Walton Wellness: Fostering Community Wellness through Connection, Education, and Partnership

Join Walton Wellness and support their mission by attending the Seed To Fork Experience: Tomatoes, The Class on Saturday, Sept. 26 from 8 a.m.-1 p.m. with Chef Jason Cobb. Click here for details and tickets. 

For DeDe Haris, Executive Director of Walton Wellness, it’s all about good habits. And through their variety of programming and successful approach to partnership, Walton Wellness is helping their neighbors create healthy habits and a greater sense of community through engaging with nutritious food.  

Walton Wellness officially became a 501(c)(3) in 2011, dedicated to educating Walton residents about the tools, habits, and resources for good health. In their own words, the purpose of Walton Wellness is: 

To be a catalyst in our community for creating a county-wide value of health. Our goal is to work on a macro community level that will allow for systemic change. We do this by implementing sustainable projects through community partnerships. 

Walton County became a Georgia Food Oasis community in 2019 through the incredible work of DeDe Harris, her colleague, Health Educator Alex Lundy, and their network of partners to address health needs in their community. DeDe also coordinates the Walton Local Food Alliance (WLFA), a food policy council of neighboring food groups, farms, and restaurants. Click here for the full list of WLFA partners, statistics, and their latest work. 

DeDe Harris (right), Executive Director of Walton Wellness, and Alex Lundy (left), Health Educator.

Walton County is situated approximately halfway between Atlanta and Athens and includes Monroe, Social Circle, and Loganville. This area has a long and storied agriculture history as well as one plagued with racial violence and economic depression. The area was hard-hit by the 2008 recession and the resulting closure of two cotton mills, leaving many Walton residents, particularly older residents, food insecure and lacking resources to support their health.  

Which is where Walton Wellness steps in with initiatives created to help fill the gaps of a destabilized community. Walton Wellness’ programs include: The Mobile Farmacy Market, Health is Your Wealth, the Field Garden, Walton Local Food Alliance, Get Charmed, and Project Road Share. Each of these initiatives involves community partners coming together to address the specific elements that make up illness-fighting lifestyle habits.  

One of the most robust offerings of Walton Wellness is their Mobile Farmacy Market, which runs every week from May through September and as a pop-up market through year-end serving Monroe, Social Circle, and Loganville. Each week during the pandemic, they have served an estimated 95 families through their drive-up COVID-19 version of the market, helped greatly by dividing the service areas and notifications using the Remind app as well as good old-fashioned word-of-mouth. Participants in the program apply for this free, fresh grocery program and are determined based on income and other need-based factors.

The Mobile Farmacy Bus in action, pre-COVID-19.

A source for the Mobile Farmacy bus is Walton Wellness’ Field Garden, which was founded at 2010 and makes vibrant use of the land at the Walton County Sheriff’s Office through this local partnership with the Sheriff’s Office, St. Albans Episcopal Church, and the Episcopal Community Foundation of Middle and North Georgia. In 2020, through harvests of the Field Garden and donations from the Grow A Row program from families and churches, the Mobile Farmacy Market became officially 100% locally grown. 

Okra and transitioning the garden at Walton Wellness’ Field Garden.

Each market, Walton Wellness shoppers are greeted—from the safety of their vehicle—with an authentic shopping experience, able to choose which fresh fruits and vegetables they will take home each week. This is very intentional, versus a pre-packaged box or bag of produce, so that the shoppers will better engage with and learn about what items they’re getting. For DeDe Harris, it’s getting in this habit of asking questions and making healthy decisions that mean long-lasting benefits—education and connection over food combine to nourish the community. Nudge campaigns like the #MeatlessMonday initiative further this social engagement around good food. 

When speaking to DeDe Harris, it’s clear she and her colleague Alex Lundy, know the high return on the investments they’re making in local fresh food for Walton County. From the excitement and strong sense of community they see leading up to and on market days to the way so many neighboring organizations, farms, and businesses have rallied in support—they are truly doing work at the root of creating a resilient food system in Walton County. 

Join Walton Wellness and support their mission by attending the Seed To Fork Experience: Tomatoes, The Class on Saturday, Sept. 26 from 8 a.m.-1 p.m. with Chef Jason Cobb. Click here for details and tickets. 

Seed Saving and Sharing Can Add Cultural Richness to Your School Garden

Becky Griffin, Community & School Garden Coordinator for University of Georgia Extension

We’re grateful to welcome Becky Griffin for this guest post, as she shares tips for seed saving, seed sharing, and their value in an education setting!

Becky is the Community & School Garden Coordinator for University of Georgia Extension. She is part of a team that received a grant to promote best management practices with seed saving in Georgia and she is on the Community Seed Network Advisory Council.

Seed saving is an often overlooked aspect of school gardening. This practice can add a new skillset for young gardeners, expand the curriculum reach of the garden, and celebrate the diversity and cultural heritage of the student population. Read more from Becky below and learn more at ugaurbanag.com and Seedsavers.org.

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By Becky Griffin

School gardens routinely grow food crops, create pollinator habitat, and even replicate historic gardens. They are an integral part of the school curriculum used to teach botany, math, nutrition, history, literature, and even geography. However, the one area lacking in the hundreds of school gardens that I have visited is seed saving. Seed saving can be an important horticultural part of the garden as well as an additional avenue for tying the garden to the school curriculum. In addition, saving and sharing seeds can add a richness to the garden you may not have considered, cultural and heritage diversity. 

Across our country experienced gardeners are welcoming immigrants and refugees from all over to the United States in a garden setting. A garden is common ground and food can be a uniting force. There may be language barriers but we can all "talk" seed, soil, and water. Having the privilege of working with some of these community-type gardens is exciting as cultures are shared through the growing of food. Gardeners from Somalia are interested to see what the gardeners from Burma are growing. Gardeners from Kenya are poking their heads in the Syrian's garden to see what is coming up there. Our American melting pot is alive and well in the garden. 

People especially seem to enjoy growing foods from their homeland and their childhood. This is true even within the United States. Many a displaced Southerner has taken the family collard green seeds when being transferred to the North. Year after year, I grow family bean seeds brought down from the hills of Kentucky to Georgia. So, it is to be expected that our collective palate would be enriched by foods brought with immigrants from other countries.  Why not try this in the school garden setting?  Some schools already are! 

Getting Started 

If you already have an active school garden group, getting started will be easy: 

Gauge interest in growing plants that have culinary meaning with your student populations.  In DeKalb County, Chinese long beans, tomatillos, unique pepper varieties, and Thai basil are all grown in the same gardens. 

Find a seed source. The most important seed source may be the families of your students. They may be growing interesting and meaningful plants in their home garden and would be willing to share seeds. Your local library or UGA Extension office may host a seed library. Also, Seed Savers Exchange and Johnny’s Selected Seeds both have a large selection of plant varieties.   

Invite parents to help in the garden. You might be surprised at how interested parents can be in sharing their expertise and being a part of this type of project.  I have encountered a school garden group where English is not the first language of any of the parent helpers but they are all excited to be a part of their student’s garden club and to share their culture through the garden. 

Collect seed stories. As seeds are shared through the community, have the gardeners share their stories.  Why was this crop important to their family?  What traditions are associated with it?   These stories are as important as the plants themselves and give the students pride in their heritage. 

Host a potluck meal. Inviting families to share dishes important to their heritage with food grown in the garden is a fun way to share a meal!  You will be expanding the palates of all involved.  

Seed Saving 101 

Until modern times seed collecting was the only way a gardener had seed for the next year. Seed was shared with neighbors and passed down from generation to generation (heirloom seeds). Seeds were taken across oceans and over the American prairie and they are an important part of our agricultural history. In my area of Southern Appalachia seed saving is part of many family heritages. 

Hybrid plants are not appropriate for seed saving. They are bred to amplify a certain trait such as disease resistance or larger fruit and are produced by cross-breeding two plants with different genetics. Tomatoes are a great example. Most of the tomatoes grown in backyards are hybrid tomatoes with names like Better Boy and Early Girl. Although these varieties produce delicious tomatoes, they are not appropriate for seed saving. 

Hybrid plants produce seeds that are genetically unreliable or not true-to-type. These seeds are undesirable for seed saving. 

Open-pollinated plants are the type of plants we want for seed collecting. They are pollinated naturally and will produce seeds that are true-to-type if they are isolated from other varieties. So, it is important for the school gardener to choose only one variety of seed-producing plants. For example, do not plant Calypso beans in the same area as Hidatsa beans. They could possibly cross-pollinate resulting in seeds, not true-to-type. A garden of only Calypso beans will produce true Calypso bean seed! Larger gardens follow the recommended isolation distance for seed saving for most beans that is 10-20 feet. 

With the smaller space of a school garden, it is best to choose one variety of the seed-producing plant type for seed saving. 

Planting at Oakcliff Elementary School. Courtesy of Becky Griffin.

Curriculum Ideas 

Lesson ideas are numerous: 

• Pollination - what exactly is pollination and fertilization? 

• Pollinators - how is pollen spread? 

• History - heirloom seeds; what was on the dinner plate in America in 1800, etc. 

• Geography - how did crops spread around the world? 

• Math - how many seeds produced per plant/fruit/bean pod? 

