Join us on the second Wednesday of each month from 3-4pm for the WI Local Food System Networking Calls.

Goals:

• Bring together food system partners from across Wisconsin to share resources and align opportunities.

• Participate in discussion of best practices, lessons learned, and opportunities for future partnerships.

• Share how you’ve successfully built connections within your community and navigated the challenges of food access.

Please share your experiences and expertise at one of these calls! Your insights would be invaluable to those interested in your region.

Join us on the second Wednesday of each month from 3-4pm for the WI Local Food System Networking Calls.

Goals:

• Bring together food system partners from across Wisconsin to share resources and align opportunities.

• Participate in discussion of best practices, lessons learned, and opportunities for future partnerships.

• Share how you’ve successfully built connections within your community and navigated the challenges of food access.

Please share your experiences and expertise at one of these calls! Your insights would be invaluable to those interested in your region.

The Marbleseed (formerly MOSES) Organic Farming Conference (held at the La Crosse Center) is widely known as the largest organic farming conference in the United States. Every year regenerative and organic farmers from a wide range of farm sizes, experiences, and backgrounds gather to learn the latest in organic farming methods, build community, and shape the future of the organic farming movement.

The Marbleseed Conference offers knowledge for all experiences from organic and sustainable farmers, homesteaders, food policy advocates and more. Join us for a lineup of inspirational and educational content and workshops tailored to organic and regenerative farming. Choose from dozens of transformative, skill-building workshops and roundtables covering business management, soil health, and production are crafted to advance resilient organic farms and regenerative food systems. Whether you’re certified organic, using organic practices on your regenerative farm, or considering the switch to organic, you’ll find the people, partners, and skill-building opportunities to help your farm business thrive.

• Marbleseed's 36th Organic Farming Conference

• Theme: Local Food Revolution

• February 20-22, 2025

• La Crosse Center, 300 Harborview Plaza, La Crosse, Wis. 54601

Wisconsin Local Food Purchasing Assistance Program (WI LFPA) Gathering
1:00 – 5:45 PM - Room I

This session is primarily for current and past WI LFPA producers but open to anyone interested in the Wisconsin Local Food Purchasing Assistance Program (WI LFPA). This session will cover WI LFPA outcomes and celebrate accomplishments from the program over 2023 and 2024. There will be two panel sessions, with time for group discussion, highlighting specifics of the relationship building work of the WI LFPA and how culturally relevant products were grown by farmers and delivered to communities. Learn from WI LFPA producers, program staff, food security partners and community partners about the successes and next steps for farm to food access work and opportunities for producers to reach expanded markets in Wisconsin.

AGENDA

• 1:00 – 2:00pm: Meet other LFPA producers and program partners and hear an overview of what we all accomplished together in 2023 and 2024. Time for questions and answers. 

• 2:00 – 2:30pm: Let’s Celebrate our Accomplishments together! What was something that worked well for you in LFPA?

• 2:30 – 3:45pm: Panel 1: Building Relationships

• 3:45-4:00pm: Stretch break!

• 4:00 – 5:15pm: Panel 2: Culturally Relevant Food

• 5:15 – 5:45pm: Wrap-up and next steps

• 6:00pm: Dinner together and time to socialize with the Marbleseed conference goers

PANEL DETAILS

Panel 1: Building Relationships: What worked for people in different parts of the state? What are some key ingredients for successful relationships that can build into the future?

Moderator: Sarah Lloyd, Supply Chain Development Specialist

Panelists:

• Juneau County Mobile Pantries: Dustin Ladd & Orange Cat Community Farm: Laura Mortimore

• Stepping Stones: Mike Racelette & Mary Dirty Face Farm LLC: Rachel Henderson

• Hunger Taskforce: Kyle Buehner & Full Circle Healing Farm: Martice Scales

• Wisconsin Food Hub Cooperative: Tara Turner & Skenandore Farm: Isaiah Skenandore

Panel 2: Culturally Relevant Food: What were some key ingredients for you to successfully get culturally relevant food from farmers to food access partners through the WI LFPA work?

