Presented in the photo, from left, are James Gallapato of Pregiotta, Rev. Luke Fodor of St. Luke’s Episcopal Church, Cassandra Skal of Cornell Cooperative Extension, Emily Reynolds of Cornell Cooperative Extension, Linnea Haskin of Jamestown Public Market and Vince DeJoy, Director of Dunkirk Planning and Development .
The Cornell Cooperative Extension of Chautauqua County has announced its recent partnership with several community organizations to submit a grant proposal for the New York Food for New York Families Program.
In partnership with several businesses, municipalities, and organizations, the Cornell Cooperative Extension of Chautauqua County hopes to bring “big bucks” To the region in order to expand “access to healthy food” and promote the economic development of local agricultural producers.
According to Lenny Haskin, director of the Jamestown Public Market, the grant, which was presented as recently as January, was made possible through a collaboration between “several partners” from across Chautauqua County, showing how different organizations can work together to address the problem “food security” across the county.
Chautauqua County is unique in our geographic size. Haskin said. “We face many of the challenges other communities face when it comes to accessing food; lack of transportation, the needs of vulnerable groups such as the elderly and young people, and the need to increase investment in local farms and agricultural producers.
We are proud of our partnership with CCE and other organizations that share our mission of feeding the community. We hope New York State understands the needs of our region and invests in our community so that we can support our agricultural producers, while feeding our community.”
The proposal from CCE includes funding for multiple distribution sites and events across the county. If the proposal is funded, the sites will be up and running from this summer.
If CCE receives grant funding for its proposal, a coordinator will be appointed to oversee food distribution and work with agricultural farmers, dairy farmers, and other agricultural producers throughout the region to source a variety of produce, meat products, baked goods, dairy products, and other local foodstuffs.
CCE’s plan is to invest more than $500,000 in food products produced in the state. Currently, Brigiotta Farmland Produce hopes to serve as “main partner” in packaging food produced in the state in up to 500 individual boxes each week to be distributed.
Distribution will include collaborations with the Local Roots on Aging Program Office, St. Luke’s Episcopal Church, Jamestown Public Market Mobile Market Program, Dunkirk Rural Ministries and Five Loaves and Two Fish Ministries.
“If funds are awarded, CCE will plan food distribution sites across the county that are more accessible to the community,” CCE press release said. “Each distribution site will provide New York State lunchboxes at no cost to community members on a first-come, first-served basis.”
Through the potential grant-funded scheme, the food distribution sites will run for 40 weeks, starting in June of this year and ending in August of 2024. Each box of food is expected to average between 10 to 12 pounds and will include a variety of food. Meat, produce and other agricultural products.
Community members interested in the Program, if approved, will not be required to pre-register or provide identification or documentation to participate in the Program.
The CCE said in its press release that it is “proud” To share with a “wide range or services and organizations” throughout Chautauqua County. With 17% of the local population living below the poverty line, food insecurity is a concern and top priority for CCE.
Vince DeJoy, Dunkirk’s director of planning and development, explained the impact the program could have on the province.
“The NY Food for NY Families Scholarship application, if funded, will have a profoundly positive impact on families who want to provide healthy, sustainable, fresh, locally made food to families in Dunkirk; at the same time, we are strengthening our collaborative efforts countywide with the Cornell Cooperative Extension, Jamestown Public Market, and Chautauqua Rural Ministry,” He said.
If the CCE grant application is approved, the goal will be to increase community access to local, healthy foods and provide economic stability for local farmers and other producers in the state.
CCE also expects the project to produce long-term impacts. These potential impacts include a better understanding of the needs of county residents to access food, a “deeper connection” between local farmers and wholesale outlets and a “Sustainable Food Distribution Model” which can be implemented across the county in churches, schools and other community organizations.
New York Food for New York Families funding announced in 2022 aims to: “Create a more resilient statewide food system that supports local farms and provides nutritious, high-quality food to communities facing food insecurity.”
Food purchases through the program are designed to support local farmers by expanding economic opportunities and creating new ones marketing channels across the state. In addition, the program is designed to ensure that local products are distributed to local families “Desperately needed.”
CCE explained that a ‘wider alliance’ Which includes many food service organizations and municipalities across the county will provide better opportunities to provide food to more members of the community.
“There was limited time to submit a proposal for funding, and CCE is giving its community partners credit for the successful submission of the RFP.” This was stated in the press release of the Continuing Education Committee. “CCE is hopeful that NYS will give Chautauqua County funding, and that this is just the beginning of a broader county effort to address food access needs.”