• Genetics - hybrid plants and gene traits 

• Cultural Studies - choose plants with cultural significance such as Chinese long beans or lemongrass; research plants used in different cultures during holidays and celebrations as well as daily meals 

• Literature – record seed heritage stories, research how seeds came from Europe and Africa to become part of our agricultural system 

Seed Savers has a website full of seed collecting information. Your local land grant University of Georgia Cooperative Extension office can assist you in choosing varieties of plants that will work well for seed saving and will grow well in your area. Depending on your cultural background they could include extra garlic, long beans, or tomatillos! 

Farm to Restaurant In Conversation: Four Bellies Farm and Argosy

By Mary Elizabeth Kidd

Georgia Organics Farmer Services Coordinator Kayla Williams recently spoke to Melissa Nisbet of Four Bellies Farm and Tyler Haake, Executive Chef of Atlanta’s Argosy via Zoom (interview below) to explore their farmer-chef partnership and participation in the Farmer Fund Accelerator program and the Farm to Restaurant Farmer Champion program, respectively.

Melissa Nisbet and her husband, Avery, raise grass-fed lamb, beef, rabbit, and chicken and produce bone broth in Bowdon, Georgia, about an hour west of Atlanta. Four Bellies Farm is a 2020 Farmer Fund Accelerator member and was previously a 2019 Farm to Restaurant Farmer Cohort member. With Four Bellies Farm, their commitment to humane practices and restorative agriculture is evident in all they do.

Melissa recently summarized their operation and commitments in a recent Facebook post:

Courtesy of Four Bellies Farm

“All our animals are on pasture and are rotated in a way that allows each species to benefit from the others and contribute to healing the soil. We use regenerative practices where factory farming uses degenerative practices. Rotating the animals and having portable waterers sequesters carbon where factory farming practices pollute the water supply and adds excess carbon to the environment. The sheep and cattle just eat grass with hay (dried grass) supplemented in the winter. The chickens get grass, bugs, and are supplemented with a non-GMO, soy free feed from Tucker-Milling. The rabbits get to forage on grass and are supplemented with a non-GMO feed from Tucker-Milling. Rabbits wouldn't eat soy, but their feed is also soy free. We have never given any hormones or antibiotics of any kind to any animal ever. We might one day consider antibiotics if they were needed for a specific breeding animal. We would never consider giving hormones to any animal. We do not spray our pastures with any herbicides. We make decisions everyday toward better health for the land, animals, and humans consuming them. These practices are not easy or cheap to carry out. The labor of moving each animal 7 days a week is intense. Our family eats this food and we are passionate about clean eating. That is why we do this. I do hope people can understand, taste and feel the difference when eating our meats and broth.”

At Argosy in East Atlanta Village, Chef Tyler Haake has developed a special rapport with purveyors like Melissa by prioritizing his menu around the availability of seasonal, sustainable proteins and produce. For Haake, this type of sourcing has been ever-present in his decade-long career. He was gaining experience in a time with the restaurant industry embraced and marketed menu terms like “free range” and “farm to table,” but through working relationships like he has with the Nisbets, he’s come to fully experience and embrace the understanding and practices it takes as a chef to truly source locally.

They met at the Grant Park Farmers Market, where Tyler wanted to learn more about their operation by volunteering at Four Bellies Farm.

Wood-fired Freedom Ranger chicken quarters. Photo courtesy of Argosy.

To truly build this working understanding and cement their farmer-chef relationship, it involved a trade off. In exchange for the knowledge and context he was seeking about the Nisbet’s business, he was willing to offer hands-on help at the farm. And it paid off. Now, when they’re collaborating on weekly orders, the process is more nuanced and familiar. The farmer-chef partners focus more on availability and unique cuts versus the boneless, skinless standards seen on order forms from Atlanta’s bigger purveyors.

“At the end of the day, they’ve helped me become a better chef.”

From this farmer-chef duo’s context and knowledge of each other, they’ve gained respective understanding of, in Chef Haake’s words: “the golden nuggets of why we do what we do.”

View the full interview:

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Mary Elizabeth Kidd is the Communications Manager 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.

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To learn more about the Farm to Restaurant program, visit farmtorestaurant.georgiaorganics.org/

To learn more about the Farmer Fund Accelerator program, visit www.thefarmerfund.org/farmer-fund-accelerator

Connect with Four Bellies Farm:

fourbelliesfarm.com/

www.facebook.com/fourbelliesfarm

www.instagram.com/fourbellies/

Connect with Argosy:

argosy-east.com/

www.facebook.com/TheArgosyEAV

www.instagram.com/argosyeav/

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Georgia Food Oasis Spotlight: Deidre Grim of Healthy Savannah on Food Equity & Access

By Caroline Croland

Urban Planner. Ph.D. Activist. Deidre Grim brings a passion for long-lasting, systemic change to her role as Nutrition Program Director for Healthy Savannah and the YMCA of Coastal Georgia.

Deidre Grim, Nutrition Program Director for Healthy Savannah and the YMCA of Coastal Georgia.

“Deidre is passionate about centering a community’s lived experience to influence and inform systems change. Her unique combination of skills and training allows her to see the interconnected nature of personal health and food systems,” says Suzanne Girdner, Community Outreach Manager at Georgia Organics.   

Healthy Savannah is a Savannah, GA based nonprofit focused on “making a healthy choice the easy choice for people living in Savannah and Chatham County.” They aim to accomplish this by building community infrastructure that enables citizens to have equitable access to healthy, affordable food, and activity-friendly routes.  

Healthy Savannah is dedicated to approaching food justice through a racial justice lens, highlighting the intersections between food accessibility and racial justice, and taking a community-centered approach to food access.  

“I just want all to always understand the value of creating relationships with people and meeting them where they are. Relationship building has made me very successful in my work. It's been a humbling experience because it has taught me that we work alongside people, and we need to leave our preconceived notions and titles at the door,” says Grim.  

In November of 2018, Healthy Savannah, in partnership with the YMCA of Coastal Georgia, was awarded a five-year, $3.4 million collaborative grant to undertake a REACH (Racial and Ethnic Approaches to Community Health) project from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.   

The aim of Savannah and Chatham County’s REACH project, Healthy Opportunities Powering Equity or H.O.P.E., is to reduce health disparities among African Americans in seven low-wealth zip codes across Chatham County through long-term solutions. 

Through this grant, they have been able to increase healthy food access by adding a second location of Fresh Express, a produce distribution program, doubling the size of the program, and expanding its reach in providing low-income families within the community with fresh produce. The grant has also allowed them to create more stops within their partnership with the Forsyth Farmer’s Markets.  

“I think if I had to quantify just our impact locally within the year and a half that I've been working, I would say we've impacted at nearly 10,000 people,” says Grim.  

Deidre sat down with us over Zoom to talk about her life, her work, and her passion for equitable food systems.  

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Tell us a little bit about yourself, your background, and your role with Healthy Savannah.  

I am a mother four and a very community-focused person. After high school, I went to college and earned a bachelor's in biology. While in undergrad, I got pregnant and felt like I need to switch paths but didn’t know what that looked like. My husband and I got married and I decided against pursuing medicine. I didn't know what I was going to do. It wasn't until I started working with a nonprofit that provided low-income housing that I found my passion—helping people.  

I've always been a people person. I grew up in a household that was full of activism, civil rights, and advocacy. I kept asking myself what I was going to do. Oddly enough, I found my answer through a commercial. The ad mentioned a city planner, and I started Googling. One thing led to another, and I ended up in the middle of Southern California and getting my doctorate in urban planning, public policy, and design. I decided this was one of the best ways to help all people especially those disadvantaged while leaving a solid foundation for the next generation to build upon. At the end of the day, helping people is my heart, while ensuring that there's equity, with a focus on inclusion and diversity.

Could you describe the types of services Healthy Savannah offers and what kind of impact you've personally seen within the community?    

Healthy Savannah is an organization where we seek to make the healthier option the easier option. One of the main social determinants of health is access to knowledge. If a client doesn't necessarily know what healthier options they have, we will see more chronic illnesses. This is especially prevalent in low wealth communities. So, Healthy Savannah seeks to push for change through the policy, systems, and environmental change perspective. We work in the areas of physical activity, nutrition, and community clinical linkages to provide the resources to the community that helps them become healthier and live more sustainable lives.  

Through my particular strategy, we look at food access, particularly access to healthier foods. We’ve seen that low-wealth communities are more susceptible to have healthy food priority areas, originally termed “food deserts.” As a planner, we use the terminology “healthy food priority areas” because the desert can seem like an anomaly when we know this is a systemic issue, and it must be addressed it as such.  

Additionally, we are working on a photovoice project with Georgia Southern to identify the barriers that African American mothers are experiencing when needing to breastfeed. We also work in the faith-based organization under food service guidelines, to help these organizations provide healthier foods for their congregants as well as emphasize the need to be more physically active.  

Can you give us some more insight into the Nutrition program that you oversee? What areas do you focus on most in your work?   

My main focus is on changes to the food system and the barriers that keep people from having consistent access to nutritious foods. We want to make those changes at a policy level because often after program funding is gone, the community is left by the wayside and we do not want that. We want to guarantee that this work will continue even after funding has subsided. It starts with making those genuine connections in the community, whether it be with local leaders, elected officials, organizations, and residents. The average citizen is our focal point because we want to guarantee that we are hearing what it is that they feel that they need and how to best assist them.  

