Farmer Champion Program Ventures into Larger Schooling in 2024

This growth is made potential by way of our work as a part of the Georgia ACRE Collective: Advancing Agriculture, Neighborhood, Resilience & Fairness by way of Values-Primarily based Procurement, launched in 2022 with beneficiant help from the Rockefeller Foundation. The work is powered by collaboration with fellow members of the ACRE Collective, The Common Market Southeast, Health Care Without Harm, The Conservation Fund’s Working Farms Fund, the Turner Environmental Law Clinic at Emory University, and the Alliance for a Healthier Generation.

Kayla Williams (they/them), Farmer Champion Senior Coordinator, highlights the importance of this initiative: “Nationally, faculty and college meals service applications make up an $18 billion business. Channeling a portion of this business into our native, sustainable meals system in Georgia can have a huge impact on our native financial system, setting, farmer fairness, and scholar well being. We’re excited to work with our companions to make this imaginative and prescient a actuality.”

Within the first growth yr, the ACRE Collective will begin buy verification and celebrations with a pilot group of schools and universities. Representatives from Agnes Scott College, Emory College, and Georgia Tech have already supported in shaping this system’s construction. We’re on the point of welcome the primary cohort of Farmer Champion universities in June 2024, with awardees featured within the present Farmer Champion on-line listing and celebrated in August 2024.

Concerning the Farmer Champion Program
Launched in 2019 with help from the USDA’s Agricultural Advertising Companies’ Native Meals Promotion Program, Georgia Organics’ Farmer Champion program verifies and celebrates members of the meals service neighborhood devoted to supporting native and natural agriculture in Georgia. Initially targeted on farm-to-table eating places, caterers, pop-up companies, and Early Care and Schooling facilities (ECEs), this system has grown to bridge the hole between meals service employees and native agricultural producers. “Native” for the Farmer Champion program consists of wherever inside the state of Georgia or inside 100 miles of the Georgia border in any route.

In case your faculty or college is desirous about taking part within the Farmer Champion Awards, attain out to Kayla Williams at [email protected].

Collectively, let’s sow the seeds of a brighter, extra sustainable future for the well being of our communities and the land.