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Also, mark your calendar for the June 12 Wild Onion co-op opening
The conversation on last night’s Local Food Forum “Better” Dialogues, titled Food Education and Its Impact, was engaging, engrossing and inspiring. Co-host Sarah Stegner of Prairie Grass Cafe and I once again thank the thought-and-action leaders who participated as our guest experts: Alexandra DeSorbo-Quinn of Pilot Light and Sebastian White of The Evolved Network, and Spence Medford and Christy Sherding of The Henry Ford organization in Dearborn, Michigan, just outside Detroit.
We also send best wishes to Melvin Parson, the visionary founder of We the People Opportunity Farm in Ypsilanti, Michigan, who was scheduled to be a guest but was under the weather.
If you missed it, you’ll have the opportunity to view the recording, which will be posted soon.
Right now, we are happy to share the recording from Episode 2 of “Better” Dialogues — Outdoor Farmers Market Season Outlook: Why You Should Go — while simultaneously announcing that Local Food Forum now has its very own YouTube channel! Click on the video box above to watch the webinar, which took place on Monday, April 29.
If you are a farmers market fan (presumably just about everyone who reads Local Food Forum is), then you should not miss the one-on-one conversation at the beginning of the webinar.
Co-host Sarah Stegner, a founder of Chicago’s Green City Market in 1999, interviewed Laura Avery, who managed the legendary Santa Monica Farmers Market in California for 36 years. Both Laura and Sarah became involved in farmers markets when there weren’t many across the country and played major roles in helping stimulate the growth of our local food culture. Their conversation was entertaining and memorable.
Sarah and I discussed all the delicious, nutritious, sustainably and humanely produced food that millions of people across the U.S. buy at farmers markets, with tips about shopping with seasonality in mind.
But there is much more to farmers markets than that, as our guest panelists for the webinar will attest.
* Today, most farmers markets address the need for greater food access by accepting Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) benefits, and many participate or have started programs that double or even triple the value of those benefits. Matthew Ruffi — who organizes Chicago’s Uptown Farmers Market and heads up the Link Up Illinois program that provides financial support for markets’ “Link Match” programs — joined us to discuss.
* Janelle St. John, executive director of Chicago’s Growing Home Inc. non-profit, discussed how her urban farming and organic produce operation is improving food access in underserved communities on Chicago’s South Side.
* Kyle Jacobson of Illinois’ Jacobson Family Farms is innovating in raising produce and livestock while restoring pastureland to native vegetation, and he expanded upon the theme of regenerative agriculture that was the topic of the first episode.
* Farmers markets are all about building community, and local food communities often rush to the aid of farmer vendors who face extraordinary challenges. Alex Finn of Michigan’s Finn’s Ranch discussed not only her delicious products, but how Chicago’s local food community came to her aid after a devastating fire on her family’s farm.
We hope you watch the recording, and please share it with members of your community who you believe would be interested.
Also, the recording of Episode 1 that focused on regnerative agriculture is also on the new YouTube channel. Please click below to watch.
Save June 12 for the Wild Onion Co-op Opening
It’s official: Wild Onion Market in Chicago’s Rogers Park neighborhood is opening its doors to the public on Wednesday, June 12. The full-service cooperative grocery store is located at 7007 N. Clark, and it will be open from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. seven days a week.
The press release from Wild Onion Market shared below provides more detail. Also, click below to view the Local Food Forum article about the open house preview that the market held on February 24.
Wild Onion will be the second in a long-awaited cluster of co-op grocery openings in northern Illinois. The first, at the Foodshed store in Woodstock, takes place tomorrow, and I plan to hitch a ride from a community colleague to attend in person for an article in Thursday’s Local Food Forum.
Here’s the Wild Onion press release:
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New full-service grocery co-op to open in Rogers Park on June 12
Shoppers will find affordable organic staples, grab ’n’ go items and more
The Wild Onion Market, a new full-service grocery co-op at Clark and Lunt in Rogers Park, will open for business on June 12.
The new community-owned co-op, at 7007 N Clark, will be open to all. Store hours will be from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m., seven days a week. The store will serve the Rogers Park, Edgewater, and West Ridge neighborhoods in Chicago, as well as neighboring Evanston.
Wild Onion Market’s mission is to:
• Keep money in the neighborhood, rather than fill corporate grocery store coffers.
• Contribute to creating a food supply chain that is transparent, just, and accessible to Midwest farmers and producers.
• Provide fair paying job opportunities in our neighborhood.
Shoppers can expect to find “all the best local offerings, affordable organic staples, and fresh produce, with great selections throughout the store from gourmet cheese to bulk grocery on regular, rotating sales,” said General Manager Teresa Meza.
The store will also feature a wide category of grocery items with a focus on fresh produce and local products. The store will feature a bulk grocery section where shoppers can fill their own containers as well as a selection of grab 'n' go items.
Wild Onion Market will be conveniently accessible via bus, bicycle, Metra and the ”L”, as well as by car. It was awarded a $250,000 Equitable Transit Oriented Development grant from the city of Chicago.
"We plan to be a valuable addition to the Rogers Park - South Evanston communities," Meza says. “We look forward to helping people fill their pantries, fridges and bellies with nourishing food for less in 2024!”
Opening day on June 12 will also feature a brief afternoon ribbon cutting ceremony with remarks by some local officials and business leaders.
Wild Onion Market has been ten years in the making. Since 2014 it has built up a base of co-op owner/investors that now totals 2,142. In addition to the major role played by those owners in fulfilling the store’s $2,600,000 capitalization plan, Wild Onion Market has also had the support of Devon Bank, an ETOD grant from the city of Chicago, and funding from other state and local grants.
The new grocery store is open to the general public, but as a food co-op it is run by its 2,142 owners.
New owners are always welcome. To become an owner and to learn more about Wild Onion Market, go to wildonionmarket.com.
Bob’s World, and Welcome to It: Walk in the Parks 2
Monday’s Local Food Forum kicked off a mini-series of my fine day out on Saturday, with its perfect spring weather. Part 1 wrapped up my visit to Green City Market, highlighted some of the beautiful new produce hitting the city.
Later, after I enjoyed the launch party for the Chicago Chefs Cookbook at Mariano’s Lakeview, Barb and I went to North Pond in Lincoln Park (one of our favorite places since we moved to the city in 2011). Specifically, it is birthing season for the waterfowl that hang out at the pond, an official bird sanctuary, and we went in search of adorable baby birds.
Early to mid-May is usually prime time for our consistently fertile flocks of geese, so we expected to see lots of goslings. But the first newborns we came upon was a family of mallard ducklings. As this is on the early side for ducklings, they were a happy surprise.
But where were the goslings? We were a little concerned because there were none on as we walked along the west side of the pond. We did notice, though, that there were groups of adult geese on the other side. Would we find goslings there?
Tune in to tomorrow’s Local Food Forum for the answer.
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