The truth is, one in three people in West Savannah (the area of Savannah with the highest poverty) lives below the poverty line. Food insecurity is costing Savannah over $27 million in healthcare costs alone. That's exponential with a population of around 150,000. We need to ensure that we are lowering those healthcare costs.  

We can do that by increasing access to healthy foods, access to a truly livable wage, and access to the information and resources that the community needs. The social determinants of health and research teach that if you eat healthier, are more physically active, and have equitable access to education, knowledge, and resources, the trajectory of a person’s life changes. It is our heart, our mission, to ensure that those who are most vulnerable have those services and knowledge more readily available. 

What inspires you about this work? Why is the integration of racial equity work so important when it comes to talking about health access?   

I grew up in a house that was committed to civil rights and equality. Fast forward 30 years, we see that it wasn't equality that we needed. We needed equity because each community has different resources and barriers.   

I belong to the school of thought that if you give people the tools they need to succeed, they will use them. Therefore, I can't just say, "Okay, here's the healthier option, use it." I'll give an example. I can't just give some kohlrabi to someone if they're used to eating pork and beans in a can all their lives, I have to help them understand the reasons why it's a little bit better to eat than the can of pork and beans. From there I need to educate them on how to prepare it while making it their own and adding their spin. As an African American person, our ancestors ate healthy because they ate off the land. But was different when we came here because we didn't have the same resources and food supply that we were used to. 

And so we had to make it our own. We did what was comforting because we were in a bondage situation. Food has the ability to take you to a place that helps you forget about what's going on around you.  

With that said, it's also about changing our relationship with food and changing the perspective of what you eat. I’ll tell anybody, I grew up on collard greens, grits, watermelon, and fried chicken. And so instead of collard greens with bacon fat, I use chicken broth and Mrs. Dash. Instead of fried chicken in the deep fryer, I prepare air fried chicken. And with macaroni and cheese, I use either brown rice pasta or whole wheat noodles. And that's how we incorporate that spin. Sometimes people may not understand it, but it's just giving your spin on food. And I think as long as it comes from the heart, food is always going to be good. 

Can you talk a bit about your experience in being a member of Georgia Organics’ Georgia Food Oasis communities? How has been a member of Georgia Food Oasis impacted your organization?  

We have been impacted dramatically. The conference was awesome this year. I love that you had the farmer at the forefront of the conference, especially the black farmer, giving them the information to access funding that was integral and pertinent. 

Because that is something that historically we did not have equal and definitely not equitable access to. It has impacted my work because I am very cognizant and conscious of how to partner more with farmers.  

Georgia Food Oasis has also provided a true sense of community, and as a planner, I am always looking for that. It's a truly collaborative effort because we reach out to each other and say, "Hey, I need some help. Do you know how I can get this done? Or do you know who does this?" And if I may not know someone off the top of my head but I have to do is reach out to Suzanne and she can connect us with someone. So just the relationships, the webinars, the real genuineness of the organization is what's been very impactful and invaluable for me. 

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Be sure to check out Deidre on an upcoming panel for Good Food for Thought- Pandemic Response in GFO Communities: Rome, Savannah, and Walton County highlight partnerships that helped connect families to fresh local food during COVID-19 on September 22 at 11 a.m. Click here to register!

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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.

Farmer Spotlight: Eric Simpson of New Eden Ecosystem & West Georgia Farmer's Cooperative

By Lauren Cox

Eric Simpson put his hands in the dirt with an intention to grow something 12 years ago and grow something, he did. His farming journey, from backyard gardener to one of the leading members of the West Georgia Farmer’s Cooperative, unfolded as organically as it gets (no pun intended) and continues to set an example for other farmers in how to hold space for building strong community and continuing the tradition of convening and mobilizing, while carving out space for a successful, independent business.   

Courtesy of Eric Simpson

Georgia Organics got a chance to connect with Eric, a Georgia Organics board member, to learn more about how he got his start in farming, his work with West Georgia Farmer’s Cooperative (WGFC) and his involvement with the Accelerator and Farm to Restaurant program, as well as the Food Fight GA initiative. Spoiler alert: There’s also mention of some pretty cute horses…

Read more below. You can learn about The Farmer Fund Accelerator program here and learn more about the Farm to Restaurant program here.

What do you remember about those early days when you first started gardening?  

I mostly remember the newness of it all and being inspired by the idea of growth, life, and the act of growing food. One of the first things I grew were Sugar Baby watermelons and of course I very clearly remember them being invaded by squirrels. (laughs) 

When did you think about farming as a profession?  

The simple answer is back in 2007. 

After having a successful backyard garden, I wanted more space to grow food and I also wanted to explore livestock. I had purchased a horse a year earlier and was paying to have it boarded on someone else’s property and so I started looking for land and it unfolded just like that. Now I have my own land where I can grow food organically and keep not only my horse but two others!  

What are these lucky horse’s names by the way?  

My horse’s name is Baby and then there’s Cheerio and Sandy, a Palomino I’m keeping for a friend.     

The West Georgia Farmer’s Cooperative is one of the oldest Black led agricultural organizations in the south and a huge deal! How did you start working with them?   

I found out about them through a neighborhood elder by the name of Ralph Paige. He was the executive director of the Federation of Southern Cooperatives at the time and was once a part of WGFC, having helped to build it many years ago. He told me about the organization and I learned from there how to join and become a member. Basically, I reached out to someone, went to a meeting, and once there was able to see where they had been (how much work they had done), and what they were so keenly positioned to do in the future. After joining the organization, I began to help them with organizing and getting further established.  

What would you say was your influence on the West Georgia Farmers' Cooperative?  

When I first joined, I was able to bring to the table my relationships with Global Growers, Georgia Organics, and additionally my connection with Brennan Washington, who owned Phoenix Gardens and is currently the Land Grant Liaison and Farmer Outreach Expert at Southern SARE.  It worked out that at the time I starting doing business with WGFC they were in the middle of a transition. The older members that had led WGFC in its heyday were retiring so naturally, it was a time of re-assessment and reconstituting the business.  

We were focused on trying to keep folks connected and figuring out new business opportunities. It was also the moment when we decided to change our member growing practices to sustainable in order to meet the current and emerging market demand. That was in late 2011/2012.  

Cooperative models can vary greatly depending on how they are structured. Can you talk a little about the structure of the West Georgia Farmer’s Cooperative?  

Of course! So, our cooperative model doesn’t have cooperative land. We bring in the different farms and, in a way, WGFC is a customer but the farms are also owners. WGFC never wants to be exclusive. We don’t want farmers to only have their eggs in the WGFC and not be able to sell outside of the cooperative. We really chose to look at WGFC as a beacon of support for market opportunities as well as technical support for our growers.  

How much of your sales come from WGFC and how much comes from other sources?  

75% of what I grow goes to WGFC. The rest of my sales come from the local community. I also get income from selling meat birds and goats when I have them, having people come fish on my lake, and selling eggs at the local market.   

What are some cool things you have on the horizon for your farm and the WGFC?  

Well individually, I am trying to re-establish my goat and sheep herds. I’d also like to expand my peach, plum, and pear orchard and even threw around the idea of re-starting a CSA. I used to have one but of course, there are a lot of moving parts and it’s a lot of time and work. The CSA model wasn’t super conducive to my lifestyle, so I’ve chosen to focus on WGFC and the wholesale market.  

As far as future plans for the West Georgia Farmer’s Cooperative, all I can say is we have some pretty exciting things in the works. You’ll just have to stay tuned to find out!  

Photo via Black Farmers Network and Candace Dantes, click to read her feature on Eric’s work with the West Georgia Farmer’s Cooperative.

Ok! We definitely will! So, following along with the theme of reaching different markets, individually your farm as well as the West Georgia Farmers' Cooperative, is involved in a couple of programs within Georgia Organics.  Can you talk about why you applied to these programs and what you’re currently doing with them?  

Of course! I applied to the Accelerator Program because I needed to move my farm to consistent and established prominence and prosperity. I saw the program as a way to do that. So far, the program has been promising. I am working on QuickBooks and this Fall will begin some infrastructure projects as well.  

The Farm to Restaurant program gave me an opportunity to boost sales and diversity my revenue streams and led to my participation in Food Fight GA, which has been fun and rewarding.  

In addition to all the work you do to grow New Eden ecosystem and the WGFC you also have another job! What is it and does it influence or affect your farming?  

My other job is in government contract work. It works out because I can work from home and I have a flexible schedule. To be honest, the only thing that affects farming for me is the issue of labor. If I had regular help I could do more and it's that simple. In my case, having off farm work also comes with liability insurance and workman's comp which is an added benefit.  

This is all so interesting Eric but you know one thing we have got to ask is...What is your favorite thing to farm?  

Watermelon and cantaloupe!  I love growing them and eating them although the horses love them as much as I do! That being said, I’ll definitely have to work on my fencing this year.  

And what is your favorite time of year on the farm?   

I’d have to say it’s a toss-up between Fall and Spring because of the temperature. I can get out there and work all day without feeling the ill effects of the weather.  

Has Covid-19 affected your farm and how have you responded?  

