monthly news from ASAP    |   DECEMBER 2021    |    asapconnections.org

Happy Holidays from the ASAP Staff!
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The ASAP staff gathers for a retreat each December to reflect on the successes and challenges of the past year and to plan for the new one. We were thrilled to be back in person this year at the Creekside Farm Education Center : [link removed] after a virtual retreat in 2020!
 
As we move into our 20th year as an organization, we're thinking a lot about ASAP's origins and how our work today is rooted—even as we look to new and innovative ways to work with farmers, educators, and our community. Over the next year, we'll be sharing stories from ASAP's first two decades and how farming and the local food movement in our region have changed dramatically over that time. But we're also looking forward to some new or expanded initiatives in the next year, including:
Returning to more in-person events, including the Business of Farming Conference : [link removed] on Feb. 26.Facilitating farmer-to-farmer learning sessions, particularly through the Appalachian Grown Farmer Resiliency Project (see below).Scaling up our pilot Farm Fresh Prescription Program and working with more community and health partners.Building more farm-to-school partnerships through our Growing Minds Farm to School Jumpstart Grants : [link removed] and expanded Growing Minds @ Community College : [link removed] training opportunities. We couldn't accomplish this work without your continued support : [link removed]! We are so grateful to work in these communities and with all of you.



Appalachian Grown Farmer Resiliency Project

"The day I watched the storm take our farm and wash it away was devastating. I wandered up and down the rows of damaged crops, wondering, "Why did we get so unlucky?" Then we received notification of the ASAP grant, which helped us cover the cost for a water pump, and the information for secondary assistance. We know it's a late to restart, but even a small profit will help get through the remainder of the year."—Frances Montgomery, Montgomery Sky Farm 
With the support of our community : [link removed], ASAP was able act quickly to award immediate needs grants to more than 20 farms affected by Tropical Storm Fred. These grants helped farmers replace crops with seeds and starts; repair damaged equipment and fencing; replace gravel on washed away roads; pay labor for clean up; and more.
 

Now, to better understand how to support farms in planning for and recovering from natural disasters, ASAP has developed the Appalachian Grown Farmer Resiliency Project. The project goals are twofold: 1) to help farms hardest hit by flooding in 2021 access the resources and support they need to recover, and 2) to build farm resilience to plan for, respond to, and recover from unforeseen disasters through creating and sharing resources, case studies, and farmer-to-farmer learning opportunities.
 

Up to 10 farms will be selected to participate in the first year of the project and will receive a $5,000 stipend. Qualifying farms be Appalachian Grown certified. For more information about the project, contact David Smiley : mailto:[email protected] .



Last-Minute Holiday Gifting
: [link removed] need a last-minute gift or two? We can help!

A CSA share : [link removed] is the holiday gift that gives and gives again, providing a weekly box crammed full of seasonal produce, meats, flowers, and more. Search the Local Food Guide for CSA farms : [link removed] market tokens make great stocking stuffers and let the recipient select the products they want the most. ASAP Farmers Market : [link removed] will continue on Saturday mornings, January to March, at the A-B Tech Asheville campus, before returning downtown this spring. Tokens are good for either location. Purchase a handful this Saturday at the last market of 2021.Have a farmer on your list? A Business of Farming Conference registration : [link removed] (Feb. 26 in Asheville) lets them know you support the success of their farm business.For more ideas, explore local artisan makers, farmers markets, farm experiences, and more in ASAP's online Local Food Guide : [link removed].



Reminder: Update Your Local Food Guide Listing
: [link removed] up! The deadline for updating your information for ASAP's annual Local Food Guide is Jan. 31. But wait! Does your farm have a CSA? Make sure you update by Dec. 31 to be listed for free in Full Share, our CSA guide. You can do it yourself online (login here : [link removed]) or over the phone by calling the ASAP office at 828-236-1282. 
 
ASAP updates the Local Food Guide annually so that the community can stay up to date on how to find Appalachian Grown food and farms. (Check out our abbreviated 2021 Local Food Guide here : [link removed].)

Have a new farm, restaurant, retail outlet, or other locally sourcing food business that you want to be listed? Go to appalachiangrown.org : [link removed] and click Get in the Guide. An online listing is free.



Come Work with Us!
ASAP is currently hiring for a new program coordinator for our Local Food Campaign. The program coordinator will assist in the development and implementation of farm and partner outreach and engagement programming. : [link removed] full job descriptions and application instructions here. : [link removed] Applications are accepted only by email. Please do not call or come by the office.



FACES OF LOCAL
Emily Jackson

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Emily Jackson, founder and director of ASAP’s Growing Minds : [link removed] program will retire at the end of the year. For our Faces of Local interview this month, we asked her to reflect on her time at ASAP and the growth the farm to school movement over the past two decades. 
 
Can you talk about how Growing Minds came to exist?
 

