FamilyFarmed.org

The Chicago Public Schools Want ‘em!

Family Farmed.org is partnering with  Chartwells-Thompson Hospitality, the major food service provider for the Chicago Public Schools (CPS), to ask Midwestern farmers to contract for $2,300,000 of fresh and frozen fruits and vegetables.  “The commitment of Chartwells and CPS to purchase fresh and frozen local food is a model for the nation,” said Jim Slama, president of FamilyFarmed.org.  In order to reduce pesticide residues, the RFI includes a preference for farms that use Integrated Pest Management Techniques and for produce grown without organophosphate pesticides. 
More, including the Request for Information, here.

FamilyFarmed.org is pleased to release the new report: Local Food System Assessment for Northern Virginia. The report was developed in conjunction with the Wallace Center at Winrock International and funded by the Triskeles Foundation. The study assesses the feasibility of building a successful fruit and vegetable aggregation and distribution system in the Northern Virginia agricultural crescent around Washington D.C. that contributes local and regional products into the existing wholesale commercial food system. The intended outcome is to encourage the development of a local food system in Northern Virginia by offering a roadmap and insight to those embarking on the business development process.
Please click here to download a copy of the report.

Ready to Grow: A Plan for Increasing Illinois Fruit and Vegetable Production

The demand for locally grown fruits and vegetables in Illinois far outstrips supply and a new Action Plan and Feasibility Study released by FamilyFarmed.org gives strong recommendations on remedies. “Buying local is the hottest trend in the food industry right now and Illinois is taking strides to capitalize on this movement,” says Jim Slama, president of FamilyFarmed.org. “This report describes the opportunity in this niche and spells out concrete steps that need to happen in order to take local fruit and vegetable production and sales to the next level.” The fourteen buyers interviewed for this report repeatedly stated that their demand for Illinois-grown fruits and vegetables far surpasses available supply and if they could, they would purchase over $23 million in Illinois-grown produce on an annual basis.
More, including the report here.

100,000+ TELL FDA TO PRESERVE LIFE-SAVING MEDICINES BY REDUCING ANTIBIOTIC USE IN FOOD ANIMAL PRODUCTION

WASHINGTON – Today a broad coalition of organizations hand-delivered the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) more than 180,000 letters responding to the agency’s request for comments on rules governing the use of antibiotics on industrial farms. By the tens of thousands, American citizens have sent the FDA a clear message: antibiotics are a vital foundation of public health in the United States; overuse and misuse has created a threatening crisis of antibiotic resistance; and it is time for the federal government to ensure strict veterinary oversight and force the food animal industry to curtail the routine use of antibiotics.

The letters were collected by a coalition of organizations committed to saving antibiotics as pillars of public health in the United States. The groups include: Center for Food Safety; Center for Science in the Public Interest; CREDO Action; FamilyFarmed.org; Farm Aid; Food & Water Watch; Food Democracy Now!; The Humane Society of the United States; Organic Consumers Association; and Union of Concerned Scientists.

Thank you to everyone who signed on to the Antibiotics Action campaign. While the FDA comment period ended last week, you can stay tuned to antibioticsaction.com for more information on this issue.  Click here for up to date news and to read the complete press release excerpted above.