow us on Instagram @GeorgiaOrganics, Twitter @GeorgiaOrganics, and at www.Facebook.com/GeorgiaOrganics.

Georgia Organics Farm to Restaurant “Farmer Cohort” Program Supports Farmers in Pandemic Restaurant Economy with New Opportunities

By Mary Elizabeth Kidd and Lauren Cox

Over the past decade, the number of restaurants sourcing directly from farms or through small-scale aggregators has been consistently increasing. Georgia Organics believes this restaurant market, beyond the “farm to table” moniker, holds huge potential for Georgia farms, and the Farmer Services team aims to foster these important, nuanced relationships between chefs and farmers.

With this in mind, in 2019, the Farm to Restaurant program, led by Lauren Cox, Georgia Organics Organic Procurement Coordinator, launched the Farmer Cohort program to assist small-scale, local, and organic farms in better planning and operations for the restaurant market. Through this program, Georgia Organics aims to help diversify participating farms’ revenue streams and, ultimately, increase their sustainability and viability, while establishing transparency in the restaurant sourcing process.

About the Farm to Restaurant Farmer Cohort

The Farm to Restaurant team supports the Farmer Cohort on an annual basis (sometimes up to two years) by providing consulting on business management, on-farm systems, crop production, and post-harvest handling, as well as record-keeping tools that enable them to become restaurant-ready. The team also provides assistance in fine-tuning their growing practices for the restaurant market, connection with Georgia chefs, and overall help increasing and strengthening farmers’ restaurant partnerships. The aim is that these learnings help farmers across the state build better businesses and increased revenue streams.

Farm to Restaurant Farmer Cohort members deliver to Farmer Champion restaurants with signature Georgia Organics boxes. Photo credit: Bailey Garrot.

The Farmer Cohort application process begins each year in January, with new members selected and announced in March. Cohort members are chosen based on their potential for growth in restaurant sales by a committee comprised of farm partners, chef partners, and members of the Georgia Organics Farmer Services team.

Farm to Restaurant Farmer Cohort applicants are Georgia Organics Farmer Members who agree to participate in program offerings such as one-day workshop, data surveys, networking opportunities, and feedback discussions.

Deciding to be a member of the Farm to Restaurant Farmer Cohort means participating farmers are committed to selling to restaurants consistently whenever possible and creating space to intentionally increase their farm's restaurant sales. They are also encouraged to be realistic about the program and the long-term nature of building lasting restaurant relationships.

Farm to Restaurant Farmer Cohort members have access to:

• Farm to Restaurant intensive consultation

• One-on-one support in pricing, variety and crop rotation, on-farm efficiency, availability list creation, packing and harvesting techniques, and logistics strategies

• Help with direct restaurant and chef “matchmaking” opportunities

• Two networking events during your Farmer Cohort year

• One year of QuickBooks, paid for by Georgia Organics

• One farm visit and Farm to Restaurant sales assessment

• One FSMA training course and certification (if desired)

• Organic Certification assistance (if desired)

• QuickBooks training

• 300 free Georgia Organics Farmer Champion boxes (3/4 bushel) for restaurant delivery use

• Featured placement on Georgia Organics Farm to Restaurant website

• Featured placements on Georgia Organics website, emails, and social media channels

• Inclusion in the Farmer Champion chef sourcing packet for restaurants and priority consideration in chef sourcing inquires

Pre-pandemic farmer and chef catch-ups at Farmer Champion restaurant Root Baking Co. Photo credit Bailey Garrot.

The Farmer Cohort “Class of 2020”

In February 2020, four farms from around the state were accepted into the Farm to Restaurant program. 2020 Farm to Restaurant Cohort Farms include:

• Buffalo Creek Berry Farm in Lexington, GA

• Ellijay Mushrooms in Ellijay, GA

• Atlanta Harvest and Local Lands in Jonesboro and Dublin, GA

• Row By Rowe in Luthersville, GA

From mushrooms to berries to diversified veggie producers, these farms were all positioned to grow their businesses into the restaurant market before COVID-19 hit. Although resourcefulness and the ability to pivot are inherent characteristics of a wise farmer and entrepreneur, 2020 has proved an unprecedented market in almost every way.

