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The generosity of our community makes positive things happen for people across the local food system. We have needed to build a safety net where one doesn’t organically exist.
According to the National Sustainable Agriculture Coalition, “The limitations of the farm safety net are well documented, including the mismatch that small-scale farms face when attempting to access services and support from programs designed primarily to serve large-scale and commodity crop growers.” When we surveyed farmers 6 months after Hurricane Helene, this message was driven home. Farmers have been unable to access federal crop insurance and other relief programs due to onerous paperwork and payouts that don’t cover costs and take months or years to be paid out. This has left many farmers with the task of moving forward with much uncertainty.
But one takeaway from speaking with farmers is that local support systems and safety nets exist, and that WE as a community showed up. A farmer shared: “What was helpful was ASAP reached out to farmers, not the other way around.”
Thanks to your support, ASAP has helped nurture relationships between farms and early care and education centers and help centers purchase more local food. Belinda Carringer of Carringer Farms has been delivering food to the Children’s Castle Daycare. She told us: “They have been wonderful to work with and seemed so pleased with what we provided. It helped us tremendously also to be able to have an outlet for our farm vegetables. Yesterday we took the last of the veggies. I wanted to do something special for them so I picked several of my sunflowers and zinnias from my flower garden and made them some flower arrangements.”
Recently, when families weren’t able to access SNAP benefits, early care and education centers were able to purchase even more produce from their farm partners, and offer it to families to take home with them. An educator shared, “I cannot believe the response of our parents! I was hopeful they would participate but the participation yesterday afternoon alone far surpassed my expectation! I am so thankful you were able to do this for our parents and it could not have come at a more appropriate time.”
These relationships strengthen support systems. Mutual and reciprocal support creates a vibrant local food system. Together, we can ensure that small family farms and all our communities have a safety net. No matter what challenges lay ahead, we are committed to a sustainable and resilient local food economy.
Thank you for caring about farmers in our region. Thank you for helping kids to grow up learning about food from farmers, their families, and their teachers. Thank you for aiding so many in accessing free fruits and vegetables at farmers markets. Happy Giving Tuesday!
Together in service,
Your friends at ASAP
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