 Opportunities for Food Hubs Grow
These past few months, ALL IN Eats has been focused on expanding our farms and food hubs. Food hubs are a central infrastructural piece of the Circular Food Economy.
Food Hubs will support:
- the aggregation of fresh produce from local farms and recovered food by providing fridge, freezer, and storage space;
- small/emerging entrepreneurs by providing commercial kitchen space; and
- more localized food and meal distribution to better serve community/partners.
Our current plan is to work with community partners to build out food hubs in every region. We’re currently in the process of identifying and discussing the use of potential food hub spaces in: Alameda, Berkeley, Oakland, Tri-City, and Tri-Valley. Click here to learn more about our updates for each area.
 Congratulations Wanda, Jefferson Awardee!
We are excited to celebrate the work and accomplishments of our ALL IN Eats partner, Wanda Jefferson, Executive Director of Common Vision! Wanda was recently awarded the Bay Area Jefferson Award for Public Service for her work as an educator, urban gardener, and food justice advocate. Click here to see a video highlighting all that she’s done.
 “Food Prescription" Legislative Strategy Shifts to the California Medicaid Waiver
Assembly Bill 368 (Reyes/Bonta) was introduced earlier this year to establish medically supportive food and nutrition pilot projects in Alameda, San Bernardino and Fresno counties. The bill called for a new program to treat, prevent or reverse diet related chronic health conditions that disproportionately impact communities of color through Food Prescriptions of fruit, vegetables and other healthy food to Medi-Cal Managed Care Plan members. Despite the strong support of a coalition of more than 50 organizations including health plans, health equity groups, food security providers, local government and advocates, the legislation was held in Committee and a request for funding in the state budget was not successful.
But the fight is not over! Click here to read more about the advocacy work Alameda County has championed for advancing food-based interventions in Medi-Cal.
 Farm Preparations Underway at Ardenwood
The Dig Deep Farms team launched prep work at East Bay Regional Park District’s Ardenwood Farm this week. There is a lot of prep work needed to enable the actual farming to begin, and the DDF team will be working in close partnership with the city and the park district to take those steps. From the set up of bathroom facilities, office space, shade structures and greenhouses, to the installation of irrigation and beginning to do the soil preparation, the team will be working hard to get this incredible piece of land back up and running as a productive farming operation that will add significantly more locally-grown food into our circular food economy.
There is also a plan developing to bring back the pumpkin patch in time for Halloween, and once we have the details of that plan, we will be inviting you all to attend!
Calling all BIPOC Farmers!
Please help us spread the word about the Farmer Collective Troy and Sasha are organizing! We want to especially make sure that our BIPOC farmers have opportunities and access to be a part of our farms supporting the Circular Food Economy, such as Ardenwood and Masonic Homes.
For all individuals and organizations who are interested in joining, please fill out this interest form and Troy and Sasha will promptly be in touch. If email and/or the survey is a barrier to getting involved in the Farmer Collective, please share our farm admin number 510-626-7993 and Troy and Sasha will follow-up.
 Food in the 18th: A Candidate Forum, August 18
Alameda County Community Food Bank, HOPE Collaborative, the Oakland Food Policy Council, Real Food Media, and SPUR, are hosting the “Food in the 18th: A Candidate Forum” on Wednesday, August,18th from 5:30 - 6:30pm. This event will bring together candidates Janani Ramachandran and Mia Bonta who are running to be the next assemblymember for AD-18 (Oakland, Alameda, San Leandro)!
In addition to building visibility around a low-turnout race, the candidate forum is an opportunity for community to uplift issues at the intersection of food, racial, economic & environmental justice. The event will provide an opportunity to form a relationship with the next assembly member and build a champion for food justice at the state level. Register for the forum here.
Please spread the word far and wide to make sure as many voters as possible hear about these candidates' food systems related positions and get out to vote in the special general election on Tuesday, August 31st. If you have any questions, please contact Katie Ettman at kettman@spur.org.
 Senior Grocery Home-Delivery Program - Enroll Now
This pilot program is an exciting partnership between the City of Oakland and LIFE ElderCare.This program is for seniors in Alameda County (not just Oakland) age 60+ with medical conditions that make it nearly impossible to grocery shop for themselves, and who do not have support in getting food. If approved, they will receive groceries delivered 2-4 times a month, depending on need. As part of the enrollment process, a follow-up call and home visit from LIFE ElderCare will be scheduled.
The application form is available here. Call or email Carmela if you have any questions: Carmela Chase (510) 238-7992 cchase@oaklandnet.com
Alameda County Food Recovery Network Meeting, August 20
Interested in getting connected with other edible food recovery organizations? Have questions about the implementation of the SB1383 organic waste reduction ordinance? Check out the Alameda County Food Recovery Network meeting on Friday, August 20th from 10:00 to 11:30 am organized by StopWaste. This meeting will focus on the education and outreach materials being produced to educate food donors about SB1383.
To RSVP , please fill this registration form to receive a unique Zoom link via email. If you have any questions, please contact Hugo Gregoire at hgregoire@stopwaste.org.
 StopWaste Environmental Educator Training (SWEET!)
Calling all Alameda County community leaders, activists and environmentalists who are interested in the food system! StopWaste’s 2021 SWEET online course is happening this fall, from September 8 – November 10. The focus for this virtual StopWaste Environmental Educator training is on reducing wasted food and will also include a larger conversation about how we can collectively build a Healthy Community Food System and make connections (within the class and outside in the community). View the full syllabus and online application at: www.stopwaste.org/SWEET. The deadline for applications is 5 pm on August 13, 2021.
How to Open A Restaurant: A Spanish Language Workshop
Attention Spanish Speakers! The Alameda County Small Business Development Center is putting on a training hosted by Adriana Lopez Vermut, their restaurant program advisor, to introduce you to how to open a restaurant! Presented in Spanish.
¡Atención, hispanohablantes! - ¡Únase a nosotros para nuestra formacion próxima alojado por Adriana Lopez Vermut, asesora de nuestro programa de restaurantes, para presentarle cómo abrir un restaurante! Presentado en español.
Working Group Meeting and Notes 7/22
Every month, ALL IN Eats hosts a monthly meeting to create a safe space for people to collaborate on their work, share ideas, and find their space within the Circular Food Economy. We engage on topics ranging from filling service gaps, inclusivity of new faces, and most importantly, how we can learn from each other. You can read the meeting minutes here.
Our next meeting is 8/26/21.
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