Our trainees and staff just visited Agnes Little Elementary for the school’s last “Homework Diner” series of the school year. With over 200 parents and children in attendance, this collaboration was a valuable opportunity for our trainees to get hands-on, real-life experience serving a large group and practice their skills in communication, teamwork, multitasking, and accommodating customer needs.

Our Nutrition Education team is in the midst of finishing up our after-school and senior-center programming for the season. It’s been a great year with lots of participation from local youth and seniors! Now as the school year comes to a close, our attention also turns to planning an exceptional outdoor season of programming — from Healthy Foods, Healthy Families at farmers markets to garden and camp programs.

Do you have a school or community garden? Are you looking for garden education programs? Our knowledgable staff will bring participants on a sensory exploration of any garden site and actively engage participants in hands-on learning and garden work! We’ll dig into the garden ecosystem and explore the different creatures who live there, taste different plant parts, and learn how to tend and maintain a garden.

Who’s buying local in our community, and what are they ordering? Take a look at a few of the customers who recently purchased from local farmers and producers through Market Mobile, and get a sneak peek at some of the local food on offer this week like vibrant Swiss chard, organic arugula, and canned peaches.

Don’t miss this food system news from around our region: Read “People Care When They See the Cost: Evaluating Food Systems” from Food Tank. An update on the House Farm Bill from the National Sustainable Agriculture Coalition. And save the date for the Farm to Institution New England Summit!

Farm Fresh RI and Southside Community Land Trust are partnering to enable SNAP/EBT purchases at the Rare & Unusual Plant Sale at City Farm this weekend! Better still, we’re offering Bonus Bucks too! That means you can purchase edible plants with EBT and get a 40% bonus to spend on more edible plants, or for fresh fruits & vegetables at one of the many participating farmers markets in RI!

Don’t miss this food system news from around our region: Read the latest from the National Sustainable Agriculture Coalition about the Farm Bill, which just failed on every level in the House — and how you can take action! Farm to Institution New England is accepting Co-Chair applications for their new Campus Farm Working Group. PVDFest is looking for volunteers for their new Zero Waste Team! And save the date for the New England Farm to Institution Summit April 2-4, 2019!

We frequently collaborate with other community organizations to “en-Rich” our Harvest Kitchen training curriculum. This Tuesday, our morning session of trainees headed over to City Farm — a 1-acre farm in Providence run by Southside Community Land Trust. We got to meet with Rich Pederson, City Farm Steward. After a farm tour and introduction, our group went to work helping to get plants ready for the Rare & Unusual Plant Sale happening this Saturday and Sunday!

Who’s buying local in our community, and what are they ordering? Take a look at a few of the customers who recently purchased from local farmers and producers through Market Mobile, and get a sneak peek at some of the local food on offer this week like beautiful first-of-the-season squash blossoms from Schartner Farms in Exeter, RI.

This screening of “The Gleaners and I” by acclaimed French filmmaker Agnes Varda, will be followed by a panel discussion and Q&A — bringing together local experts in the field of food recovery. Ticket sales will support the work of Hope’s Harvest RI, a nonprofit mobilizing volunteers to collect unharvested produce and deliver it to needy populations in Rhode Island.

On May 6th, we held our first Asparagus Fest at Four Town Farm! Much gratitude to farmer-owner Chris Clegg and the whole Four Town team, the inspiring JWU chef-instructors, our sponsor Campus Fine Wines, and to everyone who bought tickets for this fundraiser to support our nonprofit work in the local food system! Missed it? Get a glimpse at the food, farm tour, and asparagus feast!

Don’t miss this food system news from around our region: Get your application in for the Food Solutions New England Network Leadership Institute by May 15th. Support the RI Healthy Schools Coalition at their first fundraiser coming up in June — tickets on sale now. And the Rare & Unusual Plant Sale at Southside Community Land Trust’s City Farm is coming up soon!

Who’s buying local in our community, and what are they ordering? Take a look at some of the customers who recently purchased from local farmers and producers through Market Mobile, and get a sneak peek at some of the local food on offer this week like these Stonington Royal Red Shrimp from Bomster Scallops in Stonington, CT.

We’re thrilled to bring you this year’s Rhode Island Farmers Market Guide for the 2018 summertime season! We offer this list of statewide farmers markets as a service to the community of growers, shoppers, and farmers market coordinators that make it all possible.