High Desert Food & Farm Alliance offers new programs

It’s that time of year when walking through the farmers’ market is a sensory overload with sights, sounds and smells of fresh juice, vegetables, breads, jams and meat. Biting into a fresh tomato or drinking lavender lemonade has never tasted better.

Though there is an abundance of fresh food in our region, there are still many people who are unable to access it because of lack of knowledge of where to purchase or how to cook, transportation or scheduling issues with getting to the markets, or limited discretionary funds to purchase Central Oregon products.

To improve the amount of fresh food flowing through the food bank and food pantry system, two new programs will be piloted this year by the High Desert Food & Farm Alliance (HDFFA) in partnership with NeighborImpact: Food Recovery at NW Crossing Farmers Markets and Pop?Up Cooking classes at regional food pantries.

Every Saturday at the NW Crossing Farmers Market, HDFFA will have a table where gardeners and farmers can drop off excess food they’ve grown and consumers can purchase and donate an extra bag of vegetables or goods from a local vendor.

All the donations will be stored at Agricultural Connection’s cold storage facility until NeighborImpact picks up and delivers the food directly to their pantries Monday morning.

Pop?up cooking classes will be provided to food pantries when they receive an influx of fresh vegetables that are not commonly prepared by their customers.

“We believe that if recipients know how to best prepare their food, the more likely they will use and consume it. That’s greater nutrition all?around!, states Carly Sanders, Food Program Manager at NeigborImpact. “We are excited for this partnership and what it may bring to all of the participants.”

Since its inception, the non?profit High Desert Food & Farm Alliance works to improve access for farmers to markets and consumers to products. This work initiated with the annual Central Oregon Food & Farm Directory that fosters relationships between farmers, ranchers, farmers’ markets, local restaurants, institutions, grocers and consumers.

This May, over 30,000 directories were regionally distributed in the Bend Bulletin highlighting where consumers can purchase regional food, and how to access food through Federal and State sponsored programs such as the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) and Women, Infants and Children (WIC).

Working in coordination with NeighborImpact and OSU Extension Service’s Master Gardener and Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program Education (SNAP?Ed) programs, HDFFA provides cooking and gardening courses to low?income residents and associated organizations throughout the region including: Shepard’s House in Bend, the Oregon Child Development Coalition in Madras, The Redemption House in Prineville and within the community of Warm Springs.

Along with complimenting other food system work, these courses fill a gap in the system where partner organizations are limited in their budgets and accessibility. The course structure is provided by Oregon Food Bank, with support from the Clabough Foundation.

Professional chefs and nutritionists volunteer their time and expertise to lead hands?on classes to teach adults, teens and kids how to purchase and prepare nutritious foods in healthful, safe and tasty ways. This knowledge can mean the difference between feeding families for just one night, and making sure they have the knowledge, skills and resources to prepare healthy meals for a lifetime.

The gardening classes provide tools and instruction to novice, adult gardeners to successfully grow a portion of their own food on a limited budget.

“All of this program work is important but so is strengthening the regional food system in general”, states Jane Sabin?Davis, HDFFA Board Chair.

With support from multiple funds including the Taylor and Alice Alexander Fund, Van Evera and Janet M. Baily Fund, Shelton H. and Mary I Duff Fund and J.G. Edwards Fund of the Oregon Community Foundation, HDFFA and the Central Oregon Intergovernmental Council (COIC) will collaboratively build a regional food network with heath care organizations, city and county officials, private businesses and others to improve the food system and connect with a newly forming state?wide network of organizations.

“We are excited to work together and build upon the tremendous amount of time and energy people have invested in the Central Oregon food system”, states Katrina Van Dis, Program Administrator at COIC. “Building a food system is like piecing together a puzzle. It includes health care organizations, non?profits, individuals, farmers, transit providers, school children, basically everyone,” says Van Dis.

To learn more about these and other programs, or to get involved, contact either of the organizations listed below.
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HDFFA is a citizen?based advisory council in Central Oregon that brings citizens and professionals together from the region to address issues regarding healthy food access, sustainable farm land?use and fostering relationships with farmers and consumers.

Central Oregon Intergovernmental Council is a Council of Government representing Central Oregon. The Community & Economic Development Department works to improve the local food system economy, community resiliency and the preservation of the region’s quality of life as a desirable place to live and work.
Learn more @ www.hdffa.org and www.coic.org