By Melissa Gardea Mick | Community Philanthropy Senior Developer- Grants
Oregon Food Bank is building on a collection of innovative programs to realize how we reimagine and transform our food systems — with equity at their core, from field to market.
And we are uniquely positioned to connect small- to mid-scale producers to markets that serve food insecure communities. To address historical injustices, over the past two years, we’ve launched Community Grower Support pilot programs; the Community Grower Support Fund, Local Food Purchasing Agreement (LFPA) and Native & Tribal Fisheries Fund support producers from our priority equity communities– particularly Black, Indigenous, and People of Color (BIPOC) as well as immigrant and refugees– by purchasing local food to distribute to communities impacted by hunger.
Through this work, Oregon Food Bank pays producers up-front for food that is distributed to community members impacted by hunger — with priority given to socially disadvantaged farmers, fishers and ranchers. Types of food that qualify for purchase include fresh produce, nuts and legumes; eggs and dairy; whole grains; meat, poultry, seafood and freshwater fish. Processed products are to be made with at least 51% of locally-grown or -raised produce. Grantees may identify their own distribution outlets, though Oregon Food Bank assists with connections to new or existing distribution outlets as needed.
Over the first year, OFB was successful in its outreach and the program engaged 162 local and socially disadvantaged producers and vendors. Thanks to private support and government funding we were able to contract with community growers for for fresh, nutrient-dense, culturally-relevant harvests who then distributed foods directly to the communities they represent through Food Banks, Food Pantries, Farms via Community Supported Agriculture Models, Community Organizations, Grassroots Community Groups, and Tribal Communities.
We are meeting producers where they are at. We have seen the transformational impact of these funds through allowing growers to hire employees, invest in critical infrastructure, expand access to culturally specific food and fresh foods to communities not served through food pantries, and provide mental health support and stability to producers.
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By Melissa Gardea Mick | Community Philanthropy Developer- Grants
By Melissa Gardea Mick | Community Philanthropy Developer- Grants
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