"Sustainable Food Center is thrilled to announce that we have been awarded a Farm to School Grant from the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA). Together with our partners, the Texas Department of Agriculture’s Farm Fresh Initiative, The Common Market Texas, and the City of Austin’s Office of Sustainability, we will increase the amount of fresh, healthy, local food available in Central Texas schools."
“The American Heart Association aims to be part of the solution by connecting food-insecure families with quality, nutrient-dense produce through a partnership with The Common Market,” said Houston Mayor Sylvester Turner.
"The vision at The Common Market is to catalyze impact and partnerships across the value chain in support of building community food resiliency. In the wake of the pandemic, our work of supporting regional agriculture and food access efforts: we see it as a crucial strategy in ensuring a sustainable and equitable post-pandemic transition."
Together, the two nonprofits will source fruits and veggies from about a dozen farms across central and southeast Texas, including contributions from Houston refugee farming collective Plant It Forward Farms and Fresh Life Organics, along with Gundermann Acres in Wharton County. Part of The Common Market’s statewide network, these farms have offered to sell the kale, sweet potatoes, and winter citruses like oranges and grapefruit that weren’t destroyed by the winter storm to the organizations, making this a win-win prospect for both the farms and Houstonians in need of fresh food.
“Thankfully, regional food systems are resilient. Our community partners are resilient,” Smith says. “It’s about feeding people and providing nutrition, and it’s also about quality, having our produce boxes communicate ‘you matter’ to families.”
Jesica Medellin, project director for Galveston Independent School District’s Texas Afterschool Centers on Education program, carries a box of fresh produce to a car Tuesday. Medellin helped distribute 140 boxes of fresh produce from The Common Market to students and their families in need following the freeze last week.
Each box brimmed with cabbage, carrots and other vegetables grown at local farms throughout southeast Texas. The farms provide food for La Porte ISD year-round, through The Common Market Texas.
“We’re going to be able to feed thousands of people by the end of the week,” said Margo Robertson, outreach coordinator at The Common Market Texas.
1,000 boxes total were donated and they’ll be distributed throughout the area, helping area families as well as farms.
“Texas farmers are tough, and we stand together to help our neighbors,” continues Smith. “We are grateful to World Central Kitchen. Together, we are bringing relief to often-overlooked communities as well as a boost to our local economy.”
The Common Market began its partnership with The American Heart Association in Greater Houston in May 2020, with a goal of providing fresh foods and educational resources to individuals living within Houston’s Complete Communities areas, a collection of 10 underserved neighborhoods. Funding for the produce and distribution span various sources, including Northern Trust and other foundations, and local donors committed to providing healthy food access to disadvantaged communities.
"Middle Ground Farm is one of 40 small producers that The Common Market Texas partners with to deliver high-quality, local food to communities. We are so proud to work with new and beginning farmers to really scale up what the local food movement can bring to communities here in Texas.
Farm to School partnerships really help kids understand the importance of choosing healthy options and understanding the impact they're having in the world."
"Fifer Orchards likes what Common Market does and how they service underserved areas with fresh local produce."
— Curt Fifer, Sales Manager, Fifer Orchards