Luckily, Covid-19 hasn’t affected my farm on site because it’s just me out there. If it’s done anything, it has affected the in-person markets I participate in.  A lot of people have reached out to me and the WGFC to get local produce and I think that’s because people want to stay away from hot spots and here in our rural area, the grocery stores are having a hard time keeping up with customer demand. The result is that instead of waiting on the next shipment of food or traveling out of town, people are turning to their local farmers.  

Well, thanks so much, Eric, for taking the time to talk today. Our last question is: What do you having going on right now and what are you looking forward to in the coming months?  

Currently we still have summer produce like okra, tomatoes, corn, and beans in the ground and we’re beginning to prep for fall planting. To answer your question about what I’m looking forward to in the coming months? Well.... to say I welcome the decrease in pest pressure and disease that comes along with Fall would be an understatement.  

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Connect with the West Georgia Growers Cooperative on Facebook.

Check out Eric’s work with the West Georgia Farmer’s Cooperative on the Black Farmer’s Network.

Check out the Accelerator program here: www.thefarmerfund.org/farmer-fund-accelerator , the Farm to Restaurant program here: farmtorestaurant.georgiaorganics.org/ and Food Fight GA here: www.foodfightga.com/ 

Kelley Toon of the Georgia Department of Education on Fueling Georgia's Future

We're thrilled to welcome Kelley Toon as a guest contributor on Georgia Organics' blog, The Dirt. Toon is the Academic Nutrition and Support Manager at the Georgia Department of Education and is sharing her perspective on why food-based learning is so powerful. She also shares resources to help guide this learning.

Georgia Organics’ Farm to School Director Kimberly Della Donna adds: “Georgia's own Kelley Toon is our country's first Academic Nutritionist, working to align nutrition education in cafeteria's and classrooms statewide. She's part of the amazing team we partner with at the Georgia State Department of Education to provide training, technical assistance and recognition for Georgia's farm to school programs.”

Thank you for joining us, Kelley, and for being a collaborator in Georgia Organics’ Farm to School program!

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Kelley Toon, Academic Nutrition and Support Manage at the Georgia Department of Education

By Kelley Toon

Back to school this year may look a little different, but one thing remains the same. Georgia's School Nutrition Professionals are committed to keeping Georgia's students fed and learning. They will be serving safe, fresh, and healthy meals to Georgia's students. These meals support farm to school initiatives by serving Georgia Grown foods. Besides, food-based learning is happening in the cafeteria, in the classroom, and at home.

Food is more than just a basic need as it can also serve as a powerful education tool. Discussions surrounding food origin and cultural connections, food preparation, food safety, the nutritional value of food, and manners and social graces related to food all directly align to learning standards across all academic areas. Food-Based Learning resources identify easy access points for incorporating nutrition into cross-curricular areas, facilitating the collaboration between school nutrition professionals and educators. Classroom materials that align with menu promotions and meet education standards and are an excellent way to highlight the fact that School Nutrition Meals are part of the academic day. Food-based learning provides coordinated support for student achievement.

 Food-based learning resources are available to support learning whether it is happening in person or virtually.

Young ones sharing their at-home food-focused learning. Photos courtesy of Kelley Toon.

Harvest of the Month (HOTM) is the Georgia Department of Education School Nutrition Program's farm to school initiative that highlights an item each month that can be sourced locally and served in Georgia's school meals.  This initiative encourages collaboration between School Nutrition Programs, farmers, teachers, and their communities. Resources to support Harvest of the Month promotions include customizable serving line signs, graphics, fact sheets, lessons for teachers, and 'punny' signs to use for photo ops or serving lines.

Harvest with Holly videos explores Georgia's Harvest of the Month initiative by discussing how these items grow, where they grow in Georgia, and how they get from the farms to school meals all across our state.  Episodes feature examples of how items are used in School Meals and ideas for enjoying them at home.

‘Toon’ In with Toon on Tuesday videos share ways to engage with food-based learning opportunities at home and school. Be sure to 'Toon' in at two on Tuesdays.

Taste and Talk resources feature fun questions prompts that encourage conversation during mealtime. Whether students are eating in the cafeteria, in the classroom, or at home, these prompts encourage conversation about food and fun. Learning doesn't stop in the classroom, it continues during mealtime.

You can find these and other resources on our website. Thanks for all that you are doing to Fuel Georgia's Future.

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Kelley Toon is the Academic Nutrition and Support Manager at the Georgia Department of Education. To learn more about the Georgia Department of Education School Nutrition Program, visit https://snp.gadoe.org/ and follow us on Instagram @gadoe_snp, Twitter @GaDOENutrition, and at www.Facebook.com/gadoenutrition/.

Meet Dan Glenn of Deep Grass Graziers, Ben Hill’s Soil Steward

Courtesy of Deep Grass Graziers

By Porter Mitchell

Dan Glenn's family farm is located in one of the country’s poorest counties, located right in the middle of South Georgia. Over one-third of people in Ben Hill County have lived below the poverty line for at least the past three decades. The sun is blazing hot, the humidity is intense, and the weeds grow so fast you can practically sit and watch them take over your fields in a single day. But the heavy rain and warm winters mean you can grow there year-round, and cattle can graze on pasture 365 days a year.   

The family farm, founded by Dan’s grandparents in the 1960s, is a powerful example of how a farm can nurture both people and the land. The farm provides jobs in one of the poorest counties in the country. It honors the skill of farming, providing seasoned hands a way to showcase their craft and new farmers a way to learn. The farm provides food. The farm nurtures ecosystems and even draws down carbon from the atmosphere.   

And it all starts with the soil.   

Ben Hill and Back   

Dan Glenn grew up on family land in Ben Hill County, about ninety minutes north of Valdosta. The farm belonged to his grandparents, conventional farmers who grew corn, soy, cotton, peanuts, tobacco, and raised some cattle on their 800 acres.    

Courtesy of Deep Grass Graziers

 Like many people who grew up in rural areas, Dan didn’t intend on staying there. In his early twenties, he developed a keen interest in permaculture and organic farming, and relocated to St. Croix to work on a sustainable farm. Eventually, he and some like-minded farmers founded the Virgin Islands Sustainable Farm Institute, a research and training farm. The institute not only taught new farmers but also fueled Dan’s passion for regenerative agriculture.   

Then Dan’s grandparents passed away. In 2009, Dan was called back home to help his mother manage the farm. “I had to square my interest and passions in soil health, permaculture, and organic farming with a very conventional operation,” explains Dan. The family farm was doing well. Transitioning away from conventional farming takes years and carries a hefty financial risk for the farmer. Dan knew he couldn’t take a gamble on his family’s farm, but he also knew that for the farm to survive long-term, they had to change. They couldn’t just keep doing what Dan’s grandparents had done. They had to start taking their soil seriously.    

Living Soil   

“I thought it was about the cow, but it was about the forages. I thought it was about the forages, but it was about the soil.” Dan Glenn   

Courtesy of Deep Grass Graziers

Like a coral reef or a rainforest, soil has its own diverse ecosystem. Healthy soil is full of microscopic organisms, different types of fungi, and invertebrates like earthworms. Like any other ecosystem, all the different components work together in harmony to benefit both the soil ecosystem and the plants growing in it. Healthy soil is better able to hold water, making it resistant to both drought and flooding. Healthy soil makes it easier for plant roots to absorb the nutrients they need. Healthy soil provides a habitat for organisms that keep plant diseases and pests in check. And healthy soil takes carbon from the atmosphere and changes it into a solid form stored in the ground. In fact, healthy soil can store between 25 and 50 tons of carbon per acre.* If you have seen healthy soil, you’ll see it’s very dark in color—this color comes from the carbon.  

Many common agricultural practices harm the soil ecosystem and therefore the plants that the ecosystem supports. Tilling releases carbon stored into the soil into the atmosphere and exposes the soil organisms to heat and sunlight, killing them. Synthetic fertilizers create weak plant root systems that can’t take up nutrients well, meaning more and more fertilizer is needed. These weak root systems also create weak plants that are worse at fending off pests and disease, which means they require more pesticides, fungicides, and herbicides. Unhealthy soil is very different in physical structure to healthy soil and is poorly able to store water and nutrients, leading to the farmer using more water and more nutrients. It’s a vicious cycle that creates a heavy burden for both the farmer and the land.  

But rebuilding the soil takes years--too long to for a farmer to wait when bills come every month. Farming is notorious for its razor-thin profit margins and fluctuating markets. Add in the unpredictability of the weather, and you’ve got a business that can collapse after a few bad seasons. For farming families like Dan’s that depend on the farm, they literally can’t afford to wait until their soil is restored.   

To offset this risk, Dan made changes very slowly, weaning the depleted soil microbiome off of its dependence on conventional fertilizer, building the health of the land. Dan employed natural fertility practices like planting soil-building crops such as clover, peas, and buckwheat, known as cover cropping. Dan had to slowly change the attitudes of some people on the farm too. “I had to twist some arms for sure,” laughs Dan.  

Reviving an Old Practice for the New Millennium  

Dan became fascinated in how livestock can be used to nurture depleted soil back to health. Rotating livestock into crop fields is a very old practice found in agricultural traditions around the world. For example, in Ireland sheep, cows, and horses spend the winter in crop fields, readying the soil for spring planting. But this ancient practice had been forgotten by the average farmer in the United States. “We separated the animals from the farm here,” remarks Dan.  

