The above interview premiered as a part of WSVA 550 AM’s Spotlight on Valley Agriculture and featured an interview with me about the National Food Day Farm-to-Table Breakfast 2013 and related promotions. The Third Annual Downtown Harrisonburg Farm-to-Table Breakfast was held on Thursday, October 24 at Clementine in Harrisonburg, VA from 7:00 to 8:00 AM in celebration of National Food Day.
This was the third year I served on the Shenandoah Valley Food Day Planning Committee and the second year serving as a principal organizer for the team. (For insights into our previous years’ events, check out the blog articles I wrote about preparing for 2011 and 2012 celebrations.) My work in helping lead the event involved securing collaborative support from community partners, menu planning with a local chef, serving as ingredients liaison between farmers and restaurant staff, coordinating complementary promotions by local businesses leading up to the event, designing and distributing marketing materials to promote ticket sales, being interviewed by local press to enhance promotions, and ensuring monetary proceeds are received as donation to a local food bank.
The Farm-to-Table Breakfast celebrates eating locally and sustainably by highlighting a breakfast featuring local ingredients donated by the Harrisonburg Farmers Market and Friendly City Food Co-op. All proceeds from the ticket sales for the breakfast benefited the Blue Ridge Area Food Bank. Clementine head chef Jeff Minnick prepared the food and the event was presented in partnership with Clementine, Friendly City Food Co-op, Harrisonburg Downtown Renaissance, Harrisonburg Farmers Market, and Virginia Cooperative Extension.
Throughout the week, downtown Harrisonburg businesses featured special food promotions and events. Among these offerings were a three-course Shenandoah Valley Dinner at Joshua Wilton House, a five-course Virginia Wine Dinner at the Local Chop & Grill House, Local Night featuring local food and live music at the Artful Dodger, daily local food tastings at the Rocktown Gift Shoppe, and a special “Goons, Goblins, and Grub” kid-friendly Halloween tour by Rocktown Bites! Downtown Food Tours.
National Food Day is a movement advocating for healthy, sustainable, and affordable food while highlighting local products and the farmers who produce them. This special initiative focuses on six principles through which to reform our food culture:
1. Reduce diet-related disease by promoting safe, healthy foods
2. Support sustainable farms and limit subsidies to big agribusiness
3. Expand access to food and alleviate hunger
4. Protect the environment and animals by reforming factory farms
5. Promote health by curbing junk-food marketing to kids
6. Support fair conditions for food and farm workers
National Food Day provides the opportunity for community members of all ages to learn more about and celebrate their local food scene, develop relationships with their local food producers, and become empowered to make smart, healthy choices about their food.
For more information, please visit:
http://www.downtownharrisonburg.org/foodday
http://fooddayshenvalley.wordpress.com/
https://www.facebook.com/FoodDayShenValley