Making the Most of a Pandemic Food Economy

With a quick and dramatic decline in restaurant orders due to COVID-19-related closures and the state-mandated shelter in place, the farm-to-restaurant pipeline in 2020 has­—and remains— significantly decreased for many farmers around the state and across the country.

With a brand new batch of Farmer Cohort ready to learn and grow, Lauren Cox and other members of the Georgia Organics team got right to work finding and creating new avenues for income, tied to the restaurant sector, yet inherently different to fill the new needs of customers as well as industry workers affected by the pandemic.

Mid-Week Pop-Up Market order, ready for safe pick-up, from Atlanta Harvest and Local Lands.

One such solution was to launch the Mid-Week Pop-up Market at Wrecking Bar Brewpub, a restaurant participant in the Farm to Restaurant’s Farmer Champion campaign and longtime supporter of Georgia farmers. This market connects shoppers to the Farmer Cohort farms via online ordering from the Farm to Restaurant website for weekly socially-distanced pick-up. The goal has not only been to provide shoppers with a convenient way to support local food and have weekly farm-fresh groceries, it also encourages those shoppers to support Wrecking Bar Brewpub, which offers takeout ordering and a menu that often features the produce, proteins, and more from Farmer Cohort farms.

In another effort to create revenue streams and stay engaged with the restaurant community during this time of crisis, Cox and Georgia Organics team members also worked with Farmer Champion Root Baking Co. and founding funders Jamestown Charitable Foundation and Ponce City Market to establish Food Fight Georgia. Through this program, Georgia Organics coordinates the sourcing, purchasing, and packaging of weekly farm boxes for out-of-work restaurant workers at participating restaurants. This has served a dual purpose of serving the restaurant community (often rightly referred to as family), while putting dollars in the pockets of farmers, further filling the gap from pre-pandemic restaurant orders.

Food Fight GA weekly orders being packaged for unemployed restaurant workers. Photo credit: Kate Blohm.

The mission of Food Fight GA is to serve Atlanta’s restaurant family by providing weekly farm-fresh produce boxes to former staff while preserving and stabilizing Georgia’s local food system. With funding from the Jamestown Charitable Foundation and Ponce City Market, this program is going beyond providing nourishment to those now unemployed in the restaurant community; Food Fight GA is also supporting the Georgia farmers that have been affected by COVID-19 by ordering directly from these farms who are existing sellers to the restaurants or members of the Georgia Organics Farm to Restaurant Cohort program, to supply the produce boxes, helping to mitigate potential lost revenue due to shifts in sales outlets. With this dual-service approach, the aim of the campaign is Championing Our Farmers & Feeding Our Restaurant Family.

In addition to these new selling opportunities, the farmers of all four Farmers Cohort member farms are carving out time to attend a five-session QuickBooks training to brush up on and refine their accounting skills. The first session took place in early June via Zoom and was also attended by some 2019 Farm to Restaurant Farmer Cohort members as well as one farm that is part of the 2020 Farmer Services Accelerator program. These sessions cover topics from setting up a chart of accounts and preferences to invoicing, creating sales reports, and running a profit and loss report to understand if what farmers are growing truly align with their business and overall goals. Georgia Organics is offering to sponsor a year of QuickBooks for farms new to the platform to understand if it fits their business prior to buying the platform for themselves.

“One of the most exciting things about being a part of the Farm to Restaurant Cohort program is that it’s helping us focus on streamlining the business side of our farm by way of offerings like QuickBooks training and learning how to better do business with chefs. There always room for room for improvement in figuring out what folks like to eat and how to grow, which this program also helps with. As you know, it’s been a tough spring, so having more of a community to share the ups and downs with helps, not to mention just having another set of eyes on our farm!”

Jessica Plymale, Row by Rowe Organic Farm (Luthersville, GA)

Josh and Jessica Plymale of Row by Rowe Organic Farm. Courtesy of Row by Rowe.

Ellijay Mushrooms is a participant in the Mid-Week Pop-Up Market and has been a participant in Food Fight Georgia program from the very start.

“When I was selected to join [the Farm to Restaurant Farmer Cohort], I was so excited based on what I’d heard from past farmers. Then COVID hit…and I was naïve to think it was a bad year to have been selected.