Livestock, especially ruminating animals like cows and sheep, provide urine and manure that fertilizes the soil and nourishes its ecosystem. Grazing grass encourages roots to grow stronger and deeper into the soil, locking it in place. Livestock can clear what’s left over after harvest and they eat many invasive weeds, making room for native plants. And livestock can make money too, helping offset financial risk.   

Dan went to see Will Harris of White Oak Pastures, a cattle farmer using the animals to restore soil that had been reduced from a living ecosystem to dead dust by decades of abuse. White Oak is about as close to a household name as a farm can get, but Dan went to Will Harris long before he was on magazine covers and his expertise was sought after worldwide.   

He met Will in his small church-turned-office in the not-even-a-one-stoplight hamlet of Bluffton, Georgia. Dan was excited and full of energy. He had big plans for his family’s farm, incorporating not only cattle but chickens, sheep, goats, and a whole Noah’s Ark of animals.   

Will hit the brakes. “Whoa, whoa, whoa, boy! Just concentrate on one thing and do it well.” Dan took his advice to heart, focusing on cattle. He worked to develop a clear plan. He focused on finances to figure out how the cattle were going to restore the land and keep the family farm in business. And then Dan got to work.   

A Man and His Pivot  

Getting the right mix of grass and plant species at the right time is key to providing the cow with the nutrients they need. While pasture cattle ranchers in other areas of the country have a broad body of research and best practices to turn to, Dan found almost nothing for the specific climate, conditions, and plants of South Georgia.  

So he started conducting his own research.   

Dan set up a 90-acre center pivot irrigation system. Center pivots work like the hand on a clock. A center anchor holds a long arm that rotates in a circle, while a line of sprinklers along the arm provide water. If you’ve been on an airplane and seen perfect circles in cropland, that’s the work of a center pivot.   

Dan divided the area covered by the pivot into eight parts, fencing each of them in to create eight pastures. His cattle rotate around the pastures, moving to a new pasture almost every day. The cattle follow the irrigation arm so every time they go into a new pasture there’s well-watered and healthy forage for them.   

Dan uses the different pastures to conduct trials on different mixes of forage crops. He’s experimenting to try and find the perfect blend that provides nutrition to his cattle, requires little if any maintenance, and builds soil quickly.    

The Perfect Cow   

Not only did Dan have to find the right mix of forage for South Georgia, he had to find the right type of cow too. The most common breeds were adapted for a diet of corn, not a diet of grass and plants. Dan got to work, selectively breeding his herd to create the perfect cow for his farm.   

“I want a cow that doesn’t need a diet of corn to fill out. I want healthy cows, ones that are resilient and don’t need a lot of inputs. I want a mama cow that has a healthy calf every year for a long time. These are the traits that produce a profit,” explains Dan.   

Georgia’s Newest Cash Crop   

Dan, along with his business partner, has begun growing hemp and building out the infrastructure to dry and process it. They recently purchased an old sewing factory in Ben Hill Country that they’re converting to a CBD processing facility, bringing both jobs and outside investment to the county. Dan’s hemp business will be vertically integrated from growing the hemp transplants to processing the plants into CBD oil. Dan is a huge proponent of vertical integration and advises other farmers to follow his lead. “It’s been the difference between breaking even and making money for me,” he explains.   

Dan’s venture into hemp and CBD also serves to create a more sustainable business. “My grandpa had cattle, row crops, and a tractor dealership. Because he diversified his income sources, he was less vulnerable.”    

But Dan cautions against taking on too many ventures at once. “Don’t bite off a big bite and try to do too many things. Add more enterprises as your other enterprises become successful.” 

Courtesy of Deep Grass Graziers

Dan’s Vision 

Dan’s vision for his farm is one in which the forages, the crops, and the cattle all work together to create a system that benefits the environment and is financially sustainable. “I want to have good genetics and create perennial and polyculture (meaning many different species) systems that work to produce cattle that are efficient and hands-off.”   

Dan’s reconciled with his home too. He’s no longer the twenty-something trying to get as far away from rural Georgia as he could. “Growing up and coming home here, I know it in my bones. I know the people. I’m in my community here”   

Dan Glenn is the incoming president of the Georgia Forage and Grassland Association and is a member of the following organization’s Board of Directors: American Forage and Grassland Committee, National Grazing Land Coalition, and Southern SARE. (SSARE). Dan is also part of our inaugural Farmer Accelerator Program cohort. You can learn more about the program here.   

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Porter Mitchell is a 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. 

Food Fight GA: Farmers, Chefs, and the Restaurant Family Remain Resilient through Pandemic

Food Fight GA weekly pick-ups being assembled. (Photo credit: Kate Blohm)

In an effort to continue the Food Fight GA initiative through October, Georgia Organics seeks to raise $10,000 in funding. To learn more and donate, please visit www.foodfightga.com/donate. 

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By Mary Elizabeth Kidd 

In mid-March of this year, as the full effects of COVID-19 set in, Georgia’s small, locally-owned restaurants were among the hardest hit businesses to suffer from pandemic-related closures. 

According to the National Restaurant Association, Georgia is home to some 18,000 restaurants, which employ approximately half a million people. And with the majority of restaurants remaining closed or offering takeout-only service, a huge swath of those in the restaurant industry became one of the highest unemployment-claiming sectors since March. 

Farmers also felt the blow of these restaurant closures, as this crucial revenue stream dried up almost overnight as orders for weekly menus ceased. 

But Chris Wilkins of Atlanta’s Root Baking Co. wasn't willing to sit by as these two vital groups were left high and dry by unprecedented times. So, with a big idea and a call for extra hands, he reached out to the team at Ponce City Market and Jamestown Properties as well as Lauren Cox, Georgia Organics’ Organic Procurement Coordinator, who leads the Georgia Organics’ Farm to Restaurant program. Together, Food Fight GA was born. 

Chef Bruce Logue of BoccaLupo, a Farm to Restaurant Farmer Champion and early participant in Food Fight GA. (Photo credit: Kate Blohm)

The mission of Food Fight GA, from the outset, has been to bring stability to the greatly destabilized industry, paying farmers to offset lost revenue, and providing fresh food to restaurant workers to help make up for lost pay. The motto: "championing farmers and feeding our restaurant family.” 

“Restaurants think of their teams as family, not to mention the farmers from whom we source and who become our friends, and the Atlanta food community is doing what we can to make sure our people are safe and cared for during this uncertain time,” says Chris Wilkins. 

As a one-year-old program in the organization, Georgia Organics’ Farm to Restaurant program rose to the challenge of creating a new initiative with complicated logistics. Thanks to seed funding from the Jamestown Charitable Foundation, Ponce City Market, and the Wilbur & Hilda Glenn Family Foundation, the pilot program began in early April. 

Each week, Georgia Organics coordinates the orders for farm boxes full of fresh fruits and vegetables from participating farmers—along with Root Baking Co. bread and more. These goods are then delivered and packed for pickup at participating restaurants, ready to go home with restaurant team members who have faced COVID-19-related staffing cuts. 

Lauren Cox, Georgia Organics’ Organic Procurement Coordinator, who leads the Georgia Organics’ Farm to Restaurant program. (Photo credit: Kate Blohm)

For Lauren Cox, the initiative made sense for Georgia Organics to manage and coordinate logistics for, particularly given her background managing farms and selling to restaurants. “For our work, it just makes sense. Farmers want to grow and sell their food, and we want to help them move that food. Essentially, we get to buoy the relationships these farmers have with restaurants through Food Fight GA to ensure they keep seeing each other week to week even while the restaurants have limited sourcing capacity. Hopefully, we’re also creating opportunities for new restaurant partners to meet farmers they never knew before in the process.” 

Participating restaurants throughout Food Fight GA have been both Farmer Champion restaurants, those already a part of the Farm to Restaurant program, and restaurants in the Metro with long-standing commitments to local sourcing. Current participants include: Arnette’s Chop House, Empire State South, Five and Ten, Gunshow, Miller Union, Murphy’s, Staplehouse, The Deer and The Dove, The National, Twisted Soul Cookhouse & Pours, and Wrecking Bar Brewpub

Participating farmers have included those already sourcing to participating restaurants as well as farmers involved in the Farm to Restaurant Farmer Cohort, including, but not limited to: Ellijay Mushrooms, Hickory Hill Farm, Levity Farms, Local Lands, Pinewood Springs Farm, Rag & Frass Farm, Rodgers Greens & Roots Farm, Snapfinger Farm, West Georgia Farmer’s Cooperative, Woodland Gardens. 

For participating farmers, the feedback has been much the same. The timing of Food Fight GA helped them to weather the ongoing challenges of COVID-19 business.

According to Russell Brydson of Narrow Way Farm, a Farmer Fund Accelerator participant: “Food Fight GA was a blessing that came just when we needed it. We had just shifted from a CSA model to selling primarily wholesale to restaurants and hotels. So we had a big crash and struggled to see how we were going to maintain revenue. Food Fight GA became an option when we most needed, an avenue to get back to financial stability.” 

