Good Food for All

Daily Digest: City Provisions Deli opens, African American farmers in the Chicago Region, and Community Food Project Grants

City Provisions recently opened a local and sustainable food deli on Chicago's North Side.  

Chicago Reader features an in-depth article profiling African American farmers in Hopkins Park and how they are trying to connect to markets on the South Side. 

USDA announced its Request for Applications (RFA) for the Community Food Projects (CFP) Competitive Grants Program.  Deadline is Nov. 17.  Free grant assistance resources are available on the CFSC website. 

Know Your Farmer, Know Your Food, an initiative of USDA to support local and regional food systems, posted updated slaughter maps in the U.S., to assist small ranchers and farmers. 

Heartland Local Food Network released its farmers market guide to accepting Illinois Link cards, based on its program at the Downtown Bloomington farmers market.  Download the guide here.  

Loyola University will offer a Sustainable Food Operations course in Jan. 2011, taught by Greg Christian of Greg Christian Catering and the Organic School Project. 

Daily Digest: GO TO 2040 Sustainable Local Food Report, McHenry County Farm Day, and Community Gardens in Englewood

The Chicago Metropolitan Agency for Planning (CMAP) is an advisory regional planning agency for Chicago and the surrounding 7-county region.  One of the top 12 recommendations in the upcoming plan, GO TO 2040, is "promote sustainable local food." 

Download the Local Food Draft Report for GO TO 2040 here.   The public comment period is open until Aug. 6, 2010.  To submit input on the local food section of the plan, comments can be left on the CMAP website or at one of the open houses. 

McHenry County designated Tuesday, July 20th as "McHenry County Farm Day" to encourage local food production and farmland protection.  For a full list of McHenry County farmers markets, click here. 

Greater Englewood Garden Association supports a number of community food gardens.  Read about the new Heritage Station Community Garden.  Watch local news coverage below. 

Daily Digest: Obesity in Illinois, Dill Pickle Food Co-op, and Investing in Organic Farmland

Chicago Tonight has more news coverage on the recent study on obesity in Illinois and the construction of Wal-Marts in Chicago in the next five years.  

The Cook County Jail has a greenhouse which is providing high-quality local food to Chicago's restaurants.

AREA Chicago features an article on the Dill Pickle Food Co-op and how its members have managed the cooperative business model.  

Investing in organic and sustainable farmland is sparking more interest among Chicago consumers and investors. 

Daily Digest: Englewood Urban Agriculture Community Meeting and "Guaranteed Green" Restaurants

The Greater Englewood Urban Agriculture Taskforce (GEUA) is developing plans for agriculture and food projects within the community with the support of Teamwork Englewood, Growing Home and Kennedy-King College. The goal is to transform Englewood into a “food destination” within the City of Chicago. The public is encouraged to attend to learn more about the process and give input. Refreshments will be served. 

GEUA will meet this Monday, June 28 from 5:30-7:30 p.m. at The Washburne Culinary Institute (located at 63rd & Halsted St).  For more information visit the Teamwork Englewood website or call 773-602-4507. 

The Green Chicago Restaurant Co-op will announce Chicago's inaugural class of "Guaranteed Green" restaurants tomorrow, June 22 at Sopraffina Marketcaffe at 222 W. Adams St. "Guaranteed Green" lets diners identify and support local restaurants that have taken significant, verifiable steps toward protecting the environment.  Rick Bayless, Paul Kahan, Helen Cameron, and other leading chefs, will be the first inaugural class of 20 environmentally sustainable restaurants. 

Daily Digest: Healthy Food Hub, Farm Work Days, and Shared-Use Kitchens

Black Oaks Center for Sustainable Renewable Living will sponsor a Market Day as part of its Healthy Food Hub.  To learn more or to become a member, click here. 

A panel on shared-use kitchens took place at last week's Chicago Food Policy Summit.  Read an overview here. 

For an opportunity similar to The Crop Mob in North Carolina, volunteer with Cob Connection on Saturday, March 27.  Kismet Organics will host a work day. 

