Jim Slama

For the past two decades, Jim Slama has been a national leader in promoting environmental sustainability and the Good Food Movement. He is the founder and President of FamilyFarmed.org, which encourages the production, marketing and distribution of locally grown and responsibly produced food. FamilyFarmed.org expands the market for local farmers and food producers by advancing the Community Supported Agriculture (CSA) movement, training farmers to adopt best practices in food safety, playing an integral role in public policy, and supporting farmers to develop new wholesale markets. Jim works with many of the leading trade buyers for local food in the country including Whole Foods Market, Chipotle Mexican Grill, Compass Group, Goodness Greeness, Chartwells-Thompson Hospitality (Chicago Public Schools), Lettuce Entertain You, and more.

Through his work at FamilyFarmed.org, Jim produced the FamilyFarmed EXPO in Chicago and Good Food Festival and Conference in Santa Monica, which are nationally significant gatherings to advance the Good Food Movement. The events include trade shows, policy summits, financing conferences, and food festivals. The purpose is to link local farmers and family-owned producers of food and farm products with the public, trade buyers and leaders in the field to foster relationships that facilitate the growth of local food systems. Speakers at these events have included many national leaders in the Good Food Movement including USDA Deputy Secretary, Kathleen Merrigan; Chipotle founder and CEO, Steve Ells; urban farmer, Will Allen; Slow Money author, Woody Tasch; rancher Bill Niman; Organic Valley CEO, George Siemon; Farm Aid Director Carolyn Mugar; and many more.

Seeing the need for a tool to assist farmers selling to wholesale markets, Jim began work on Wholesale Success: A Farmers Guide to Selling, Post Harvest Handling, and Packing Produce. The manual gives small to mid-size growers technical assistance to help them develop the skills to sell produce into wholesale markets. In addtion, FamilyFarmed.org has consulted to help plan and launch three active food hubs, one in Virginia and two in Illinois. As an extension of this work, FamilyFarmed.org created the On-Farm Food Safety Project in partnership with the FDA, USDA, food buyers, and advocates for small to mid-size growers. This project culminated in an online tool that walks farmers through a series of questions about their business, and creates a customized food safety plan.

Jim played a key role in developing and helping to pass the Illinois Local Food, Farms, and Jobs Act, which has been hailed as model legislation to build a local food system. The law created the Illinois Local, Food, Farms and Jobs Council which is charged with developing local food systems in the state.  Jim is a member of this Council.

Leading up to the formation of FamilyFarmed.org, Jim had an accomplished track record in environmental advocacy. In 1996 Jim launched Sustain on the heels of creating a successful multimedia campaign that shut down an incinerator that released 150,000 pounds of lead into the air annually. Sustain went on to become one of the country’s leading environmental communication groups and had many regional and national victories. These included the Keep Organic Organic Campaign, developed in partnership with the Organic Trade Association. The effort helped generated 275,000 comments to the USDA opposing standards that would have allowed food that was genetically engineered irradiated and grown in sewage sludge to be called organic. Other victories included stopping the state of Michigan from drilling for oil on the shores of Lake Michigan and forcing Congress to adopt a real recycling program when it was exposed that they were only pretending.

Jim and his companies have received a great deal of recognition. In 2007, FamilyFarmed.org’s work earned the Yahoo! for Good Green Award. Jim was named by Crain’s Chicago Business to its “Forty Under Forty” annual list of leading young business and civic leaders. Jim also received the Chicago Tribune Good Eating Award for his contributions to the Chicago food and beverage world. Jim was the founding publisher and editor of Conscious Choice magazine and during his 14 years tenure, it was named nine times by Utne Reader as a member of the Best of the Alternative Press. His work has been featured in Chicago Magazine, the Chicago Tribune, Crain’s Chicago Business, The New York Times, Ode Magazine, and the San Francisco Chronicle among others.

Holly Haddad

Holly Haddad is the Associate Director for FamilyFarmed.org. Holly has a shared background in non-profit administration and program management, as well as in natural foods. She has worked for the Program on Agricultural Technology Studies at the University of Wisconsin, managed new program development at a Community Action Program in Washington, and conducted community development corporation research in Washington, D.C. She has also served on the Board of Directors for a new, international media project that was nominated in its inaugural year for two awards by the Independent Press Awards. Holly has designed and incubated several new community-based programs such as Family Development, Mobile Food Van, Community Voice Mail and Transitional Housing. She has performed research for publication on national models of community owned corporations and contributed to several surveys regarding family farming in Wisconsin and Illinois. Holly also has a background in natural and specialty foods retail management, sales, and distribution, along with direct work experience on organic family farms and with family owned wineries.