Eric Simpson of New Eden Ecosystem and West Georgia Farmer’s Cooperative (also a Farmer Fund Accelerator participant) echoes the same message of sustaining support: “For us, Food Fight GA is going well, helped the co-op as a whole. Between our farmers markets and the opportunities here, it’s helped ensure our food goes to good work.” 

Not only was there practical, financial relief provided to farmers from the Food Fight GA program, there was also the intangible, emotional value of seeing fruits of their hard work bringing relief to restaurant team members facing uncertainty. 

“We have this chance to take care of the people that always take care of us,” says Food Fight GA participant Ilana Richards of Levity Farms 

Through the Food Fight GA initiative, which has been running for over 19 weeks, the Farm to Restaurant program has been able to spend over $123,000 in direct food purchasing from participating farms. Of this spending, almost half has been spent with BIPOC farmers. And, all told, the program has provided over 4,100 produce boxes to food-insecure restaurant industry workers while closing the gap in lost restaurant sales for the partner farms during this pandemic. The program has also paid almost $40,000 to participating restaurant for them to staff the packing of the weekly farm boxes. 

Overall, the program has proven that the farmer and chef relationship goes far beyond creative seasonal menus and “farm to table” monikers. It’s about relationships more akin to family than business partners and shows an eagerness to do what anyone working in food does best—take care of each other. 

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In an effort to continue the Food Fight GA initiative through October, Georgia Organics seeks to raise $10,000 in funding. To learn more and donate, please visit www.foodfightga.com/donate. 

Mary Elizabeth Kidd is the Communications Manager 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. 

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Summer Comfort Recipes from the Georgia Organics Community

By Mary Elizabeth Kidd

It’s hard to argue a better season to eat in the South than the middle of summer. For myriad reasons, it’s a peak season for thanking your local farmer.

Every week, farmers markets and CSA boxes are brimming with tomatoes, squashes, corn, peppers, okra, and more. And while most of these summer staples are incredible raw, the real fun comes in turning them into creative, comforting dishes to ease the heat of the dog days of summer.

We’re revisiting some of the amazing people who were featured on The Dirt this month and learning what “summer comfort” looks like to them and how these fresh, simple dishes are staples in their seasonal cooking routine.

From refreshing raw salads, like Tianna Neal’s Cucumber Tomato Salad to smoky, spicy shishitos from Food Fight GA participant Zachary Basto, each recipe offers a bite of comfort with a side of storytelling and seasonality. Enjoy!

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“In This Heat” Cucumber Tomato Salad by Tianna Neal of Starlit Roots

Tianna Neal is the farmer/owner of Starlit Roots near Augusta and is a member of Georgia Organics’ Farmer Fund Accelerator program. We highlighted Neal’s work, as well as other Accelerator farmers in this recent piece on the Farmer Services team and the kick-off of this first-of-its-kind program. Read more here.

In This Heat Cucumber Tomato Salad

“Working out in this Georgia heat, I've began packing my lunch with a cold, revitalizing dish that's super easy to make. Using two ingredients that grow abundantly in the summer, I cut them up and let them sit in this delicious dressing.” - Tianna Neal

INGREDIENTS

1 cup of cherry tomatoes, halved 

1 cup of cucumbers, chopped 

1/4 cup of red onion, diced (optional)

2 Tbsp. olive oil 

1 Tbsp. red wine vinegar or apple cider vinegar 

1-2 Tbsp. dry or fresh dill 

Salt, pepper, garlic, and herbs to taste

DIRECTIONS

Whisk together oil, vinegar, herbs, and seasonings. Pour prepared dressing over prepared vegetables. Serve chilled.

Variations: Add feta cheese and olives. Add pasta to make pasta salad. Add cooked and chilled chickpeas for protein.

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Grilled Zephyr Squash with Sage Butter by Jason Cobb of Walton Wellness and Athens Technical College

Walton Wellness and the Mobile Farmacy were recipients of a recent Georgia Food Oasis “Mobilizing Food Funds” mini-grant to continue their work in the community during the pandemic. Read more here.

Grilled Zephyr Squash with Sage Butter

“You can't go wrong with the classics like grilling out and summer squash.  Grilled veggies are our favorite way to enjoy veggies anytime but especially in the summer.  Add some warm tangy sage butter on top and you have a melt in your mouth taste of summer.” – Chef Jason Cobb

INGREDIENTS                                                           

Avocado Oil                                                                

1/2 shallot, finely diced                                               

2 cloves of garlic, finely grated                                                

4-6 sage leaves, finely chopped                                                         

1 tsp. thyme, leaves only, finely chopped                                

4 Tbsp. butter, room temperature                                            

Kosher salt                                                                  

Black pepper, freshly ground                                      

2 lbs. Zephyr Squash                                                              

1 Tbsp. cilantro, finely chopped                                              

DIRECTIONS

Heat a small saucepan over medium heat.  To the preheated pan, add just enough avocado oil to coat the bottom of the pan. Reduce the heat to medium low and add the shallots and cook until the shallots are almost translucent, stirring often.

Add the garlic and cook the mixture until the garlic is fragrant, about 1 minute. Add the sage and thyme, stir to combine, and turn the heat off.  Allow the mixture to cool to room temperature.

Meanwhile, preheat a charcoal or gas grill to medium high heat.

In a small bowl, mix together the room temperature butter and the shallot mixture. Season the mixture with salt and pepper, to taste. Reserve while preparing the squash.

Cut the squash into rounds or planks about ½ inch thick. Rub the squash lightly with avocado oil.  Season the squash generously with salt and pepper.

Grill the squash until the squash is just cooked through but still firm, about 1-2 minutes on each side, dependent upon the temperature of the grill. You can also roast until cooked through.

Place roasted squash on a serving dish. Using a pastry brush, generously brush the squash with the sage butter and garnish with cilantro.

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Soy & Sesame Shishito Peppers from Zachary Basto of Staplehouse, Food Fight GA participant

Georgia Organics’ Food Fight GA has been serving restaurant employees affected by COVID-19 staffing cuts by providing weekly supplies of farm-fresh produce while paying participating local farmers affected by restaurant closures. Learn more at www.foodfightga.com, and click here to read more about some of the participating Farm to Restaurant Farmer Cohort members.

Soy & Sesame Shishito Peppers

“This makes it a great snack, because of how quick and easy it is to prep. The coriander and fresh chives (to garnish) make it floral and flavorful. Pairs well with some Pinot Grigio, too, which is definitely a summertime drink!” - Zachary Basto

INGREDIENTS

1 lb. shishito peppers

1 Tbsp. grape seed oil

1/4 tsp. red chili flakes

1/4 tsp. ground coriander

1 tsp. salt

1/4 cup soy sauce

1 Tbsp. sesame seeds

Lime wedge, coriander, fresh chives (garnish, as desired)

DIRECTIONS

Blister the peppers on high heat. Once peppers are softened, add chili flake, coriander and salt.

Add soy sauce and simmer until reduced by half.

Finish with sesame seeds and garnish with lime wedge, coriander, and fresh chives (optional.

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Summer Succotash from Chef Nick Woodham of Bare Roots Bibb Cafe & Catering

Click here to listen to our Georgia Foodcast interview with Olivia Amos of Bare Roots Bibb Cafe & Catering, a GFO community partner, as we find out how the Bare Roots team is helping the Columbus community during the pandemic.

Summer Succotash 

 “A mid-summer succotash can truly encompass every aspect of a southerner’s garden. When the family gathers around the dinner table to enjoy this dish that is only available for a fleeting period of time, which to me is a perfect representation of summer comfort food.” - Chef Nick Woodham

INGREDIENTS

5 ears Silver Queen corn

2 yellow Crookneck squash 

2 Cocozelle zucchini 

2 Idaho potatoes 

2 Vidalia onions 

1 eggplant 

2 red bell peppers 

3 cloves of garlic 

Bacon lardons (preferably Benton's)

Chives 

Salt

Pepper

Butter

DIRECTIONS

Cut the corn off the cobb and lightly char the kernels and set aside.

Cook the Lima beans until tender and set aside. 

Blanch the potatoes until tender, dry and set aside. 

Render the lardons and set aside.

Small dice the remaining vegetables and keep them separated. 

Bring a large pan to medium heat.

Add butter, onions, bell peppers, garlic, salt & pepper and sweat. Add the remaining vegetables and beans cook until tender. Add lardons, chives salt and pepper to taste 

This is a great summer vegetable "set" and pairs well with any protein.

Enjoy!

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Mary Elizabeth Kidd is the Communications Manager 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.

Farm to Restaurant Spotlight on Russell Brydson of Narrow Way Farm and Chris Wilkins of Root Baking Co.

By Mary Elizabeth Kidd   

Lauren Cox, who leads Georgia Organics’ Farm to Restaurant program, recently spoke to Russell Brydson of Narrow Way Farm and Chris Wilkins of Root Baking Co. to catch up with this farmer-chef duo about their involvement in Georgia Organics, plus life and business during the pandemic. Both Russell and Chris are leading participants in the Food Fight GA initiative and the Farmer Cohort and Farmer Champion programs, respectively. 

Tune in below…   

Narrow Way Farm is located in McDonough, where Russell Brydson and his family have farmed for around four years, growing a variety of sustainably grown fruits and vegetables, as well as pecan and chestnut trees. They also run a seasonal, on-farm blueberry U-Pick and We-Pick.

