ATTENTION ALL FARMERS AND FOOD PROCESSORS-OF ALL FOODS - SEEKING TO SELL OR NOW SELLING IN MICHIGAN MARKETS!!!!!

Do you grow or process food for local or regional markets?  Are you a farmer seeking ways to work more with your community?  Then you should come to the Michigan Good Food Summit on June 14-the cost is only $25.00 and you will have opportunity to share your ideas of how farmers can better link with your markets, schools, and local restaurants. You can learn how you can make your food more accessible by ALL community members. Come and meet those in the planning, distribution and regional food coordination and work together to make our "food system" stronger for Michigan's people.
To register for the event on-line visit this site where you can pay by credit card and a receipt will be generated upon registration. https://commerce.cashnet.com/cashnete/selfserve/EditItem.aspx?PC=3688-MGFSUMT&ItemCount=1 

YES!,  THIS IS THE GROWING SEASON AND YOU ARE BUSY-BUT THIS IS A TREMENDOUS OPPORTUNITY FOR YOU TO SEEK NEW LOCAL MARKETS AND LEARN HOW TO ENTER NEW MARKETS FOR YOUR FOOD!!


2012 Michigan Good Food Summit

Who Should Attend?

People who grow, process, distribute, market, prepare or eat food.

People connected or wanting to connect to the food industry, public health, economic development, planning, school food, environmental protection, the media, agriscience education, or state and local governance.

People who want to actively support good food in Michigan.

Background: 

This is a follow-up of the work started in 2010 by groups around the state. WE NEED YOUR INPUT to Continue this work and make it a lasting effort!

For info on what was discussed at the first summit please visit https://www.michiganfood.org/ for the reports.

This summit will offer …

The 2012 Michigan Good Food Summit provides an opportunity to network, hear success stories and strategize with others to advance a food system based on good food - food that is healthy, green, fair and affordable.

Agenda

The agenda for June 14, 2012 starts at the Lansing Center, downtown Lansing,  with coffee and networking time at 8:15am then welcome and opening remarks at 9:00am. The day will close with breakout groups reporting out through 4:30pm, followed by open-network time until 5:15pm. The summit will include:

  • A report on where we've come since 2010,
  • Success stories from across the state,
  • You're choice of one of seven action-oriented breakout sessions and
  • Sharing of tools and resources throughout the day.

To download the full agenda, click HERE.

Strategy Sessions

Please note: when you register you will be asked to choose one of 7 strategy sessions to participate in during the summit. Session descriptions are as follows.

All strategy sessions will involve three separate time periods over the course of the day:

  • developing or refining strategies for moving the issue area forward
  • identifying strategies for tracking progress in this area using metrics that align with the most relevant of the six goals in the Michigan Good Food Charter
  • finalizing an action plan that identifies next steps and people to carry the work forward

 1. Creating a local purchasing campaign and on-line tracking system
This session will explore the idea of a website devoted to encouraging Michigan businesses, institutions and individuals to commit to purchasing a portion of their food locally and showcasing the extent of commitments made and local food purchased.

 2. Building new and beginning farmer capacity
This session will look at how to expand access to financing, education, land access and other resources needed to support new and beginning farmers in Michigan.

 3. Developing food hubs
This session will look at building the capacity of existing and new food hubs through seed funding opportunities, coordinated technical assistance, and participation in a food hub learning and innovation network

 4. Expanding and securing long-term funding for Double Up Food Bucks
This session will look at ways to build on and expand the Double Up Food Bucks program (which matches money that Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Programusers spend at farmers markets up to $20/day), including replicating at other sites, securing long-term funding and/or extending to the retail setting.

 5. Expanding “good food” career and curriculum resources for youth This session will work to identify strategies to 1) increase access to preK-12 curriculum tools and resources that support “good food” exposure and literacy and 2) improve youth entrepreneurship and career development pathways.