Conor Butkus

Originally from Portland, OR, Conor learned early the importance of local food while interning at an organic farm in middle school. Throughout the years he has been a committed advocate, organizing the first Chicago chicken coop tour, starting a neighborhood chapter of the Chicago Food Policy and Advisory Council, and gardening wherever possible. Since moving to Chicago he has worked extensively in public health and youth engagement, working with youth to improve their health and communities. He graduated from Bard College at Simon’s Rock with an interdisciplinary B.A. in Political Science, Law, and Sociology.

James Pirovano

James Pirovano has been searching out good food all over the world.  From the Philippines, where he was an Agro-Forestry Technician with the Peace Corps, to regional cuisine in China where he lived for several years.  James worked for The Nature Conservancy for eight years working on projects to protect farmland and habitat for endangered plants and animals.  In addition to being a Master Gardner, he has been an active volunteer on local organic farms and for food businesses looking to increase their local purchasing.  James joins the team as FamilyFarmed.org’s Forager, building markets and sales for local farmers and food producers by connecting them with trade buyers and consumers.

Jenie Farinas

Jenie Farinas is FamilyFarmed.org’s Food Safety Program Assistant.  Jenie has worked a number of years for non-profit organizations including Global Exchange, where she helped promote the Fair Trade movement, and most recently Habitat for Humanity of Greater Baton Rouge.  A summer job in college harvesting garlic was her first experience working on an organic farm and also a life-changing experience. Since then, she has volunteered with community gardens, interned on a Certified Naturally Grown farm and is on her way to becoming a Master Gardener.

Lloyd Yanis

Lloyd Yanis is the Show Director of the FamilyFarmed EXPO and brings more than twenty years of exposition management experience to the annual event, including responsibility for managing over 400 similar events — ranging in attendance from 50 people to 150,000 — in consumer and trade-show arenas. Lloyd’s career highlights include eight years as manager of the Miami Boat Show, the third largest trade show in the United States. As General Manager of the boating industry’s trade association, he was significantly involved in the development of a nationwide tour of twenty-five annual boat shows with 500,000 annual attendees.

John Beske

John Beske is a designer and art director who creates the graphic identity for FamilyFarmed.org. He was the co-founder and long-time creative director of Sustain, and designed most of its successful campaigns. As creative director at Sustain, John oversaw the design of the Keep Organic Organic Campaign, which helped generate 275,000 comments opposing USDA standards, which would have allowed food that was genetically engineered, irradiated and grown in sewage sludge to be labeled as organic. John’s work with Sustain helped prevent oil drilling on the shores of Lake Michigan, encouraged the creation of tough federal clean air standards that save 15,000 lives per year and helped to force Congress to develop a real recycling campaign. He is the president of John Beske Communications, which provides marketing and design solutions for a range of small businesses and nonprofit groups.

Kathy Nyquist

Kathy Nyquist is a strategy consultant providing business development services for local food system entrepreneurs and investors. With FamilyFarmed.org, she is leading multiple feasibility studies which investigate the commercial viability of local food system infrastructure projects. Kathy has ten years of food industry experience at Kraft Foods, where she most recently led integrated marketing planning for a $5 billion product portfolio. She previously managed accounts at the nation’s top two advertising agencies where she developed national campaigns for Coca-Cola, Keebler, Frito-Lay and Miller Brewing. Today, Kathy is Principal at New Venture Advisors LLC, and co-chair of the Financing Farm to Fork conference. Kathy recently graduated from the University of Chicago Booth School of Business, the world’s top-ranked business school, where she earned an MBA with honors in Strategic Management, Finance and Entrepreneurship. She is the recipient of the 2009 Dean’s Award for Strategy for achieving the highest academic record in Strategic Management.

Board

Jim Slama, President, FamilyFarmed.org
Charlotte Flinn, President, Flinn Consultants
Dr. Wes Jarrell, Professor, University of Illinois Dept. of Natural Resources and Environmental Sciences
Mari Gallagher, Principal, Mari Gallagher Research & Consulting Group and Founding President, National Center for Public Research
Don Newcomb, Founder, ChicaGourmets!
Jennifer Worstell, Attorney/Shareholder, Polsinelli Shughart PC