Hi Friend,
First and foremost, I hope that you are doing all that you can do to remain healthy and safe during the COVID-19 pandemic. The health of our families, friends, and communities is a top concern and priority.
I am also concerned with the strength of our members’ businesses and our organization. I am filled with much hope as well as trepidation for the months ahead. I have hope because in speaking with our members and following news concerning our food system, consumers are increasingly demanding healthy food directly from our small local farmers. The current attention to health has consumers throughout the country wanting to know who produces their food, that it is grown and processed safely, and with a short supply chain. You will likely be hearing more from us on this soon.
Even as consumer demand increases, the legal burdens on small farms continue. USDA Food Safety and Inspection Services (FSIS) inspections are continuing as usual. States and local governments continue to place obstacles and barriers to accessibility of local food. Farm-to-Consumer Legal Defense Fund (FTCLDF) is here to continue to find ways for small farmers to fill the demand and to represent our members as legal obstacles persist.
To do this, we need to maintain and increase memberships so that together, we can overcome these obstacles. If you are not yet a member, please consider membership to support the work of the FTCLDF. You can do this on our website at www.farmtoconsumer.org, or by calling us at (703) 208-FARM (3276).
In early May, we will be rolling out our members’ only webinars as an additional benefit to membership.
We will begin our webinar series on Thursday, May 7, at 10 am Pacific, 12 pm Central, and 1 pm Eastern time. We are excited to announce that the first webinar will be provided by Farm Marketing Expert Charlotte Smith of 3 Cow Marketing. We will hold additional webinars this July, September and November, providing a legal Q/A, a discussion concerning FSIS inspections, and an additional farm marketing program. In 2021, FTCLDF plans to continue offering quarterly webinars.
This first webinar on Thursday, May 7, 2020 is about “3 Steps to Keep Customers Coming Back After the Pandemic is Over”. The webinar is only available to current members. If you’d like to attend the webinar, please sign up or make sure you’re a member by May 1. The webinar will be available to members for replay if you can’t make that day and time.
A quick email or phone call will get the ball rolling!
Email marti@farmtoconsumer.org or call the office at (703) 208-FARM (3276). When you join, please let us know if you will be attending the May 7 webinar. We will email a link to current members for access to the program.
In good health,
Alexia Kulwiec
Executive Director
|
|
