Dear friends:
After a year of research and planning, the start up of the Local Food Hub is close to becoming a reality.
Nelson County Economic Development has already pledged money to support the project and we are up for a vote before the Albemarle County Board of Supervisors on Wednesday, February 4th to defend our request for monies from its Economic Opportunity Fund.
We have a private foundation that has pledged matching funds for all municipal monies we are able to secure, so a "yes" vote from Albemarle County would effectively fund the start up of the project and assure that the Local Food Hub will begin making a positive impact immediately.
We write today to ask for your help. Unless the Board members hear from a great many concerned citizens, they may choose to take no action, therefore disabling our efforts to secure matching funding from a private foundation and bringing our positive momentum to a halt.
We need your phone calls, letters of support and / or attendance at this meeting. We ask that you please flood the Supervisors with emails and phone calls before our meeting on Wednesday, February 4th. We are told that Ken Boyd, Dennis Rooker and Lindsey Dorrier may need the most convincing.
Below is a brief description of the Local Food Hub project and an example of an email that you can send to your designated Board member (or all of them if you please!)
What it is:
The Local Food Hub is a non-profit organization that offers local food purchasing, processing, wholesale distribution, warehousing and essential services to farmers in the Thomas Jefferson Planning District to address the growing demand for local foods and support expansion of local agriculture. This distribution system will put healthy and fresh food into our schools and our senior populations and help bring economic growth to rural communities. The Hub provides infrastructure and networking resources currently not available. These services include but are not limited to:
* Planning support for growers
* Small farm business planning
* Delivery & consolidation services
* Liability and trace-ability coverage
* Rentable refrigeration and freezer storage space
* Food system networking
Local Food Hub’s Mission:
* To increase the supply of locally grown food in Albemarle County
and the Thomas Jefferson Planning District by building a licensed
wholesale facility that is a large and dependable customer to
local farms of all sizes
* To improve the efficiency of our local food system by providing
centralized distribution, consolidation and warehousing
* To incubate new farms and support current ones by providing
business development, networking and planning services
* To increase farm income and maximize year-round local food
availability by providing processing services
*The Local Food Hub will not duplicate established models of direct to consumer sales, i.e. Community Supported Agriculture, Farmers’ Markets, buyers clubs and on-farm sales. It is designed to fill gaps in the existing infrastructure and provide services that will help generate local supply and meet local demand.
Quick & Easy Email template:
If you would like to use this existing template, please copy below and paste into a new email ~ or please feel free to write your own:
I write this letter in support of the Local Food Hub, which will provide much needed facilities in Albemarle and its surrounding counties. This is a community effort that will enhance the economic and social benefits of a local food system.// It is imperative to our local economy, our food security, our environment and our community's health that we invest in the necessary infrastructure needed to support and build a local food system. The Local Food Hub will address many of the barriers that we now face.
One of the greatest challenges for our farmers is getting their fresh product to market. The Local Food Hub will provide area growers with much needed assistance for the transportation, storing, and processing of produce.
Please vote "Yes" to their request for funding thus enabling the Local Food Hub to collect its committed matching funds.
Thank you for supporting agriculture and our local economy.
Sincerely,
[YOUR NAME & AREA OF RESIDENCE]
We need your phone calls, letters of support and / or attendance at this meeting. We ask that you please flood the Supervisors with emails and phone calls before our meeting on Wednesday, February 4th. We are told that Ken Boyd, Dennis Rooker and Lindsey Dorrier may need the most convincing.
Below is a brief description of the Local Food Hub project and an example of an email that you can send to your designated Board member (or all of them if you please!)
What it is:
The Local Food Hub is a non-profit organization that offers local food purchasing, processing, wholesale distribution, warehousing and essential services to farmers in the Thomas Jefferson Planning District to address the growing demand for local foods and support expansion of local agriculture. This distribution system will put healthy and fresh food into our schools and our senior populations and help bring economic growth to rural communities. The Hub provides infrastructure and networking resources currently not available. These services include but are not limited to:
* Planning support for growers
* Small farm business planning
* Delivery & consolidation services
* Liability and trace-ability coverage
* Rentable refrigeration and freezer storage space
* Food system networking
Local Food Hub’s Mission:
* To increase the supply of locally grown food in Albemarle County
and the Thomas Jefferson Planning District by building a licensed
wholesale facility that is a large and dependable customer to
local farms of all sizes
* To improve the efficiency of our local food system by providing
centralized distribution, consolidation and warehousing
* To incubate new farms and support current ones by providing
business development, networking and planning services
* To increase farm income and maximize year-round local food
availability by providing processing services
*The Local Food Hub will not duplicate established models of direct to consumer sales, i.e. Community Supported Agriculture, Farmers’ Markets, buyers clubs and on-farm sales. It is designed to fill gaps in the existing infrastructure and provide services that will help generate local supply and meet local demand.
Quick & Easy Email template:
If you would like to use this existing template, please copy below and paste into a new email ~ or please feel free to write your own:
I write this letter in support of the Local Food Hub, which will provide much needed facilities in Albemarle and its surrounding counties. This is a community effort that will enhance the economic and social benefits of a local food system.// It is imperative to our local economy, our food security, our environment and our community's health that we invest in the necessary infrastructure needed to support and build a local food system. The Local Food Hub will address many of the barriers that we now face.
One of the greatest challenges for our farmers is getting their fresh product to market. The Local Food Hub will provide area growers with much needed assistance for the transportation, storing, and processing of produce.
Please vote "Yes" to their request for funding thus enabling the Local Food Hub to collect its committed matching funds.
Thank you for supporting agriculture and our local economy.
Sincerely,
[YOUR NAME & AREA OF RESIDENCE]
Board of Supervisors Contact Information:
Lindsay G. Dorrier, Jr. (Scottsville District) Office: (434) 286-9399
Email: riverstreet4444@yahoo.com
Email: riverstreet4444@yahoo.com
Please act today to secure the future of the Local Food Hub! Also, if you know of local food supporters and can send this email on, please copy, paste and get the word out! We'd also love to add them to our email newsletter list so they can be kept abreast of our efforts.
We appreciate your time and help!
Thank you!
Cheers to many years of good, fresh, local food,
Kate Collier & Marisa Vrooman
Thanks for providing this info so we help make this dream a reality! I'm emailed everyone -- hope it makes a difference! I've added this blog to my RSS reader and look forward to keeping up with every step of the project!
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