Moderator: Yolibeth Rangel Fitzgerald, REAP Food Group & LFPA Community Partner

Panelists:

• Feeding America Southeastern Wisconsin: Kara Black and Stephanie Dodge

• Wello: Beth Heller & Slo Food Coop/Full Circle Community Farm: Heather Toman

• REAP Food Group: Paulina Baker & Tortillas Los Angeles: Angel Flores

• Central Rivers Farmshed: Ann Vang, Wisconsin Food Hub Cooperative: Tara Turner, and Greengold Gardens: Ying Lo

Join us on the second Wednesday of each month from 3-4pm for the WI Local Food System Networking Calls.

Kyle Buehner, the Food Procurement Manager, from Hunger Task Force will be talking about their Senior Stock Box Program.  They will discuss how WI LFPA proteins were supplemented into the boxes as part of their WI LFPA Community Partner Grant project. Please join to discuss their model and how it has impacted food systems in their network.

Goals of the WI Local Food System Networking Calls:

• Bring together food system partners from across Wisconsin to share resources and align opportunities.

• Participate in discussion of best practices, lessons learned, and opportunities for future partnerships.

• Share how you’ve successfully built connections within your community and navigated the challenges of food access.

Please share your experiences and expertise at one of these calls! Your insights would be invaluable to those interested in your region.

EVENT DETAILS:

Making big decisions about your farm can be exciting and impactful, especially when your farm values feeding those in need in your community. The ability to make difficult decisions can determine the long term business success of your farm!

Join the Wisconsin Local Food Purchase Assistance (WI LFPA) Program at Philadelphia Community Farm for a workshop on holistic decision making for your farm. During this workshop, learn how to balance your farm’s values related to farming for food access programs with important business considerations through a process called Adaptive Learning. Attendees will gain the skills needed to identify and address weak links, adverse factors, and log jams before they become a problem. Farmers should attend this workshop to better understand themselves, their business, and the hunger relief communities that they work with. The practice of Adaptive Learning leads to holistic decision making that centers the farm organism and allows farmers to maintain their values related to hunger relief.

• Parking will be available at noted sites

• Lunch will be provided and attendees are welcome to bring a cultural food to share

• Come dressed for an outdoor experience

• Meet under the white tent

• In case of inclement weather, information will be sent out to registered attendees prior to the event. We may move this event to an indoor venue.

• WI LFPA farmers are eligible for a travel stipend to attend this event.

• Translation available by request for Spanish and Hmong/HMoob. 

Facilitators:

• Aiyana Sol Machado, Philadelphia Community Farm, Education Co-Lead, Co-Farmer

• Chrystal A Johnson, Philadelphia Community Farm, Farm Co-lead & Educator

EVENT RECAP:

Seven participants, including three farmers, gathered on December 6th at the St. Croix Public Library for the “Farm Business Decisions: Food Access, Wholesale and Beyond” WI LFPA event. This event explored the Adaptive Learning Process. This event was led by Chrystal Johnson and Aiyana Sol Machado of Philadelphia Community Farm in Osceola, WI. The exercise included listing several motivating factors that influence farm business decisions.  

Join us on the first Wednesday of each month from 3-4pm from March to December 2024

WI Local Food System Network calls to bring together food system partners from across Wisconsin to share resources and align opportunities.

Register here.

Now’s the time to set the stage for the future of Farm to Food Access work in Wisconsin. To do so, the WI LFPA team is hosting a series of 1.5 hour virtual discussions to review what we’ve done and help each region begin laying plans for the future.

To date, the WI LFPA has served 65 counties and delivered $1.84 million worth of food, networking 173 farmers and 83 food access programs! Additionally, nine community-based programs have been funded by WI LFPA and are going strong. 

The WI LFPA program is currently funded through June 2025. Future funding for this program has not been announced. Food access partners are looking at funding source options for 2025/2026, but food security funding is uncertain. It is important to understand and share what we are accomplishingand organize for the future of farm to food access in Wisconsin.

JOIN US AND MAKE SURE THIS WORK CONTINUES LONG INTO THE FUTURE!

Now’s the time to set the stage for the future of Farm to Food Access work in Wisconsin. To do so, the WI LFPA team is hosting a series of 1.5 hour virtual discussions to review what we’ve done and help each region begin laying plans for the future.

To date, the WI LFPA has served 65 counties and delivered $1.84 million worth of food, networking 173 farmers and 83 food access programs! Additionally, nine community-based programs have been funded by WI LFPA and are going strong. 

The WI LFPA program is currently funded through June 2025. Future funding for this program has not been announced. Food access partners are looking at funding source options for 2025/2026, but food security funding is uncertain. It is important to understand and share what we are accomplishingand organize for the future of farm to food access in Wisconsin.

