San Luis Valley Local Foods Coalition
"Foster an equitable local food system that restores the health of the people, community, economy and ecosystem."
Join Us for the 8th Annual V.E.G.I. Kick-Off!
Reserve tickets by March 25th by visiting www.lapuente.net/news or call 567-201-3324.
Celebrating a "Taste of Place" in Alamosa
 Our local restaurants are the anchors of our community. We appreciate your hard work to provide exemplary social and dining opportunities in our community.
We would like to invite you to a convening of Alamosa restaurant owners and Alamosa Local Foods Local Places Stakeholders. In 2017 and 2018 the stakeholders worked on a strategic plan to invigorate our economy with a "Taste of Place" where tourists and local families can enjoy the taste of our regional farm produce on their plates when they dine.
The Local Food Local Places plan ended up with 18 strategies #1 of which was to vitalize our downtown with the story of the food on the plate as it relates to our agricultural region. We also have several others goals to support the Alamosa Farmers Market, walking and biking, local art and local music and recreational activities. You can receive a copy of the plan in its entirety at the meeting.
We invite you to our workshop from 9:30am to 11am in the Alamosa City Council Chambers on Wednesday February 27th located at 300 Hunt Avenue in Alamosa to explore the topic of Alamosa as a destination community known for its farm to table, local "terroir" - the characteristic taste and flavor of our region expressed in our restaurants.
We will feature the Valley Roots Food Hub - our own region's aggregation and distribution service for family farms in the SLV and Southern Colorado present to share what the VRFH has to offer as well as gather input from the experts - the restaurant owners and managers. For more information call 718-539-5606.
View the Local Foods, Local Places Technical Assistance Program »»
State of the Basin Symposium - Saturday, February 23rd, 2019
Join Us at Adams State University for the first Rio Grande Basin Symposium for an informative day of talks and interaction to explore solutions and paths toward a sustainable water future.
Register for this Free Event at https://tinyurl.com/StateoftheBasin View Larger Event Poster »» 
The Green Gold of San Luis
Enjoy this historical video shared by the Valley Roots Food Hub from their recent February 12th newsletter.
Vacuum Cooling in Agriculture
The agriculture of the San Luis Valley is old, time tested, and proven. The town of San Luis has the oldest continuously-used water right in the State starting in 1852. Folks have been producing quality products here for a long time and it just keeps getting better.
Check out this old video about the lettuce production during the 1950s. For all of us tasked with keeping produce cool, check out these vacuum cooled lettuce tubes and ice packed rail way cars! Pull a vacuum on lettuce heads and the water boils away which is evaporative cooling!! View Historic Video »»
LFC Coalition Meeting Outcome in Conejos
Agricultural producers from Conejos County gathered in La Jara Thursday night, along with the San Luis Valley Local Foods Coalition (LFC), to discuss local agricultural issues. This meeting, hosted by LFC and Cactus Hill Farm, was an opportunity to further foster the relationship between agricultural producers and the work of the Local Foods Coalition. The Local Foods Coalition serves the entire San Luis Valley and works to create an equitable local food system in the San Luis Valley in partnership with producers and consumers. Community ideas, producers' experiences, and challenges inform the strategic direction of the Coalition as it seeks to support community farms, increase farm-to-table practices and educate the public about the advantages of buying local. The many projects of the LFC include Farm to School in partnership with all 14 school districts of the SLV, the Rio Grande Farm Park, the Cooking Matters education program as well as the Valley Roots Food Hub which has helped connect food producers with markets around the San Luis Valley, Salida and other parts of New Mexico and Colorado. View Community Meeting Info »»
  
Liza Marron recognized for the 2018 Dr. Virgilio Licona Community Health Leadership Award!
 Last week, the Foundation recognized Liza Marron for the 2018 Dr. Virgilio Licona Community Health Leadership Award at the Colorado Health Symposium. This annual award program seeks to recognize Coloradans who are finding innovative and effective strategies to overcoming community health barriers across the state.
A true champion for social justice, Liza has relentlessly shined a light on community health issues by raising the voices of those left in the shadows. Throughout her career, Liza has fought to bring health in reach for more Coloradans by working to develop programs and policies that advance food access and security, especially for migrant workers. Of her many successes, Liza has also worked on a mentoring program for asset-challenged youth, that inspired her to become a licensed foster care home, specializing in hard-to-place youth.
 Today, as the founding director of the San Luis Valley Local Foods Coalition (SLVLFC), she is helping to foster an equitable food system that restores the health of the people, community, economy and ecosystem. Key programs and projects underway at SLVLFC include the Valley Roots Food Hub aggregation and distribution enterprise complete with commercial kitchen for value-added production; the Rio Grande Farm Park, a farmer incubator and recreation park; Cooking Matters program that teaches families to cook healthy on a budget; and the San Luis Valley Farm-to-School Task Force.
The award program is named after the late Dr. Virgilio Licona, who passed in 2016. Dr. Licona worked to improve the health of Coloradans most in need, focusing his expertise as a physician in rural health care delivery and migrant health. A nationally recognized advocate for social justice, he brought a critical voice to some of the most important conversations and decisions related to how we can bring health in reach for all Coloradans. Learn more about the award program and Liza's work to enrich healthy minds, bodies and communities.
Read more about the Community Health Leadership Award at the Valley Courier.
Interested in getting more involved with Double Up Food Bucks?
 LiveWell Colorado is actively working to transform access to nutritious food in the entire state. One of its major programs, Double Up Food Bucks (DUFB), allows SNAP recipients to receive $1 for every $1 spent on SNAP-eligible food, up to $20. These "double up food bucks" can then be used to purchase fresh Colorado-grown fruits and vegetables. DUFB was started in 2016 and has helped people bring home more healthy fruits and vegetables while supporting local farmers. LiveWell Colorado is taking DUFB to the next level and is looking to develop and increase community engagement.
In order to do this, LiveWell will be working with partners across the state to develop the Community Food Advocates program. This program works with local ambassadors to share the DUFB program with community members and organizations to increase participation.
We are actively seeking current or past recipients of SNAP and DUFB participants as Community Food Advocates. We are currently looking for Advocates in Southwest Colorado (Montezuma and La Plata Counties, with some outreach in Archuleta and Dolores Counties), Denver, Garfield County, Montrose County, and the San Luis Valley.
Community Food Advocates will partner with community members to support the DUFB program. Advocates will promote and increase community participation in the program. Stipends are provided.
For more information, please review the additional PDF page »»
Tierra Vida Farm - High Production Micro Farm Presentation 2018
 
Daniel Fullmer shares his insightful presentation using raised beds and compost in the Desert Southwest with emphasis on practices of minimal to no tillage, composting, cover cropping, rotational grazing, intercropping, and transplanting.
View Tierra Vida Farm Presentation »»
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Local Foods, Local Places Workshop |
Join Us on Wednesday February 27th for LFLP Workshop from 9:30am to 11am in the Alamosa City Council Chambers at 300 Hunt Avenue in Alamosa.
A convening of Alamosa restaurant owners and Alamosa Local Foods Local Places Stakeholders to explore the topic of Alamosa as a destination community known for its farm to table, local "terroir" - the characteristic taste and flavor of our region expressed in our restaurants.
View the Local Foods, Local Places Technical Assistance Program »»
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8th Annual VEGI Kick-Off! |
Join Us on March 28th to show your support for the Valley Educational Garden Initiative. Featuring a Farm-to-Table Dinner at The Barn at La Manzanilla.
View Event Poster »»
Reserve tickets »»
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