Image
Food justice is racial justice. As the nation rises up to protest atrocities against Black people, here are some organizations working to advance Black food sovereignty.
Resources
Soul Fire Farm is a BIPOC*-centered community farm committed to ending racism and injustice in the food system.
National Black Food and Justice Alliance (NBFJA) is a coalition of Black-led organizations working towards cultivating and advancing Black leadership, building Black self-determination, Black institution building and organizing for food sovereignty, land and justice.
Stories
Perhaps long ago, in a simpler world, farmers needed only tools, the support of helping hands, a market for their products, and advice from their neighbors to successfully grow vegetables and raise animals. But farmers today need a lot more than that. Complex equipment, well-designed facilities, marketing skills, and a business plan are just some of what’s required for them to be truly “sustainable”: to thrive today in order to exist tomorrow.
The Rutland Area Farm and Food Link's Farm to Workplace farm share delivery program expanded the market for local farm foods beyond the typical localvore consumer. Most participants had never been part of a CSA before and a high percentage rarely go to farmers’ markets.
Two small-scale poultry slaughterhouses—the first of their kind in Vermont—are allowing pastured Vermont chicken to be sold in stores, for the first time in years.
White walls and stainless steel sinks and industrial-sized freezers and workers in smocks may not form our image of “local food.” But if Vermont agriculture and food production are to remain viable, places like the Mad River Food Hub might become increasingly necessary.