JOIN US AND MAKE SURE THIS WORK CONTINUES LONG INTO THE FUTURE!

Now’s the time to set the stage for the future of Farm to Food Access work in Wisconsin. To do so, the WI LFPA team is hosting a series of 1.5 hour virtual discussions to review what we’ve done and help each region begin laying plans for the future.

To date, the WI LFPA has served 65 counties and delivered $1.84 million worth of food, networking 173 farmers and 83 food access programs! Additionally, nine community-based programs have been funded by WI LFPA and are going strong. 

The WI LFPA program is currently funded through June 2025. Future funding for this program has not been announced. Food access partners are looking at funding source options for 2025/2026, but food security funding is uncertain. It is important to understand and share what we are accomplishingand organize for the future of farm to food access in Wisconsin.

JOIN US AND MAKE SURE THIS WORK CONTINUES LONG INTO THE FUTURE!

Join us on the first Wednesday of each month from 3-4pm from March to December 2024

WI Local Food System Network calls to bring together food system partners from across Wisconsin to share resources and align opportunities.

Register here.

Now’s the time to set the stage for the future of Farm to Food Access work in Wisconsin. To do so, the WI LFPA team is hosting a series of 1.5 hour virtual discussions to review what we’ve done and help each region begin laying plans for the future.

To date, the WI LFPA has served 65 counties and delivered $1.84 million worth of food, networking 173 farmers and 83 food access programs! Additionally, nine community-based programs have been funded by WI LFPA and are going strong. 

The WI LFPA program is currently funded through June 2025. Future funding for this program has not been announced. Food access partners are looking at funding source options for 2025/2026, but food security funding is uncertain. It is important to understand and share what we are accomplishingand organize for the future of farm to food access in Wisconsin.

JOIN US AND MAKE SURE THIS WORK CONTINUES LONG INTO THE FUTURE!

A Celebration of the Wisconsin Local Food Purchase Assistance (WI LFPA) program!

This gathering is designed to bring together local food producers, farm to food access program leaders and aggregators, to celebrate the successes of supplying to food access programs and our partnerships. Please join us to connect with WI LFPA partners and others dedicated to building equitable and resilient localized food systems. This event is for anyone invested in the future of farm to food access programming and local food systems in Wisconsin.

Lunch will be catered by the Market On River vendors. Interpretation services are available upon request, please contact Nou Thao nou.thao@marbleseed.org.

Agenda:

10:00 Welcome

10:30 WI LFPA Sucess Stories and Impacts

11:15 Roundtable Discussions: Wisconsin Farm to Food Access Market Access Opportunities

1:00 Lunch and Facility Tours

2:00 Wrap-up

Now’s the time to set the stage for the future of Farm to Food Access work in Wisconsin. To do so, the WI LFPA team is hosting a series of 1.5 hour virtual discussions to review what we’ve done and help each region begin laying plans for the future.

To date, the WI LFPA has served 65 counties and delivered $1.84 million worth of food, networking 173 farmers and 83 food access programs! Additionally, nine community-based programs have been funded by WI LFPA and are going strong. 

The WI LFPA program is currently funded through June 2025. Future funding for this program has not been announced. Food access partners are looking at funding source options for 2025/2026, but food security funding is uncertain. It is important to understand and share what we are accomplishingand organize for the future of farm to food access in Wisconsin.

JOIN US AND MAKE SURE THIS WORK CONTINUES LONG INTO THE FUTURE!

Now’s the time to set the stage for the future of Farm to Food Access work in Wisconsin. To do so, the WI LFPA team is hosting a series of 1.5 hour virtual discussions to review what we’ve done and help each region begin laying plans for the future.

To date, the WI LFPA has served 65 counties and delivered $1.84 million worth of food, networking 173 farmers and 83 food access programs! Additionally, nine community-based programs have been funded by WI LFPA and are going strong. 

The WI LFPA program is currently funded through June 2025. Future funding for this program has not been announced. Food access partners are looking at funding source options for 2025/2026, but food security funding is uncertain. It is important to understand and share what we are accomplishingand organize for the future of farm to food access in Wisconsin.

JOIN US AND MAKE SURE THIS WORK CONTINUES LONG INTO THE FUTURE!

EVENT DETAILS:

Need a way to store your produce, but walk-in coolers seem impossible because of the cost? 