I quickly realized that it was actually the best year to become a Cohort farmer because of initiatives like Food Fight Georgia and the extra length that Georgia Organics has gone out of your way to do more for the farmers. So it’s been a weird mix emotions, but wow, it’s been amazing and so good for the farm. We’ve made great new relationships with the restaurants and with the leads you’re helping out with, we’ve been blown away.”

Howard Berk of Ellijay Mushrooms (Ellijay, GA)

Howard Berk of Ellijay Mushrooms. Courtesy of Ellijay Mushrooms.

Upcoming events for the 2020 Farm to Restaurant Farmer Cohort include online daylong workshops on topics such as diversified revenue streams, farm efficiency, and choosing your markets, as well as one-on-one farm visits with Lauren Cox, the Organic Procurement Coordinator, to talk farm-specific on-farm systems.

The highlights thus far of this year’s Farmer Cohort group are strong. This is a group of diversified producers (vegetables, perennial fruit, mushrooms, and more). There is also a wide range of experience levels in selling to restaurants. Some have more experience, such as Ellijay Mushrooms, and some are newer to the market, such as Buffalo Creek. Others, like Local Lands and Atlanta Harvest and Row by Rowe, have experience selling to restaurants, but have the potential to expand that side of their business.

“We’re being challenged to look at how we can maintain relationships with restaurants in the time of COVID and where both the farmers and the chefs hold value. Now is the time to dig into those relationships and commit to seeing how and where they can be mutually beneficial. Another opportunity has come in the form of taking the step back from restaurants due to the government shutdown, which is giving these farmers the chance to look at their systems on the farm, in getting their products to the end user, and how best to do that.”

Lauren Cox, Georgia Organics Organic Procurement Coordinator

Stay tuned as we continue to spotlight the growth of the Farmer Cohort and the farmers in the program. In the meantime, be sure to shop the weekly Mid-Week Pop-Up Marketing at bit.ly/midweekpopup and learn more about Food Fight Georgia at www.foodfightga.com/.

To learn more about the Farmer Cohort, Farmer Champions, and other aspects of the Georgia Organics Farm to Restaurant program, visit farmtorestaurant.georgiaorganics.org/.

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Mary Elizabeth Kidd is Georgia Organics’ Communications Manager. She can be reached at maryelizabeth@georgiaorganics.org. Lauren Cox is the Organic Procurement Coordinator at Georgia Organics and can be reached at laurencox@georgiaorganics.org. To learn more about Georgia Organics, visit www.georgiaorganics.org and follow us on Instagram @GeorgiaOrganics, Twitter @GeorgiaOrganics, and at www.Facebook.com/GeorgiaOrganics. 

Enrichment Services Program Supports Community with Fresh Food Partnerships

By Caroline Croland

Kelvin Thomas understands the importance of fresh food.  

“We acknowledge that income level is a deciding factor when it comes to food access, and it was incredibly important to us to ensure that our families, especially those with young children, were able to obtain fresh food during this pandemic,” said Thomas, Director of Early Childhood & Family Services and head of the Enrichment Services Program (ESP) in Columbus. 

Pre-pandemic, his program served more than 1,000 children and families across 11 sites in eight counties. Their centers would provide support by distributing food boxes, diapers, formula, and gift cards to families in need.   

Like so many other programs, ESP was forced to reexamine their approach in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic. Since their centers closed in late March, Thomas has been working to find innovative solutions to support his community members who are dealing with the ramifications of the virus.  

One of those solutions came when Allison Setterlind, State Head Start Collaboration Director, introduced Thomas to the “Farm to Early Care and Education” initiative which connected Thomas to Georgia Organics and The Common Market Southeast.   

“When Georgia Organics reached out about the farm boxes, Kelvin saw an opportunity to help families in a new way,” Setterlind said. “He wanted to make sure that his constituents were not only receiving processed food during the pandemic. He was committed to ensuring that his families and kids had access to fresh vegetables. That is what sets him apart as an exceptional head start director- he puts energy into new collaborations that pull in new opportunities from the community.  Everyone came together and wanted it to work, it was so expedient! Working with The Common Market was completely different than working with a standard vendor--- it was never about pushing the product, there was such a sense of urgency about getting the food from the farms into the hands of the community.” 

Picking up seeds and grow guides from the ESP drive-through. Photos courtesy of Kelvin Thomas.

April 8th, ESP Head start hosted a drive-through distribution for one hundred and sixty five families across four sites. These boxes included fresh, locally grown food sourced by the Common Market.

