Good Food for All

Daily Digest: National Farmers Market Week, FRESH screenings and Backyard chickens

In honor of National Farmers Market Week, read this post on the importance of partnerships in administering the Double Value Coupon Program.

FRESH the movie will be showing at the Gene Siskel Film Center in Chicago until Aug. 5. 

Download the full FamilyFarmed.org report "Ready to Grow: A plan for increasing Illinois fruit and vegetable production." The report details current obstacles and recommendations for meeting the increasing wholesale demand for local foods. 

Whole Foods opened its first on-site community garden in Virginia, which could serve as a potential model for other stores.    

A community-supported agriculture (CSA) drop-off site was almost shut down by the City of Chicago Department of Business Affairs and Consumer Protection. 

Irv & Shelly's Fresh Picks' current newsletter features an interview with Tiny Greens Organic Farm. 

Backyard chicken enthusiast groups continue to grow in Chicago and the surrounding suburbs. 

The City of Chicago approved a 3rd Wal-Mart store, in Chicago's Chatham neighborhood. 

The Community Food Security Coalition 14th Annual Conference will take place Oct. 16-19, 2010, in New Orleans, LA. Scholarships are available and early registration deadline is Aug. 13. 

Attention farmers market managers in Illinois: Illinois Department of Agriculture and the National Agricultural Statistics Service are requesting information on growers and vendors represented at this year's farmers markets.  Download the full letter here.

Daily Digest: Illinois Farmers Buying Back Farmland, CPS Students Demand Better Food, and 2010 CSA Guide

Chicago Public Schools high school students are demanding healthier food options.  A group of twenty students will present their ideas at the Chicago Board of Education meeting on March 24.  

New research shows that fewer than one in three Chicago Public Schools students meet government recommendations for physical activity. 

The annual Green & Growing Fair at Garfield Park Conservatory will take place on Saturday, April 24.  Click on the Good Food for All Event calendar for more events or to submit information on upcoming opportunities. 

Illinois farmers are buying back farmland from banks hit hard by the recession.  Watch the video below. 

Chicago Tribune journalist Monica Eng is nominated for a James Beard award in Health, Environment, or Nutrition category for her reporting on school lunch reform ("Nachos for lunch? Yes, every day."  

The Local Beet has an updated 2010 Chicagoland CSA Guide. 

Daily Digest: Jamie Oliver's Food Revolution, 2010 CSA Guide and Composting Symposium

The Local Beet has a helpful 2010 CSA Guide (Community Supported Agriculture) available online (and also detailed by neighborhood).  Click here to find out which one is right for you. 

The next National Good Food Network webinar will focus on third-party certification and value chain partnerships.  Register here for the Feb. 18th webinar. 

Illinois Stewardship Alliance hosted a successful composting symposium at the Illinois State Fairgrounds. 

Chef Jamie Oliver is the 2010 TED (Technology, Entertainment, Design) winner for his campaign to end childhood obesity.  Watch his acceptance speech, and visit his TED page to learn more. 

Daily Digest: Chicago Local Food Guide, Illinois Obesity Prevention Hearings, and Open Source Cooperative Software

A new local food website, Local Yolkel, founded by Cristal Mendlen, lists 2010 CSA listings, local food restaurants, and grocers located in the Chicago area. 

Logan Square Kitchen will host a pastry market, featuring local food vendors on Feb. 13. 

Illinois Department of Public Health will host three obesity prevention hearings (Chicago, Springfield, and Carbondale) in February and March.  To access the IDPH flyer, click here. 

UW-Madison Center for Integrated Agricultural Systems released a new report, "Scaling Up: Meeting the Demand for Local Food" which finds that "local food systems need to be scaled up or expanded from farmer-direct sales of small quantities of product to wholesale transactions." 

The Oklahoma Food Cooperative has its open-source software accessible here online. 

Link to: 

Sustainable Food Jobs & Opportunities

Daily Digest: Pacific Garden Mission, AUA Food Map, and Midwest CSA Producer Survey

WBEZ featured a story on Pacific Garden Mission and their new greenhouses. 

Add your community garden or growing plot to the Advocates for Urban Agriculture Chicago Food Map. 

Fish farmers in Southern Illinois could receive funds from the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009.

A 2009 CSA producer survey focuses on the business and marketing tactics in nine states, including Illinois, Indiana, and Michigan.  

Food stamps have been linked to obesity, in a recent study. 

The White House garden has an even lower lead level than before, thanks to soil amendments. 

Daily Digest: Farm Beginnings Graduates Win Green Biz Award

A few farmers’ markets have opened, including 61^st St Farmers’ Market, Federal Plaza, Daley Plaza, Rowan Trees (at Normal and Englewood), and Division St.  Check out The Local Beet’s farmers’ market locator to find a farmers' market nearest you.  

The Illinois Department of Commerce and Economic Opportunity (DCEO) is seeking partnerships with Illinois education and training providers organizing Workforce Investment Area-funded summer youth programs related to locally grown foods. 

Download the Summer_Youth_Program_Announcement.

First Hand Harvest, LCC, graduates of the CRAFT Farm Beginnings Program, won the Winnebago County Green Business Award.  First Hand Harvest is a CSA of four local farms. View the video here. 

The Illinois Food Marketing Task Force is calling for an "Illinois Fresh Food Fund." based off the success of The Food Trust’s Fresh Food Financing Initiative in Philadelphia.  A final report will be released in June.

The Washington Post features farmers' markets across the country that are starting 2:1 voucher programs at farmers’ markets for WIC and SNAP recipients.

According to a recent Pew Research study, 23% more of adults ages 18-64 are planning to start a vegetable garden, due to the impact of the recession.