Narrow Way is a member of the 2020 Farmer Fund Accelerator Program as well as a 2019 veteran of the Farm to Restaurant Farmer Cohort, and it was through this program that Russell and Chris Wilkins of Root Baking Co. first began their farmer-chef partnership, thanks, in part, to a Farm to Restaurant Farmer-Chef Speed Dating-Style Mixer.  

Chris Wilkins and his wife Nicole Lewis-Wilkins run Root Baking Co., located in Atlanta’s Ponce City Market. Their mission with Root Baking Co. is to “honor the baking traditions of time and craft, nourish our neighbors with high quality baked goods, and embrace the diverse character of the southern food landscape to enrich our community.”

Part of how they accomplish this mission is by working with farmers like Russell to ensure their high-quality baked goods are reflective of their environs and supportive of farmers. They’ve furthered their mission of enriching the community through leadership in the Food Fight GA initiative. 

In April of this year, Chris Wilkins had the idea of providing weekly farm boxes to members of the restaurant community who had been dramatically affected by restaurant closures in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic. He brought the idea to Lauren Cox on the Georgia Organics Farm to Restaurant team, knowing that through the logistics and funding support of Georgia Organics (and seed-funding partner Jamestown Charitable Foundation), this vision could become a reality to serve those in the restaurant family when they needed it most.  

Learn more about Chris Wilkins, Root Baking Co. and the start of the Food Fight GA initiative in our recent Atlanta Foodcast interview.  

To learn more about the Food FIght GA Program, its participating restaurants and farmers, or to donate, click here.  

Since its inception in mid-April to today, the Food Fight GA program has directed over $100,000 to farmers in Georgia for the supply of weekly fresh fruits and vegetables—not to mention fresh Root Baking Co. Breads—that go into these farm boxes. Almost 4,000 farm boxes have been distributed to restaurants to the Atlanta and Athens restaurants for their workers affected by COVID-19 staffing cuts and service-based income. And Russell and Chris’ farmer-chef partnership has extended to the work with Food Fight GA; many of these weekly farm boxes include berries and other produce from Narrow Way Farm.  

Food Fight GA farm boxes being packed before a recent pick-up. (Photo credit: Kate Blohm)

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In addition to Food Fight GA, Root Baking Co. has continued with its pandemic-version of business as usual, continuing to source from Narrow Way for the pastries, pizzas, and other creations they sell via takeout and at the Morningside Farmers Market. 

“Relationships like this are fun because you get to buy fruit from your friend… you get to just check in and see what’s happening, and it’s fun to be able to catch up. That’s one of the main benefits for me of local sourcing. Working in the [restaurant] industry, we tend to stay in a little bubble, so this is a breath of fresh air.”  

For Russell, Chris’ weekly questions are simple: “When are the blueberries coming?” and “When can I get more?”   

Blueberries at Narrow Way Farm. (Courtesy of Narrow Way Farm)

“One of the biggest joys you have as a small farmer is the opportunity to interact with the customer, whether that’s a person coming to buy a bunch of kale or Chris buying a ton of blueberries or figs or whatever’s in season. You have the chance to say ‘hey, how’s everything going?’ and it gives me joy to see that people appreciate the fruit and the work that goes into it.”   

Chris finds shared values in the fact that being a farmer, much like being a chef, is a big commitment, and in that work, you want to partner with those who are similarly committed to high quality and passionate work. That creative, symbiotic relationship keeps Chris producing beautiful, delicious food and Russell farming fresh, sustainable ingredients.  

“I’m blessed to grow these things, so seeing someone turn what I grow into something beyond what I could even imagine, it gives me joy. You have to have that desire to see what you grow become more. You have to have respect for the person you’re selling to.”   

“Mutual respect,” says Chris.  

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For more information about Narrow Way Farm, visit www.narrowwayfarm.com/ For more information about Root Baking Co., visit www.rootbaking.com/.For more information about the Georgia Organics Farm to Restaurant program, visit farmtorestaurant.georgiaorganics.org/.

Mary Elizabeth Kidd is the Communications Manager 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.    

National Farmers Market Week: Farmers Celebrate Farmers Market Managers and Staff

By Mary Elizabeth Kidd

This week, we’ve been celebrating National Farmer Market Week (Aug. 2-8) with the National Farmers Market Coalition and decided the best way to show gratitude for farmers market managers, staff, and volunteers was to hear from the farmers who vend at these markets every week.

As anyone who’s shopped at a community farmers market knows: it’s far more than just a way to get your food.

In the landscape of the food we consume, from the farmer’s field to the home or restaurant kitchen, farmers markets are often the “third space” in between, a gathering place for not only the sale and purchase of food, but for connection to where your food comes from, the people who grow it, and the neighbors who value it as much as you.

While the pandemic has brought an unprecedented level of concern to these weekly gatherings, market managers across Georgia have risen to the task of keeping farmers and shoppers safe.

From hand-washing stations to online ordering to ensuring socially distant shopping, these market leaders have ensured that open-air, socially-distanced farmers markets remain one of the safest ways to obtain the healthiest, most sustainable local food.

Hand washing stations at Grant Park Farmers Market. (Photo credit: Jenna Shea Photography)

This week, we caught up with farmers from the Georgia Organics family, from farmer members to Farmer Fund Accelerator and Farmer Cohort participants, to learn why they appreciate their farmers markets. We hope this inspires you to support your local farmers markets this and every week, understanding that farmers markets are, indeed, essential.

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Athens Farmers Market

Tamita and Gabriel, owners of Caribe United Farm (Oglethorpe)

“The Athens Farmers Market team is family. They are awesome. They have been very supportive from the very beginning and we love and appreciate them very much. We look forward to each Saturday to see everyone; to laugh, chat, dance, and fellowship together! We always look forward to seeing our regular customers and meeting new ones. It is also such a joy to see the children at the market, playing and partaking of the healthy foods, fruits, and vegetables offered at the market. It's really just irie vibes!!!”

Sarah Thurman of the Athens Farmers Market. (Photo credit: Bailey Garrot)

Augusta Locally Grown

Tianna Neal, owner of Starlit Roots (Burke County), member of Georgia Organics Farmer Fund Accelerator program

“Augusta Locally Grown is an organization that is committed to providing food for the community, as well as supporting the hands behind the food production. They have created farmers' markets and online market platforms that assist farms in distributing their produce. They have worked in communities, building gardens, teaching youth, and connecting families to food. We are indefinitely grateful for their work!

“I have been blessed to work with Augusta Locally Grown since the year I started farming. Through their markets, they've blessed me and fellow farmers with the platforms to sell our products. I grow with confidence in knowing that I have their support in getting food to communities. My gratitude is indefinite for this organization and their focus on strengthening our local food system.”

Between The Rivers (Rome)

B.A. Lewis of Sapelo Farms (Silver Creek), Georgia Organics Farmer Member

“Between the Rivers has been fantastic for us. We moved from the coast and had previously only sold through CSA’s and other methods. So when we moved to Rome, transitioned to fresh-cut flowers, and began selling at the market, it was eye-opening for me and has been great. And the market has been amazing for downtown Rome; it’s brought a lot of people together and through it all, we’ve been able to do quite well”

“It’s been very different with the pandemic, of course, but they’ve continued to do their best. Our market manager, Julie, has everything always set up with hand-washing and masks and always visible. They’ve also capitalized on doing more social media and their email, highlighting visiting vendors, recipes, etc., which has just been great.”

Freedom Farmers Market at the Carter Center (Atlanta)

Charlotte Swancy, co-owner of Riverview Farms (Ranger), winner of Georgia Organics 2019 Land Steward Award

“Holly is the most amazing market manager ever, she makes Freedom such a joy to be at, even during COVID-19. It’s such a great atmosphere, and that’s really due to her attitude and management style”

Jess Plymale, co-owner of Row by Rowe Organics (Luthersville), member of Georgia Organics Farmer Cohort

“Ultimately, we are extremely proud and happy to be a part of the market and we owe that all to Holly. The market is organized, exciting, and very diverse - anything you need, it’s there. It’s like being at a festival with music and ready to eat foods, plus you get to buy nutritious and wholesome food to last all week. Every vendor is purposeful, she understands that the market is only as good as the vendors and the vendors only as good as the market. The relationship is symbiotic, we all win with Holly on our side.

“Plus - with COVID-19, Holly has rocked it - her and crew have worked tirelessly to keep the market going and vendors/customers safe. So very forward-thinking with hand washing stations, cleanest port-a-cans I’ve ever seen, and a much more spread out layout. You can even buy masks at the market, that’s cool. We are still growing vegetables, Holly knows it, and is making sure we have the customers to feed. Really a win-win.”

Grant Park Farmers Market (Atlanta)

Melanie Wade, owner of Golda Kombucha and Cultured South (Atlanta)

“In these trying times, farmers markets have been so important, both for the consumer, and as a business owner. They’re not only providing local food in an outdoor setting for those who feel nervous in indoor settings, they’re also especially places to get the healthy food that’s keeping us in tip-top shape during this virus.

