Miami River Foods Newsletter - March 18, 2010 - The next beta test, social media, and field trips!
The Miami River Foods Project Newsletter - March 18th, 2010
Please forward this email to help us spread the word. Thanks!
- Beta Test 2.1 begins on Saturday!
- Miami River Foods debuts on Facebook and Twitter
- March 7th community co-op meeting a success!
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Local news
- Laura in Rwanda this week
- A new home for the Project
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Mark your calendar!
- Farmer's Share Breakfast on Saturday
- Bloomingfoods Field Trip - April 17th
- Co-hosting WACO's local food festival!
Hello, Miami River Foodies! It's been an exciting few weeks since our last newslettery. We're thankful that the "Spring switch" has finally been turned on. But support for a sustainable future is growing even faster than the tulips and daffodils! We're now 349 supporters strong! And this week, we sincerely hope you'll help us continue to grow the local market for local foods by joining us for ...
Beta Test 2.1, open March 20th - 24th!
We heard great feedback from our 56 brave Beta Families who made last month such a success. They loved the local and organic staples, à la carte menu, and family vibe. Thank you for all of your help (and patience!) as we design the systems that will power our future efforts.
Beta Test 2.1 will be like BT 2.0 - done better! What's in the box? Local foods that most everyone needs, plus some great organic and socially responsible staples. Check out how we're improving our systems and processes this time around- and how you can help!
Orders will be open between Saturday, March 20th and Wednesday, March 24th. Please check out the new Beta Test page on our website for details, and email info@miamiriverfoods.org to sign up!
Will you 'Friend' the Miami River Foods Project?
Thanks to a (gentle) push from some web-savvy supporters, we've finally made the big jump to Facebook and Twitter!
From now on, evrytng wil b shrtr n fastr, including our newsletter! We're looking forward to sending more updates through social media and fewer through email. Jake also continues to add great new features to the website!
Please check out our Facebook page and Twitter page to follow along. Follow us, friend us, and share us with your friends to help us grow!
"They're stunning!"
We have been blessed the last several months to have Shauna Jackson play such a critical role to the development of the Project's theme, character, and identity. This manifests itself in some very subtle ways, but also some ways that are very easy to see -- like our beautiful logo that she designed for the Project.
This time, Shauna has outdone herself.
To the right is the new logo design for Stone's Throw Market, the name of our offshoot project for the local foods box. (Click here if you can't see it.) Beta Testers, you'll be seeing this on a gorgeous, glossy label on your next box.
This is possible through two very generous donations -- materials from Spinnaker Coating, Shauna's company, and printing by Creative Labels, Inc, both of Troy. A very big Project thank you to Spinnaker Coating and Creative Labels, both for your incredible generosity as well as your infnite patience while we hammered out the final design. The labels are truly beautiful.
We'd also like to thank Brian Raison and the OSU Extension Office for hosting a focus group discussion to help us test a few ideas, and to everyone who participated in the focus group. Thank you for your feedback! What a wonderful success this is for our whole team!
On our way to a co-op!
We've made some big steps toward our ultimate goal of founding a brick-and-mortar cooperative grocery! On March 7th, we gathered at Winans' in Troy to learn more about the next steps of the co-op organizing process. The energy in the room was tangible, and a team of supporters began to sign up for specific roles in the organizing effort!
Missed the meeting but still want to help us build a cooperative grocery?
- Check out the Food Co-op 500 video about the impact of a co-op in our community
- Read about the 4 Cornerstones in 3 Stages model of cooperative development
- Stay tuned for a recording of Laura's presentation - coming soon!
- Email info@miamiriverfoods.org and let us know how you'd like to help out!
LOCAL NEWS
Local avocados and Rwandan co-ops
Laura loves avocados ... luckily, they're local this week! She's in Rwanda through the end of March visiting Rwanda Knits, the economic empowerment project where she worked in 2008-09.
Cooperatives are becoming a crucial engine of economic growth in the developing world. In Rwanda, Laura helped local women entrepreneurs realize their economic potential by learning to work collectively. Now, women who used to earn less than $1 a day are able to provide for their families - thanks to cooperative business!
RK supports 30 knitting cooperatives all over the country, and Laura's loving the chance to catch up with old friends. Read more about her trip on the blog.
A new home for Miami River Foods
A huge thanks to Beta Testers Lance and Jody England, who are generously hosting a new Miami River Foods Project workshop and office space in downtown Troy! The fact that we outgrew our previous office space (i.e. the living room) in a mere 6 months only goes to show how quickly the Project is growing!
MARK YOUR CALENDAR
Farmer's Share Breakfast on Saturday!
Did you know that farmers typically get less than 20 cents of every dollar we spend on food? Learn more about our mixed-up food system - and how local food is more fair - at the 4th annual Farmer's Share Breakfast, sponsored by the Miami County Farm Bureau and Ohio State Extension.
This fun event will take place on Saturday, March 20th from 7:30 - 10:30am at the Miami County Fairgrounds. Please email miam@postoffice.ag.ohio-state.edu for more information.
Field trip to Bloomingfoods - April 17th
Bloomingfoods Market and Deli is one of our favorite co-ops in the country, and we've been invited to come learn how they work their magic. Please mark your calendar for a field trip!
Bloomingfoods Co-op Field Trip
On April 17th, 2010
We'll caravan to Bloomington, Indiana (map)
Families welcome! Details TBD
WACO local food festival
We've been talking with our friends at WACO museum about making their annual local music festival a local foods extravaganza.
Would you like to help bring local organic producers to a WACO-Miami River Foods Festival on May 22nd? Please email info@miamiriverfoods.org to join the event team!
Again, thanks for all you do to support local foods in our community!
- Laura and Jake, on behalf of the whole team
The Miami River Foods Project
http://www.MiamiRiverFoods.org
www.twitter.com/miamiriverfoods