By Stephanie Oesligie Jordan, Project Manager, Chef
On October 25, Sustainable Solano kicked off it’s “Solano Community Food Centers” planning grant – funded by USDA -with an Advisory Board meeting in Benicia, CA.
Attending the meeting were an enthusiastic group representing UC Davis and Solano County, as well as Solano County farmers and community leaders. Board members discussed what aspect of the project each of them could help with, and where their individual expertise could bring goals to fruition. The first phase of the planning grant includes a feasibility study, which will begin with data collection and analysis. As we work through phase 1, we aim to have a clearer picture of Solano County’s local food supply, its existing distribution systems, and an analysis of historical sales data. To this end, Dr. Kristin Kiesel of UC Davis gave a brief presentation on the proposed structure of the feasibility study, and the types of data needed to achieve our goals.
Thanks again to our Advisory Board members! Sustainable Solano is grateful for everyone’s participation and willingness to volunteer their time and talents!
ADVISORY BOARD:
David Campbell, Associate Dean, Social and Human Sciences, UC Davis
Robin Cox, Sr. Health Services Manager, Solano Public Health
Gail Feenstra, Deputy Director SAREP, UC Davis
Simone Hardy, Agricultural Commissioner, Solano County
Mike Ioakimedes, Business Development Manager, Solano County Fairgrounds
Kristin Kiesel, Lecturer PSOE, Agricultural & Resource Economics Dept, UC Davis
Wendy Loomas, Health Services Manager, Solano Public Health
Ben Lyons, Farmer, Lockewood Acres
Denise Lyons, Farmer + Criminalist Supervisor, Solano County DA
Jahniah McGill, Environmental Health Supervisor, Solano County
Greg Morrison, Board Member, Cultivate Community Food Co-Op
Stann Whipple, Treasurer, Board of Directors, Sustainable Solano
Wendy Rash, District Conservationist for the Vacaville Service Center, USDA-NRCS
Sarah Hawkins, Solano County Farmbudsman
For more information on Sustainable Solano’s USDA LFPP grant, click here.