Shared Harvest offers an internet portal to sell, buy and trade locally grown food.  The model is being used in several states. 

Urban Farm Hub features an overview of Prairie Crossing Conservation Community and the Liberty Prairie Conservancy.  

Restaurant owners in Chicago are listening to the markets and adjusting their business strategies accordingly. 

Daily Digest: Sustainable Agriculture in Illinois and Connecting to Midwest Farms

Websites connecting farmers to land, farmers to consumers, and growers to growers are increasing in presence and popularity.  Grist features an article on the Midwest Farm Connection, a project of The Land Connection in Illinois.   

A schedule for the 2010 Sustainable Agriculture Farm Tours is now available, sponsored by Illinois Extension. 

If you didn't make it to the FamilyFarmed Expo or the Chicago Food Policy Summit last week, you can view photos of the event at OrganicNation.tv. 

The U.S. Department of Justice commenced hearings on an antitrust lawsuit in agriculture.  In related news, seed prices for corn and soybeans have skyrocketed over the past year. 

Chicago Tribune investigates the "food label jungle."

Advocates for Urban Agriculture posted a revised plan for sustainable agriculture in Chicago. 

Daily Digest: Let's Move, Sustainable Farms and Health Inspections at Local Food Businesses

Chicago Public Radio provides more information about last week's health inspections at Kitchen Chicago.  Monica Eng, food industry writer for the Chicago Tribune, speaks to WBEZ about the impact on local food businesses. 

Listen to another WBEZ radio feature with Terra Brockman, founder of The Land Connection, who talks about the evolution of farming in Illinois and the need for sustainable agricultural practices.  

At the Society for Maternal-Fetal Medicine's Annual Meeting in Chicago last week, researchers reported findings that link the use of the agricultural chemical atrazine to birth defects. 

On Monday, First Lady Michelle Obama helped launch Let's Move, a new campaign to combat childhood obesity.  The initiative will focus on improving access to information on healthy choices for parents, improving the quality of school food, improving access to affordable and healthy foods, and increasing physical activity for children.  Watch the video announcement here. 

Daily Digest: Slow Money, Cooking Up Change, and Prairie Crossing

Through the Cooking Up Change program, culinary arts students in Chicago compete to showcase their skills.  

Slow Money founder Woody Tasch is interviewed in WSJ about long-term investments in sustainable agriculture.  

Growing Power will be taking its sustainable aquaculture model to South Africa and Zimbabwe. 

Lake County officials are exploring ways to encourage locally grown food.  Learn more about Prairie Crossing here. 

Daily Digest: Sustainable Farms in Illinois, Orchards in Chicago, and School Lunches

An article on North Central Illinois farms features interviews with local food advocates to understand what it means to be 'sustainable.'  

The number of Illinois' farmers markets is increasing, from 280 this year to potentially 300 in 2010.

The Chicago Rarities Orchard Project (CROP) is looking for potential sites in Chicago's East Garfield Park neighborhood.   

For a school lunch legislative update, click here.  The New York Times and The Washington Post both feature articles this week on providing students with healthy lunch choices. 

University of Illinois Extension-Winnebago County is hosting an Openfields Fall 2009 Farm Tour, scheduled for Saturday, Oct. 17.  To become a farm destination and view details, click here. 

Daily Digest: Retail leakage on South Side, Sustainable Ag Courses, and Inside the White House Garden

Residents on Chicago's South Side spend billions on groceries and household items outside of their own neighborhoods. 

Sustainable Agriculture Research and Education (SARE) is offering free online courses on sustainable ag, strategic planning and marketing. 

The USDA clarified that school food service funds may be appropriated for school gardens, to purchase seeds and equipment. 

Independent dairy farmers are struggling given the 40-50% decrease in prices and the monopoly of the market by Dean Foods and Dairy Farmers of America (DFA). 

Watch this in-depth video on the White House Garden and the soil amendments Chef Sam Kass is using.  Read more here.