In addition, families received essentials items including paper towels, diapers, and toilet paper as well as green bean, cucumber, squash and watermelon seeds sourced from Seed Programs International, a non-profit providing seeds and technical assistance for humanitarian organizations.

These items were accompanied by learning packets supplied by Georgia Organics.

Not only did this initiative feed over one hundred and sixty five families, it also led to $3,000 in direct sales to local farmers, sourcing produce from eight different family owned farms. The Common Market Southeast was able to offer their Food Access Discount to the Enrichment Services program which helped make this distribution possible.

The ESP team packing drive-thru supply distributions. Photo courtesy of Enrichment Services Program, Inc. Facebook.

Thomas hopes to continue to integrate programs that provide local food to the families that he serves.

“The community response was overwhelmingly positive—parents absolutely loved the boxes and the learning activities,” said Thomas.  “It is so important to plant the seeds of healthy eating early on. The planting instructions, recipes, and educational activities provided by Georgia Organics help families interact with and prepare produce that they might not otherwise have access to.” 

Creating these connections is a core aspect Georgia Organics’ Farm to School work.

Seeds and how-to-grow sheets were distributed along with the produce boxes. Photos courtesy of Kelvin Thomas.

Kimberly Della Donna, Farm to School Director at Georgia Organics, loves to see these types of partnerships being formed.  

“We admire the program that Kelvin and ESP have created to empower Columbus community members to eat and be healthy while supporting local farmers,” she said.

“We hope that they enjoy growing and nurturing their gardens while we’re all apart.” 

To learn more about Enrichment Services Program, visit enrichmentservices.org or follow them on social media at facebook.com/enrichmentservicesprogram and twitter.com/espcaa.

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Caroline is the Fundraising Coordinator at Georgia Organics. To learn more about Georgia Organics, visit www.georgiaorganics.org and follow us on Instagram @GeorgiaOrganics, Twitter @GeorgiaOrganics, and at www.Facebook.com/GeorgiaOrganics.

EliYahu Ysrael of Atlanta Harvest, The Atlanta Foodcast

EliYahu Ysrael of Atlanta Harvest. Photo: The Atlanta Journal-Constitution.

In this Zoom video version of the Atlanta Foodcast, we're speaking with EliYahu Ysrael of Atlanta Harvest and Local Lands (scroll down to view). EliYahu and his family own and farm at Local Lands Organically Grown Gardens (www.locallands.net/), in Dublin, GA, as well as Atlanta Harvest in Jonesboro, GA.

We spoke with EliYahu about the selecting and founding of Local Lands, the importance of farm ownership, their growth through Atlanta Harvest and serving the Jonesboro community, their upcoming farm move, and the wealth of nourishing foods, plant starts, education, and engagement he and his family provide to Georgians.

EliYahu and Asa Ysrael at Local Lands. Photo: MSNBC.

Local Lands is a member of our Farm to Restaurant Farmer Cohort and provides some of the weekly items provided in farm boxes for unemployed restaurant workers around the city as part of our Food Fight GA initiative.

Atlanta Harvest is also a participating farm in our Mid-Week Pop-Up Market at Wrecking Bar Brewpub, allowing shoppers to order online over the weekend (orders open Friday morning-Sunday midnight) and pick up their items every Wednesday evening in Atlanta’s Inman Park neighborhood.

Lauren Cox, Georgia Organics' Organic Procurement Coordinator, who heads up our Farm to Restaurant program said of EliYahu’s dedication to his craft and their work on these Farm to Restaurant initiatives:

I am so excited to work with Local Lands this year for the Farm to Restaurant program. Whenever I talk to EliYahu, I can truly feel the passion and thought behind every decision he makes at the farm. He also possesses one of the most important traits, I think, of being a great farmer, that of being a 'forever student’ of the land, while also going the extra mile to not only provide for, but also to teach and serve his community.

Photo: MSNBC

To learn more, you can also read Atlanta Harvest in the Atlanta Journal-Constitution on Yahoo.com and see their recent segment featured on MSNBC!

FOR MORE INFORMATION:

• Atlanta Harvest (Facebook / Instagram)

• Local Lands (Facebook)

• Mid-Week Pop-Up Market

• Food Fight GA

Food Fight GA: Program Updates and Conversation with Founding Restaurant Partner Chris Wilkins of Root Baking Co.

