U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) officials today joined 15 national and regional philanthropic partners to announce a new initiative to bolster the supply chain for local food systems around ten key U.S. cities. The project, dubbed 'Food LINC', will connect demand for local food in ten urban areas with supply from farmers and ranchers, strengthening each region's local food business sector and also increasing consumer access to healthy, local food. The announcement was made at the Wallace Center's National Food Hub Conference in Atlanta."USDA, the Appalachian Regional Commission and the Delta Regional Authority recognized that our investments in local food infrastructure have the most success in communities with strong coordination between producers, food purchasers, and access to shared resources. Food LINC aims to replicate that coordination in ten cities to create market opportunities for the areas' producers, meet demand for locally produced food and create or sustain jobs along that local supply chain," said Vilsack. "More than 160,000 farmers are tapping into demand for local and regional foods, and industry estimates predict more growth in the next several years. With the help from our partners, USDA can 'supercharge' our resources to create lasting impacts for farmers, ranchers, and rural communities as a whole." Nearly $3 million in combined private and federal funding will support coordination by a host organization in each city. A full-time Food LINC coordinator will be embedded in each host organization for up to three years. The knowledge gained through their experiences will help the partnership determine next steps to link producers and entrepreneurs with families and institutional consumers to develop more robust local and regional food systems. USDA, the Appalachian Regional Commission (ARC) and the Delta Regional Authority (DRA), have committed $850,000 in public funds to the project, leveraging an additional $2 million so far from private philanthropic partners. Host organizations include Common Market Georgia; Louisville's Farm to Table, Kentucky; the Conservation Fund in North Carolina; Rocky Mountain Farmers Union in Colorado; La Montañita in New Mexico; Fair Food Philadelphia; Metro Washington Council of Governments in Washington, D.C.; Appalachian Sustainable Development in Virginia; Soul City Hospitality in Mississippi; and Communities Unlimited in Tennessee. Philanthropic partners so far include the Agua Fund, CoBank, The Duke Endowment, Gates Family Foundation, Kate B. Reynolds Charitable Trust, Kentucky Agricultural Development Board, Oak Foundation, The One Foundation, Prince Charitable Trusts, RSF Social Finance, 11th Hour Project of the Schmidt Family Foundation, Surdna Foundation, Thornburg Foundation, Town Creek Foundation and Z. Smith Reynolds Foundation. Additional support provided by the Surdna Foundation will also enable the Wallace Center to spread the benefits of this initiative by documenting the work in each region and sharing best practices with other organizations working to grow similar opportunities in their communities nationwide. Food LINC is part of USDA's Know Your Farmer, Know Your Food Initiative (KYF2) supporting the Obama Administration's work to strengthen economic bonds between rural and urban areas, creating sustainable wealth for rural communities and putting more money into the pockets of rural producers. Launched in 2009, KYF2 breaks down bureaucratic silos and takes stock of USDA programs that support the growing demand for local and regional food systems. Learn more about the $1 billion USDA has invested in 40,000 projects to develop local market opportunities at https://medium.com/usda-results as USDA celebrates Know your Farmer Month in April.
The Complete Guide to Natural Homemade Beauty Products & Treatments: 175 Recipes from Scrubs & Masks to Moisturizers & Shampoos by Amelia Ruiz features easy to make and economical, these personalized beauty-enhancing natural cosmetics and treatments are designed for complete skin, body and hair care.
There’s a wealth of information, from how to sunbathe safely with natural products to how to perfume your body and your home with essential oils, fruits, plants and other natural products. Beyond the cosmetics and treatments, Amelia Ruiz teaches you how to feel satisfied with your appearance, and how to enhance your positive qualities through exercise, diet, rest and a life in harmony with your natural biorhythms. Amelia Ruiz is a cosmetologist, an esthetician and the technical director of Fahle Ecolines, a distributor of natural and organic cosmetics. She trained in Germany in the natural esthetic methods of the world-renowned Dr. Hauschka Skin Care. Since 2000, she has taught these holistic beauty treatments to estheticians in Spain. Ameila resides in Spain and speaks fluent Spanish, but not English.
This Easter, let your imagination rule and why not decorate Garden Lites Muffins with some sweet toppings, such as cute bunnies and mini-carrots?
During March, sweets fly wildly out of the pantries of houses across the country. With holidays like Easter to celebrate, it’s just too easy to grab more calorie-laden junk-food to satisfy that sweet tooth. Instead of reaching for the snacks with chemicals you’ll never pronounce, choose something delicious that will fill you up with fresh, good-for-you ingredients! Garden Lites Muffins may have vegetables as the first ingredients, but you’d never know! With decadent flavors like Blueberry Oat, Banana Chocolate-Chip, or delicious Chocolate, you’ll almost forget what a healthy choice you’re making for your body. Garden Lites Muffins & Veggie Bites are available nationwide and can be found in the frozen section of stores nationwide, including: Walmart, Target, Publix, Foodtown, Wegmans, Whole Foods, Stop & Shop, Costco, and Fresh Market. www.GardenLites.com
The Calmful Heart-Health Book
Easy Choices for Healthy Living
The Tarantas Taste of Spain Recipe Contest is accepting entries until April 15! Your chance to Win a Trip for 2 to Spain is just a recipe + wine pairing away www.tarantaswines.com/recipes
Enjoy this Great Vanilla Zabaglione with Raspberries and Tarantas Cava Recipe from Tarantas wines too! Ingredients
Looking for a dessert snack? ELEMENT can be a quick on-the-go bite for college students or anyone, and are available in dark chocolate, milk chocolate, strawberry yogurt, and vanilla orange.
The dark chocolate flavor as it does not contain any animal products or byproducts and are never tested on animals. Made with pure Italian chocolate and yogurt and organic rice and corn, ELEMENT cakes are made under strict EU regulations and are GMO-free, gluten free, yeast-free, cholesterol free and BPA free, use no preservatives, yeast, artificial flavors, corn syrup, trans-fats or milk hormones and are made without preservatives, artificial flavors. They have no trans-fats or cholesterol. The dark chocolate is also certified vegan and Non-GMO Project verified. ELEMENT snacks are available nationally at Whole Foods, Sprouts, Albertsons, Basha’s, EarthFare, Tops, Balducci, and online at http://www.elementsnacks.com/index.html |