A coolbot cooler is an affordable, alternative cold storage option for many farmers. This Wisconsin Local Food Purchase Assistance (WI LFPA) Program event is an opportunity to learn how to build a trailer coolbot cooler. You'll learn what type of materials and tools needed to build the cooler and will take part in a hands-on building experience! 

Lunch and refreshments will be provided to attendees. All WI-LFPA producers in attendance will be eligible for a $75 travel stipend but is limited to one travel stipend per awarded farm. 

Any questions or concerns related to the event, please reach out to Chiang Rai Lor at (chiangrai@csacoalition.org) or Yimmuaj Yang (yimmuaj@groundswellconservancy.org). 

This is a Hmong/HMoob language event. For any accommodation needs and interpretation for English and Spanish, please reach out to WI LFPA Specialist, Nou Thao (nou.thao@marbleseed.org).

EVENT RECAP:

The event took place at Westport Farm, a community farm, owned by Groundswell Conservancy. Groundwell’s Community Director Yimmuaj Yang, FairShare CSA Coalition’s Aggregation Coordinator Chiang Rai Lor, and Marbleseed LFPA Specialist Nou Thao were present.

Presley Chang, a vegetable farmer and carpenter, with coolbot cooler build experience led the workshop in the HMoob language. Yimmuaj and Nou provided interpretation from HMoob to English for non-HMoob speaking workshop attendees.

The event started with introduction, followed by safety rules and requirements, and a walk through of all the hand and power tools that were being used to build the coolbot cooler. The rest of the day was all hands-on building, where Presley explained the construction process and provided tips and tricks on building.

Workshop attendees were allowed to ask questions throughout the day and answers were provided. By the end of the workshop, 50% of the construction was completed. Farmers were asked if they learned one thing from the workshop and if they would feel comfortable building their own coolbot cooler. They all said yes, but they would still need help because it’s a big project.

“Good hands on.” – Melody Lo

“Food was amazing.” – Ryan McClure

“Hands on was great, did not see to completion.” – Andrew Rave

“It was great!” – Sam Douglass

All attendees gave 4-5 ratings for their overall experience with the workshop (5 is excellent).

Most attendees said their knowledge increased a great deal after the workshop.

Now’s the time to set the stage for the future of Farm to Food Access work in Wisconsin. To do so, the WI LFPA team is hosting a series of 1.5 hour virtual discussions to review what we’ve done and help each region begin laying plans for the future.

To date, the WI LFPA has served 65 counties and delivered $1.84 million worth of food, networking 173 farmers and 83 food access programs! Additionally, nine community-based programs have been funded by WI LFPA and are going strong. 

The WI LFPA program is currently funded through June 2025. Future funding for this program has not been announced. Food access partners are looking at funding source options for 2025/2026, but food security funding is uncertain. It is important to understand and share what we are accomplishingand organize for the future of farm to food access in Wisconsin.

JOIN US AND MAKE SURE THIS WORK CONTINUES LONG INTO THE FUTURE!

Now’s the time to set the stage for the future of Farm to Food Access work in Wisconsin. To do so, the WI LFPA team is hosting a series of 1.5 hour virtual discussions to review what we’ve done and help each region begin laying plans for the future.

To date, the WI LFPA has served 65 counties and delivered $1.84 million worth of food, networking 173 farmers and 83 food access programs! Additionally, nine community-based programs have been funded by WI LFPA and are going strong. 

The WI LFPA program is currently funded through June 2025. Future funding for this program has not been announced. Food access partners are looking at funding source options for 2025/2026, but food security funding is uncertain. It is important to understand and share what we are accomplishingand organize for the future of farm to food access in Wisconsin.

JOIN US AND MAKE SURE THIS WORK CONTINUES LONG INTO THE FUTURE!

Join us on the first Wednesday of each month from 3-4pm from March to December 2024

WI Local Food System Network calls to bring together food system partners from across Wisconsin to share resources and align opportunities.

Register here.

Now’s the time to set the stage for the future of Farm to Food Access work in Wisconsin. To do so, the WI LFPA team is hosting a series of 1.5 hour virtual discussions to review what we’ve done and help each region begin laying plans for the future.

To date, the WI LFPA has served 65 counties and delivered $1.84 million worth of food, networking 173 farmers and 83 food access programs! Additionally, nine community-based programs have been funded by WI LFPA and are going strong. 

