5-16-2005

LFI & MERJ Awarded Mini-grant for Local Food Guide

The Berea College Local Food Initiative (LFI) has been awarded a Service-Learning Mini-Grant by the Center for Excellence in Learning Through Service (CELTS). The grant will support LFI efforts to compile, publish, and publicize a guide to procuring locally-produced food, and half of the grant will be awarded to the LFI community partner, Madison County Action Team (MCAT)/MERJ Market. The grant is made possible by a three-year Learn and Serve America grant designated for collaborative projects between faculty, students and community partners.

Key aspects of the Local Food Guide project include:

• surveying existing resources/programs, including those offered by: Kentucky Department of Agriculture, Partners for Family Farms (PFF), LocalHarvest.org, and the Appalachian Sustainable Agriculture Project;
• interviewing food producers from Madison, Estill, Rockcastle, and Jackson Counties, as well as community activists and professionals involved in promotion of local agriculture in order to gain a better understanding of the challenges facing small-scale producers while also updating the information needed for the guide;
• surveying local consumers to better explore the intersection of supply and demand for local produce;
• contacting local restaurants to solicit their interest in buying locally;
• formatting and publishing the guide;
• working with the media and other community-based organizations to promote the guide; and
• exploring the origins of campus meals as well as on-campus efforts to support local agriculture.

5-14-2005

Dingman Awards Students for Head, Hands, and Heart
Read the BCNow article.

5-14-2005

LFI Surveys Campus on College-Grown and Local Foods
In April, the LFI created and administered a campus-wide survey to gauge the knowledge and interest of Berea College students, faculty, and staff in college-grown and local foods. Over 360 people completed the survey, and five students won $20 in a random drawing of student survey participants: Austin Belcher, J.D. Bellamy, Janice Dail, Anastasia Shegay, and Bethany Todd. Survey results will be posted on the LFI Web site in the near future.

4-13-2005

LFI Co-Sponsors SENS Seminar “Food Services for a Sustainable Future”
On April 13, 2005, the LFI co-sponsored a SENS Seminar on “Food Services for a Sustainable Future,” which included a presentation by Mark Zammit of Bon Appétit, a food service provider that utilizes and promotes local foods whenever possible, and a lunch of local food products.

11-17-2004

LFI Publishes Article
The LFI published an article about its mission and goals in the November 17, 2004 issue of The Pinnacle, Berea College’s student newspaper.

11-10-2004

LFI Collaborates with Warren Wilson College

Members of the LFI Steering Committee met with representatives from Warren Wilson College on November 10 to learn more about how their food service, which is also managed by Sodexho, utilizes food produced on their own farms and other local farms. The group is now planning a field trip to Warren Wilson in order to gain more first-hand knowledge about how their system works.

The LFI also plans to engage the campus community in the research process through awareness-raising activities such as surveys, discussions in food service residence halls, and additional local food dinners/meetings. If you would like more information about the Berea College Local Food Initiative, you can access the LFI’s Green Steps. For more information about how you can participate in the Local Food Initative, please contact Leslie Ferguson, SENS House Director, at document.write(mailto('leslie_ferguson','berea.edu')) leslie_ferguson@berea.edu .

11-3-2004

LFI Hosts Dinner for Second Green Steps Forum

On November 3, the LFI hosted a presentation and local foods dinner for the second Green Steps Forum sponsored by the Campus Environmental Policy Committee (CEPC). Over 50 people attended the forum, including students, faculty, staff, and local community members. Participants enjoyed a dinner of lamb stew and beef chili made with meat from the College Farm, local vegetarian bean chili, salad greens from the College Greenhouse, as well as other fresh vegetables, pear cider, and corn bread from local producers.

The LFI has begun researching the feasibility of increased local food awareness and consumption at the college by gathering information about (1) local food projects at other colleges and universities as well as other institutions in Kentucky, (2) the college’s current food sources, (3) the college’s current food production, (4) off-campus local/regional growers and processors, (5) liability and/or contractual issues for the institution, and (6) the estimated costs and benefits of a local food initiative.