 6. Replicating and expanding healthy retail initiatives
This session will look to replicate and expand successful healthy retail initiatives, both in Michigan and elsewhere, in order to increase access tohealthy food for Michigan residents, particularly in underserved communities of both urban and rural areas.

 7. Investing in niche meat, poultry and other food processing infrastructure
Informed by the work of recent agricultural and food processing meetings in Michigan, this session will identify and prioritize strategies for building the capacity of this important industry.

Registration

The registration price, including lunch and parking, is:

  • $25 in advance
  • $35 at the door (on June 14)

To register, please click HERE to complete a form for each person who will be attending. You can pay online with either a credit card or electronic check. If you are mailing a check, please make it out to Michigan State University and send to:

     Diane Drago, Summit Coordinator
     Diversified Management Services, LLC
     620 Hall Street
     Eaton Rapids, MI 48827

Bus Transportation

Charter buses will be available to transport people to and from the summit at no charge from locations across Michigan (subject to sufficient interest). If you live in or near one of these locations and would be interested in taking a bus, please get in touch with the appropriate local coordinator.

Note: You must sign-up for a bus with a local coordinator by May 25. If there is not sufficient interest, the buses will be cancelled. Bus seats will be reserved on a first come, first serve basis.

  • Detroit
    • Meet at 6:30am, Return at 6:45pm
    • Contact: Hanifa Adjuman, Detroit Black Community Food Security Network
      • Email: kasiyaa @ yahoo.com
      • Phone: 313-622-3806

  • Flint
    • Meet at 7:00am, Return at 6:15pm
    • Contact: Terry McLean, MSU Extension
      • Email: mcleant @ msu.edu
      • Phone: 810-244-8530

  • Benton Harbor, Kalamazoo, Battle Creek
    • Benton Harbor: Meet at 5:30am, Return at 7:30pm
      • Contact: Beth Clawson, MSU Extension
        • Email: clawsonb @ anr.msu.edu
    • Kalamazoo: Meet 6:45am, Return at 6:30pm
      • Contact: Chris Broadbent, People's Food Co-op
        • Email: market @ peoplesfoodco-op.org
    • Battle Creek: Meet at 7:15am, Return at 6:00pm
      • Contact: Kathy Antaya
        • Email: kantaya @ msn.com
        • Phone: 269-963-7148 - leave a message with a call back number

  • Muskegon, Grand Rapids
    • Muskegon:  Meet at 6:30am, Return at 7:00pm
    • Grand Rapids: Meet at 7:30am, Return at 6:15pm
    • Contact: Kendra Wills, MSU Extension
      • Email: willsk @ anr.msu.edu
      • Phone: 616-336-2028

  • St. Ignace, Grayling
    • St. Ignace: Meet at 3:30pm June 13, Return at 9:00pm June 14
    • Grayling: Meet at 5:30pm June 13, Return at 7:30pm June 14
    • Contact: Michelle Walk
      • Email: walkmich @ msu.edu
      • Phone: 906-635-6368

Lodging

We have reserved a block of rooms for the night of June 13 at the Radisson Hotel in downtown Lansing, directly across from the Lansing Center where the summit will be held.

  • Room rate: $99 single/double per night (discounted from $169)
  • Overnight parking: $7 (discounted from $14)

Please make reservations directly with Radisson reservations at 1-800-333-3333 or with the hotel at 517-482-0188. 

Reservations may also be made by logging on to our web address at www.radisson.com/lansingmi. Use the promotional code: FOOD12 to receive the discounted group rate.

Vicki Morrone
Outreach Specialist for Organic Vegetable and Field Crops
480 Wilson Rd Room 303
East Lansing, MI 48824
Www.MichiganOrganic.msu.edu
517-353-3542/517-282-3557 (cell)
If you would like to access a searchable archive of the all the previous Mich-Organic listserv postings copy this URL and paste in your browser address field http://list.msu.edu/archives/mich-organic.html