“Being able to sell at farmers markets has definitely helped us out. We had to close our taproom temporarily, but with markets being essential, we could still be out there and able to sell products the products we’d invested a great deal in, expecting a busy spring season. Especially with fermented products, which have a longer lead time, it helped keep us alive and helped us get immune-boosting foods to market.”

Grant Park Farmers Market (Photo Credit: Jenna Shea Photography)

Mulberry Market (Macon)

Julia Asherman, owner of Rag & Frass Farm (Jeffersonville), member and co-founder of Middle Georgia Growers Co-Op, and member of Georgia Organics Farmer Fund Accelerator program

“It’s been really nice to see how the Lacey, Mulberry’s Market Manager, and longtime volunteer Paige have been so committed to keeping the market open and accessible to farmers and others during the pandemic.

“It’s really important, because this is one of the few markets in the region, and some customers really rely on this as a way to get their food each week. Because of them, it’s been such a relief for us each week.

“I really feel for all market managers right now. Every week we all have to adjust and do things differently; there’s simply no routine week over week, we’re having to constantly adapt.”

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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. 

Abeika Alexander Sows Empowerment and Connection, Columbus Reaps the Benefit

By Mary Elizabeth Kidd

Abeika Alexander

Abeika Alexander is a someone with her hands in the deep in the soil and roots of Columbus, especially so in the South Columbus community where she lives and works and has had a vital role establishing numerous community gardens.

When she speaks about the people of Columbus, their food access needs, and the work she’s done and plans to do, it’s hard not to absorb the enthusiasm and passion in her voice. She’s been called Columbus’ “Guerilla Gardener,” and it’s tempting to call her a superwoman. At the end of the day, she’s a woman with a spiritual, impassioned calling and the determination to make her home, and the world, better through the act of growing food and nourishing those around her.

Suzanne Girdner, who leads the Georgia Food Oasis (GFO) program, has known Alexander for around three years and witnesses, first hand, the effect her dedication. “Over the years, I’ve come to see Abeika’s breadth of work as sowing the seeds of community—using all of her personal strengths and interests for growing and tending to a much bigger common good.”

Columbus is a partner community in the Georgia Food Oasis, and it was through the GFO Potluck & Pitch grant program that she pitched and secured a GFO mini-grant of over $400 to establish a community garden at the Liberty Theatre & Cultural Center with the goals of feeding the community and teaching Columbus teens how and why gardening is vital.

Courtesy of Liberty Theatre & Cultural Center

The Liberty Theatre holds great significance in the history of Columbus. It opened in 1924 as the city’s segregated theatre, offering movies, plays, and musical performances from entertainers such as Ma Bailey and Cab Calloway. Today, the Liberty Theater & Cultural Center is a place for concerts and community events, and as a partner with the Liberty Theatre, Abeika’s work in its revitalization and sustainability is crucial to ensuring its future. With the grant money from the Georgia Food Oasis and volunteer support from the Columbus chapter of veteran’s service organization The Mission Continues, she established 10 raised beds and began an irrigation system. Click here watch a tour of garden and find out what’s next for the site, including fruit trees, bees, and more, fostering the educational opportunities for the Liberty district and Columbus.

The Liberty Theatre is just one of many ways she’s impacting the city’s urban gardening landscape; she also founded Durty Beets (durtybeets.com/), her business offering vegan catering, private chef services, gardening installation, and garden maintenance. Through Durty Beets she began hosting an urban farmer awards event and farm-focused 5-course vegan dinner called the City Farmers Feast. In its first year alone, the event sold out and became the first-and-only event of its kind in Columbus to celebrate locally-grown food and the farmers who produced it with the goal to “create a ritual around sustainable food sources, food education, food justice and urban farming in Columbus, GA.” While this year’s event has been postponed due to COVID-19, the wheels are turning on its next iteration.

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Project-3 volunteers with Abeika Alexander at City Farmers Feast 2019 (photo via Electric City Life)

Project-3 is the non-profit arm of Durty Beets, where she plans to expand her mission of bringing more gardens and more food to the Columbus table. Project-3 originated with a food forest project off the MLK corridor, envisioned as a means of encouraging free public access to fresh fruits and vegetables (more in this feature from Columbus’ Electric City Life); it has now grown to a focus on how to bring more gardens to more back yards. And what she’s trying to learn through both Durty Beets and this non-profit extension of her work is what her Columbus neighbors are going through right now—pandemic and all—and what they need most right now, sometimes going (socially-distanced) door-to-door to figure this out and engage with neighbors about growing good food.

Prior to COVID-19, she was an after-school gardening educator for Columbus-area schools such as Baker Middle School and Carver High School, teaching planting essentials, aquaculture, composting, and more. It’s through this work, and her role as a mother of five, that Abeika is instilling a love of the land, healthy food, and working in the community for generations to come. Her youngest gardens alongside her and is gardening at her school, advocating to establish a school garden.

When speaking to Abeika, you can tell how much pride she takes in this element of her work, passing down this knowledge and passion, seeing her children and Columbus’ next generation continuing this work. “If you love agriculture and gardening, you have to be a source for the community, you cannot hold knowledge like that to yourself,” she says. “You cannot maintain that level of spirituality without sharing it. This is what it means to be a role model to my kids. This is what it looks like to be an advocate.”

We recently spoke to Abeika to further understand what drives Abeika Alexander’s tireless work in Columbus and how she’s staying resilient to her mission through COVID-19.

What brought you to the food movement in Columbus?

I was born and raised in Columbus, and it was my great grandmother’s backyard garden that was my influence in being close to the earth. One of the best memories I had of her is when she’d take me out in the garden while she worked, and she’d sit me in the tall corn stalks. I would be at peace, and she would be at peace.

She would feed me things from the garden…and it was a profound connection. I try to pass that energy along. It taught me how to grow things and how to have respect for life and death. It was essential to who I am and what I do.

Tell us about your work establishing the Liberty Theater Community Garden

We participated in the Georgia Food Oasis Potluck & Pitch in 2019 and won the grant money for supplies, plants, and irrigation. We had building help from Mission Continues in Columbus, and veteran volunteers came out to help build beds. They are a veteran’s organization that focuses on flash builds in green spaces.

Our initial plan was to have classes there again with teenagers who stayed on with us from the Baker Middle School after-school gardening program alongside the summer camp from Georgetown Elementary, but then COVID-19 hit. We had planned to work together on the irrigation system, to work in the raised beds, prepares a meal from the garden, learn basic soil science, etc. Right now, though, I’m working with Dr. Shae Anderson of the Liberty Theater, and we’re trying to take these classes online, so that they will work for people. We’re creating presentations and videos that to educate middle schoolers, but will be perfect for the beginner gardener at any age. 

You are so active in so many different areas of food in Columbus, how would you define what you do?

I would describe myself as an urban agriculturist. You cannot be someone who cares about the food system and keep that to yourself, because the food system is comprised of us all. If one part breaks down, it affects all of us.

If I teach someone else to garden, I feel like I’ve done my part to my community. It’s very important to serve your community. It’s not hard for me to share this, because I love it, I love to be in the dirt. I wouldn’t want to be someone else, this allows me to serve however I can.

I’m also hoping that teaching these things will help us put a dent into food apartheid in Columbus and especially that the school systems will take us more seriously. Teachers, principals, and lawmakers need to all have their roles in helping our kids become healthier.

You speak of local food with such a spiritual approach.

My background is Islam, so we are told to be mindful of Mother Earth and to be grateful for what was bestowed to us. No matter your background, you cannot not be mindful of Mother Earth, from conserving water, growing food, giving back to the earth through composting, giving to people.

‘You have to be mindful of Mother Earth.’ That’s what rings in my ear. By my Creator, I have to do this and ask myself ‘how can I be mindful?’ It’s definitely a motivation, being mindful and grateful and driven by that. People are starving and searching for food, and how I can do my part?

You mentioned food apartheid, how do you define this term?

Food apartheid is a comprehensive way of describing the systemic food deficit in mostly black and brown neighborhoods. It is a system that was purposely put in place to sustain food desserts. And even from the origins of the transatlantic slave trade, food in America has been a bargaining chip to keep people down.

You cannot have free people without free land. If you give the land back to the people, it will help to level the playing field. The more we shine a light on this issue, it will create a pathway to justice. People have to be open to hearing the ugly truth. The playing field was not made level.

What is your vision and your hope for your post-COVID-19 work in Columbus?

My vision for brighter days is getting back to making food access easier for people, getting back to the routine of putting gardens in people’s backyards. Through that work, I can answer their questions like: ‘Why do I need to know how to grow something?’ ‘And then…why should I help my neighbor put a garden in her backyard?’

Before, we were out there. We were kicking that stuff off. Now, because of the pandemic, people are more conscious. My hope is that the pause that COVID has given us, the sensationalism behind it, and a new view of health will play in our favor.

So when we’re back, we’re just going to kick back into our same mission, making it easy for folks to have access to food. We want to redefine “fine dining,” and the importance of preserving yourself in what you eat.

There is the opportunity to connect neighbors and connect the importance of the local food system; this time can play in the favor of anyone advocating for food justice. We have to first build a web of people who are empowered in the city and then hopefully we can translate that to the state, then many states, and the country.

Overall, I’d say we’re trying to reinstate love and that connection back to earth.

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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.