The WI LFPA program is currently funded through June 2025. Future funding for this program has not been announced. Food access partners are looking at funding source options for 2025/2026, but food security funding is uncertain. It is important to understand and share what we are accomplishingand organize for the future of farm to food access in Wisconsin.

JOIN US AND MAKE SURE THIS WORK CONTINUES LONG INTO THE FUTURE!

EVENT DETAILS:

Looking to learn more about processing your meat for wholesale food access buyers?

Farmers are invited to learn about the meat supply chain after the animal leaves the farm. Please join us for a tour of the state-of-the-art University of Wisconsin Meat Lab, and a live demonstration of a carcass breakdown for beef, hogs, and small ruminants. Presentations will focus on what food access wholesale buyers, chefs, and consumers are looking for when they shop for meat.

Chef Jack Kaestner will demonstrate cooking with local meats for lunch preparations.

This event is hosted by Marbleseed and Grassworks, through the Wisconsin Local Food Purchase Assistance (WI LFPA) Program, to assist producers in meeting the needs of Wisconsin’s farm to food access programs. 

Grassworks provides leadership and education to farmers and consumers for the advancement of managed grass-based agriculture to benefit present and future generations. The goals for this event are to introduce the benefits of managed grazing and advance understanding of meat production and marketing.

A full lunch will be provided to attendees. WI LFPA farmers are eligible for a travel stipend to attend this event. Translation available by request for Spanish and Hmong/HMoob. 

Join us on the first Wednesday of each month from 3-4pm from March to December 2024

WI Local Food System Network calls to bring together food system partners from across Wisconsin to share resources and align opportunities.

Register here.

The Wisconsin Local Food Purchase Assistance (WI LFPA) Program presented a tremendous opportunity for farmers to boost production and sell their products at excellent prices. With this extensive opportunity we know growth also comes with growing pains. In this webinar, lead by Paul Dietmann from Compeer Financial, we talked about grants and loans available to small scale farmers, a unique leasing program for equipment and buildings and lastly business planning assistance. Finally, participants heard from other small scale farmers who have gone through the process with Compeer Financial.

Join us on the first Wednesday of each month from 3-4pm from March to December 2024

WI Local Food System Network calls to bring together food system partners from across Wisconsin to share resources and align opportunities.

Register here.

Wisconsin Farmers Union invites you to join us Thursday, July 18th at WFU Kamp Kenwood for our Annual Summer Conference.  

In the Main Lodge along Lake Wissota we will gather for our Annual Summer Conference. Join us for lunch, keynote by Author Debbie King, two panels, the Chapter Presidents Meeting, and our annual pie contest. All are welcome to attend.

We will also have a number of historic WFU photos available for members to look through and take home.

Keynote

Author Debra Raye King is a retired college dean and university administrator. Daily, she cares for her flock of registered Icelandic sheep, and takes long forest trail hikes with her loving husband, Tom. When not writing, Debbi is active with complex knitting and sewing, and creating new wearable fiber art.  

King's recent book Gravedigger’s Daughter – Growing up Rural is a collection of short stories and essays based on actual events in the 1950-1970s in northern west-central Wisconsin. Little Elk Creek is a tightly knit community of Norwegian immigrant farm families who assist one another at harvest time and share their skills so all could succeed. 

Pie Contest Details

Our annual Pie Contest is taking place again! Bring a pie to share for our pie contest. (Not a baker? Come eat someone else’s award-winning pie!)

Possible awards include Dairy Best, Most Local, Prettiest, Nuttiest, Fruitiest, Best Crust, Most Original, Most Like Grandma’s, and Judges Choice. 

Acorn Camp

Along with our Summer Conference for adults, there will also be an Acorn Camp for youth ages 7-13. You can register youth for Acorn Camp as you register yourself for Summer Conference. For questions around the programing you can reach out to our Education Director Grace Clardy at gclardy@wisconsinfarmersunion.com.

Event Contact: Kirsten Slaughter - 608-514-2031 - kslaughter@wisconsinfarmersunion.com

RESCHEDULED TO WEDNESDAY, JULY 10TH, RATHER THAN JULY 3RD.

Join us on the first Wednesday of each month from 3-4pm from March to December 2024

WI Local Food System Network calls to bring together food system partners from across Wisconsin to share resources and align opportunities.

Register here.