The Finland Food Chain was recently awarded the Minnesota Local Food Purchasing Assistance grant from the Minnesota Department of Agriculture. This grant is worth $84,000 and is to be used to “purchase meat, eggs, grains, and produce from local and regional farms and distribute them for free to deserving populations in Eastern Lake County every other week through September of 2025,” according to Dan Cahill Mathews from the Finland Food Chain.
About 30 shares are distributed every other week, and families who are recipients of SNAP or WIC, seniors aging at home, community members who use the Silver Bay Food Shelf, and “anybody who is food insecure” is prioritized.
“This program will benefit residents of Silver Bay, Beaver Bay, Finland, Isabella, and surrounding communities who are significantly struggling to afford groceries and want to eat fresh, local foods. This will also benefit farmers in our region by paying them fairly for their products and keeping more money in our local economy. We are partnering with farms in Finland, Isabella, Silver Creek Township, Two Harbors, and around Duluth to source the food that will be in our shares. We are also partnering with local businesses and organizations such as the Finland Co-op, North Shore Area Partners, and Arrowhead Economic Opportunity Agency (AEOA),” Cahill Mathews explained.
The Minnesota Local Food Purchasing Assistance grant is a one time grant designed to “strengthen local and regional food systems and support local and socially disadvantaged farmers/producers through building and expanding economic opportunities.” These grants were funded by the Minnesota Department of Agriculture as a short term economic investment to “build relationships and capacity for farmers in addition to establishing new food distribution networks,” Cahill Mathews continued.
In 2018, a Bush Foundation grant enabled the Friends of Finland to start the Finland Food Chain as a local and independent food system. In the six years since its inception, the Finland Food Chain has constructed the Finland Wild Rice house, expanded the Finland Farmers Market, coordinated the Poultry to the People Project, created a new farmer apprenticeship, and carried on the Booya Harvest Festival. Friends of Finland remains the fiscal agent for the Finland Food Chain. “We have 5 people on staff of the Finland Food Chain who are all employed as independent contractors and focus on specific projects. Check out FinlandFoodChain.org for how-to articles and videos on growing and harvesting your own food, seasonal recipes, and to stay up-to-date with our current projects,” Cahill Mathews encouraged.
The Finland Food Chain hopes the new food program will be “similar and supplemental to programs like Ruby’s Pantry, and will reach a lot of people who could really benefit from free, fresh, and local foods.” Cahill Mathews explained the sign up for the program is simple. “You can sign up by using the Google form in the QR code from our ad in this issue of the North Shore Journal or on FinlandFoodChain.org You can also sign up by calling (218) 353-1777 and leaving your name and phone number. Signing up will help us stay in contact with folks to let them know what food will be in the shares every other week, share recipes and cooking tips, and where to pick-up.” The Finland Food Chain does not collect personal information to share with the Minnesota Department of Agriculture or any other agency.
Thank you to the Finland Food Chain and the Minnesota Department of Agriculture for providing fresh foods!
