got local?-Twin Cities

Monday, November 30, 2009 10:00 am - 3:00 pm

St. George Greek Othodox Church
1111 Summit Ave
St. Paul, MN 55105 

Cost: $10 

FARMERS: Do you want to expand your market into restaurants, cafes, food services, institutions and distributors?

BUYERS: Are you interested in making new connections to purchase local products from farmers, producers and distributors? 

Come help us celebrate the 2009 season and honor both the buyers and growers who are helping to grow a local food economy. And make new connections with growers around the region.

Renewing the Countryside, Minnesota Grown, Minnesota Institute for Sustainable Agriculture, and North Central - Sustainable Agriculture Research and Education (SARE), in partnership with local sponsors, will be hosting three Farmer/Buyer Connection workshops this winter. The workshops will have information sessions to assist farmers and food buyers to connect and explore best practices in working together, followed by the networking opportunity—a chance to forge new relationships for the 2010 growing season!

If you are a farmer interested in getting your product into a restaurant, grocery store or institution (school, hospital, etc.), or a food buyer for a restaurant or other institution; or someone working in food systems and would like more information on the "got local?" series of workshops and who will be attending, please call 651.293.1172 or e-mail Brett at brett@rtcinfo.org

Schedule for the day:

10:00-10:30: Introductions 

10:30-11:00: Overview of the day

11:00-12:00: Networking Sessions

12:00-12:45: Lunch

12:45-3:00: "Making Money with Local Foods in a Down Economy" Tracy Singlton, Birchwood Cafe

                   "Single Source Suppliers" Pam Benike, SE MN Food Network

                    "What's legal - What's not"  Minnesota Department of Agriculture

3:00: Closing  & possibly a little more time for last minute connections

Here is what some of the past participants are saying:

“Even in this down economy, we’ve had our best summer ever and it is due in large part to the connections we made at the Lanesboro got local? event. By really promoting the local foods right around Lanesboro we have drawn in new patrons who are interested in healthy food and how it was raised.”

Thank you,
Angie and Scott Taylor
Pedal Pushers Cafe

“I must say, it was a day well spent out of the office.  Sometimes we spend a day going to a workshop and at the end of the day we say "should have stayed in the office."  I have been wanting to start a farm to school project for a couple of years, but never could make the right connections..........well the day gave me the right connections and now my farm to school project is a reality”

Tina Wheeler, SNS
Director of Food Service
Little Falls Community Schools #482