Chris Wilkins and Nicole Lewis-Wilkins of Root Baking Co., Food Fight GA founding partner restaurant. Photo courtesy of Root Baking Co.

Today we're speaking with Chris Wilkins, who co-owns Root Baking Co. at Atlanta's Ponce City Market with his wife Nicole Lewis-Wilkins. Chris is the founding chef partner behind Food Fight GA (www.foodfightga.com/) and a part of our Farm to Restaurant program’s Farmer Champion campaign.

The mission of Food Fight GA is to serve Atlanta’s restaurant family by providing weekly farm-fresh produce boxes to former staff while preserving and stabilizing Georgia’s local food system. With funding from the Jamestown Charitable Foundation and Ponce City Market, this program is going beyond providing nourishment to those now unemployed in the restaurant community.

Packing Food Fight GA pick-ups. Photo Credit: Kate Blohm

We’re thrilled that in the past several weeks, we’ve on-boarded the Rocket Farm family of restaurants and are welcoming Twisted Soul Cookhouse & Pours to the Food Fight GA program!

To date, we’ve served over 1,340 restaurant workers with these weekly farm boxes.

Participating restaurants and participating Georgia Organics Farmer Champion partners, include: Root Baking Co. (Ponce City Market), Staplehouse (Edgewood), Star Provisions, Bacchanalia, Floataway Cafe (Westside), Miller Union (Midtown), The Deer and the Dove (Decatur), and Boccalupo (Inman Park). 

At Food Fight GA participating restaurant Staplehouse. Photo Credit: Kate Blohm

As a crucial component of the program, Food Fight GA is also supporting the Georgia farmers that have been affected by COVID-19 by ordering directly from these farms who are existing sellers to the restaurants or members of the Georgia Organics Farm to Restaurant Cohort program, to supply the produce boxes, helping to mitigate potential lost revenue due to shifts in sales outlets. To date, we have driven over $41,000 in revenue to participating farms, which has helped recoup lost restaurant revenue.

Participating farms include, but are not limited to: Ellijay Mushrooms, Hickory Hill Farm, Levity Farms, Pinewood Springs Farm, Rodgers Greens & Roots Farm, Snapfinger Farm, West Ga. Farmers Cooperative, and Woodland Gardens.

To learn more, check out our conversation below for The Atlanta Foodcast with Chris Wilkins and visit FoodFightGA.com to find out more about the Food Fight GA initiative.

FOR MORE INFORMATION:

• Food Fight GA

• Root Baking Co.

• Root Baking Co. on Instagram

To learn more about the Georgia Organics' Farm to Restaurant Program, visit: farmtorestaurant.georgiaorganics.org/.

Good Food Champions: Connie Oliver of WayGreen, Inc. in Waycross, GA

We’re so excited to be joined by Connie Oliver of WayGreen for a Zoom video edition of the Georgia Foodcast!

Connie Oliver is leading food access initiatives to connect South Georgians with food from local farmers through WayGreen, Inc: Southeast Georgia's Local Food Coalition. She has been a long time food leader in Southeast Georgia and is leader our Georgia Food Oasis community efforts in Waycross, GA.

Connie Oliver (center) at Georgia Organics 2020 Conference & Expo surrounded by Southeast Georgia regional farmers and food leaders including Bamm Farms, Gilliard Farms, and Greenway Gardens.

Of her amazing work in the Waycross community, Georgia Organics’ Community Outreach Manager for the Georgia Food Oasis Suzanne Girdner says:

Connie Oliver is one of the fiercest community food advocates in Georgia, and over the past 5+ years has worked tirelessly with a grassroots coalition to build up a regional farmer and consumer network that feeds and heals Southeast GA communities.  You'll find Connie regularly driving 80-100 miles to pick-up produce from regional farms, leading a Glean Team, organizing seasonal markets, coordinating education series, and plotting the course for building a physical cooperative and community kitchen space.  Connie is as visionary as she is hardworking, and she's determined to realize WayGreen's vision for residents to eat, cook, and grow the healthiest, local food possible.

Click below to watch and learn more about WayGreen, Inc. and Oliver’s amazing work!

