Full Project Name:Eastern Wisconsin Food Banks Serving as Community-wide Food Hubs to Increase Healthy OfferingsPrimary Community Organization:Feeding America Eastern WisconsinPrimary Academic Partner:David Nelson, PhD, Family and Community MedicineAward Amount:$251,134Project Duration:30 monthsProject Description Narrative:
Changing a fragmented local food and conventional food system to increase local fruit and vegetable access among economically and/or socially marginalized individuals requires innovative thinking and processes. To address a community prioritized need to increase local healthy food access for marginalized individuals, Feeding America Eastern Wisconsin and partners have developed Farm Link, a community food hub operated and managed by Feeding America Eastern Wisconsin (FAEW). Farm Link will serve as a mechanism to connect local producers to institutional buyers and hunger-relief programs, integrating Farm Link into an existing food bank to align resources and provide diverse healthy food options to underserved populations.Community partners:Winnebago County Health Department, Live54218, Oshkosh Area Community Pantry, ThedaCare, Bellin Health, Green Bay Area Public Schools, Menasha Joint School District, SLO Farmers Co-op, Ledgeview Farms, Olden ProduceOutcomes & Lessons Learned:
• 154 agencies received product from Farm Link producers across 28 counties; 111 institutional buyers; 23 producers •123,012 pounds (approximately 656,000 servings) of fresh produce has gone to hunger relief agencies from beginning of project • Feeding America Eastern Wisconsin (FAEW) has formally adopted Farm Link into long-term strategic plan • FAEW is implementing a system to track differentiated product (intentional v. indiscriminate) to better understand and make strategic decisions in sourcing products focused on categories referred to as �Foods to Encourage,� including fresh produce, lean protein and dairy, etc. • FarmLink added new farmers to the system • Additional regional markets were established throughout eastern WI • New institutional buyers utilized the FarmLink system • FAEW adopted change in the strategic sourcing of produce through FarmLink sources • FAEW created a new permanent position to oversee FarmLink activities • Food pantries gained significant access to produce from FarmLink farmers • FarmLink developed partnerships to continue system change over the next several years as FarmLink 2.0 takes shapeProject Updates:
• Developed Farm Link program and processes, establishing partnerships among food producers • Provided 59 hunger relief agencies across 18 counties with 27,124 pounds of fresh produce, accounting for approximately 124,000 servings going to underserved communities • Increased local food sales by 360% for fiscal year 2017 while increasing the number of producers selling on the Farm Link Marketplace from 6 to 16 and the number of registered buyers from 24 to 82 • Began implementation of formal adoption of Farm Link into Feeding America Eastern Wisconsin, including writing Farm Link coordination and management of local food logistics into the organization's written, long-term strategy and organizational structure • Project partners conducted presentations at state and national food-related conferences