To learn more about WayGreen, visit www.waygreeninc.org, and follow them on social media:

• Facebook: facebook.com/WayxGreen

• Instagram: instagram.com/wayxgreen/

To learn more about the Georgia Food Oasis, visit gfo.georgiaorganics.org/

Volunteers with WayGreen pack orders for pandemic-safe pick-up.

Good Food Champions: Nema Etheridge of Cafe Campesino on The Georgia Foodcast

For this Zoom video edition of the Georgia Foodcast, we're talking with Nema Etheridge, Marketing Director of Cafe Campesino (www.cafecampesino.com), about her work with Georgia's first and only 100% fair trade, organic coffee company and how Cafe Campesino is continuing to serve the community and get great coffee to Georgians and beyond. Scroll down to view!

And just before the pandemic hit, we visited Cafe Campesino in beautiful Americus, GA, where host Skye Estroff spoke to Nema, as well as CEO Tripp Pomeroy, and CFO and co-founder Bill Harris for a multi-part episode of The Georgia Foodcast highlighting the incredible work and impact of Cafe Campesino.

• The Georgia Foodcast talks to Nema Etheridge

• The Georgia Foodcast talks to Tripp Pomeroy

• The Georgia Foodcast talks to Bill Harris

We’re consistently amazed by this team’s commitment to being a sustainable, caring member of the global coffee supply chain - putting people at the core of everything they do - and have been grateful for their incredible generosity in providing us with delicious coffee for our annual Georgia Organics Conference & Expo. Our team has had many a day made better by starting with a cup of their amazing coffee! To learn more about Cafe Campesino and order, visit www.cafecampesino.com/.

ABOUT CAFE CAMPESINO

Cafe Campesino was founded in 1998, becoming Georgia's first and only 100% fair trade, organic coffee company.

We are a national online retailer and wholesale roaster-distributor with our headquarters, roaster, and flagship coffee house located in Americus, Georgia, birthplace of Habitat for Humanity and about 9 miles east of Plains, home of former President Jimmy Carter and his wife Rosalynn.

We supply individuals, coffee houses, markets, fundraisers, restaurants, and other organizations all over the country with some of the best artisan-roasted specialty-grade coffee available in the United States.

Cafe Campesino is a founding member of Cooperative Coffees, a green coffee importing organization committed to fair or alternative trading relationships between farmers and roasters. We are also a member of the Fair Trade Federation and Georgia Organics, as well as a certified B Corp.

Image via @CafeCampesino

While Schools Are Closed, Evans County Students Learn to Garden

Photo courtesy of Evans County Schools

By Kimberly Della Donna

UGA Extension 4-H Agent, Stephanie Myers, greeted Evans County families last Wednesday with a plethora of pandemic essentials, including big smiles, fresh food and home gardening materials. Students and their families were delighted to receive the seeds and activities during the 8th week of school closures in the area. "The timing and weather proved perfect for promoting all of the physical, mental, social, and nutritional aspects of family gardening," said Myers, who joined a group of volunteers to help Evans County School Nutrition Director Tonya Beasley-Blocker, and her School Nutrition Staff, distribute meals to over 1,000 residents in the Evans County. Each Wednesday, the staff and volunteers distribute 7 breakfasts and 7 lunches- that is over 14,000 meals dispersed each week in one day! 

Georgia Organics partnered with The UGA Extension Service to create the educational resources and share the seeds, donated by the Captain Planet Foundation after learning about Evans County’s School Nutrition Director, Tonya Beasley Blocker's efforts to promote agricultural learning and the district’s efforts to include local food in the meal distribution program.  When Georgia Organics Farm to School Director Kimberly Della Donna first reached Beasley-Blocker she was arranging to include a quart of strawberries from RJ&G Farms in each family’s weekly meal pack. She's been working to include locally grown produce in the offerings each week.

Tonya Beasley-Blocker is just one of the many Georgia school nutrition professionals on the front line of serving the community during the pandemic. We're especially impressed that during this time of crisis and rapid change, our school nutrition professionals are going the extra mile to source local, fresh food and include educational resources for students and families. We offer our sincere gratitude to our school nutrition heroes like Tonya Beasley-Blocker and our community volunteers like Stephanie Meyers who support their efforts. 

Kimberly Della Donna is the Farm to School Director for Georgia Organics. She can be contacted by email at kimberly@georgiaorganics.org.