I was teaching second and third grade at Hazelwood Elementary in Haywood County and I started a garden. Even children in this rural community didn’t know where their food came from. I was so ga-ga for gardens, I thought maybe it’s just me. But the next year I involved other teachers who were equally excited. We found all kinds of ways to integrate the garden into our curriculum. So ASAP wrote a grant to the Community Foundation of Western North Carolina, which provided funding for me to go across WNC developing more school gardens. Wherever there was interest, that’s where I went. Some of those earliest schools were West Buncombe Elementary and a school in Yancey County with only 45 students. At this point, 2002, it was just me going around helping people see the potential. I held community meetings, helped raise money, and enlisted partners to build garden beds. Then in 2004 we partnered with a national organization (that would go on to co-found the National Farm to School Network : [link removed]) to put on a workshop for parents, teachers, and school nutrition staffs. Following that, we started doing more full-on farm to school work. 
 

Farm to school programs around the country have grown significantly in the past two decades. What has your experience been as someone who was there at the forefront of the movement?
 

When we were regional lead for National Farm to School Network, starting around 2006, I could tell you everybody doing farm to school work in those six states (Kentucky, Tennessee, North Carolina, South Carolina, and Georgia). It grew so much and so fast that within three or four years that was impossible. The National Farm to School Network made it a goal to enlist state agencies, the Departments of Agriculture and Education. They had an early focus on policy, such as mandatory farm to school funding, getting farm to school month established. That really helped set the stage for growth.
 

With Growing Minds, we were always extremely mindful of who we were working with. We wanted to create resources and trainings that made it as easy as possible for schools to implement. We wanted to be respectful of the families we reached, making sure ingredients were inexpensive and easy to find. We also really wanted to capture that awe and wonder for the children and celebrate the messiness and beauty of gardens, because everything else about school is so tidy.  
 

Along the way, you determined that Growing Minds could have greater impact with an upstream approach. Why?
 

We were working with teachers and school nutrition directors that had already developed strategies. As a teacher, you’ve devoted time and investment, usually your own money, into collecting resources and books. Once you’ve done that, it’s super easy to get into a groove. We were asking them to do something new. We thought if we could bring this to people with fresh eyes before they got into that groove, that might be a spark. We developed a pilot in 2009 that became our Growing Minds @ University : [link removed] program, working with dietetic intern programs at three universities in WNC to train future dietitians to incorporate farm to school into their work. We started doing something similar for future preschool teachers in 2018, working with early care and education programs at community colleges : [link removed] around the state. 
 

Growing Minds is unique as a farm to school program that is part of an organization with a mission to support farmers. How has that affected the work?
 

It grounds us in a way that a lot of other farm to school programs, especially coming from the health side, don’t have. They don’t always understand the impact on farmers. ASAP is very dedicated to finding most lucrative market for farmers. We don’t put all of our eggs in the procurement basket because we don’t think it’s the best market available to farmers. 
 

Is it possible to pick a favorite memory during your time at ASAP?
 

One of my most favorite memories is from when we were working in a school in Mitchell County. There was a teacher who was just a rock star. She really embraced farm to school and integrated it into the curriculum. We took took two classes to Green Toe Ground Farm : [link removed]. We spent the day looking at the farm talking to the farmers, Nicole and Gaelen. We helped them plant strawberries and harvested vegetables. The next day we took all that food we had harvested and worked with the students to prepare it, dicing and cutting up the veggies. A chef from Asheville came up and helped us pull it all together into meal. We invited the students and their families to come back to school for dinner. The nutrition staff let us use the cafeteria, so we were behind the line making the food. The kids served as the waitstaff and told the story of how they had harvested it and how it was grown. A local musician played in the cafeteria. The farmers were there. Everyone came together and the children were the central piece of it. The karma of that school cafeteria was changed forever. Getting the kids be able to see it all the way through in just a few days back to back was a great experience. 
 

What are you going to do next? 
 

Children’s books were a big part of our the Growing Minds resources we developed and I still love that. So probably volunteer to work with kids with reading. I’ve had lots of ideas over the years of writing my own children’s book. That idea is still there. I’m going to travel with my husband and just have time with friends and family.

RECIPE OF THE MONTH

Winter Squash Tacos with Radish-Cabbage Slaw

Find winter squash, radishes, and cabbage at farmers markets right now.

Ingredients:
1 winter squash, such as butternut, acorn, or kabocha, peeled and cubed6 tablespoons olive oil (divided1/2 teaspoon cumin1/2 teaspoon chile powder or paprika1 small head of red cabbage, thinly sliced3-4 radishes, thinly sliced1/4 red onion, thinly sliced1/2 cup cilantro leaves, roughly chopped or torn1 jalapeño, diced (optional)1 lime, juiced (divided)1 teaspoon white wine vinegar2 ripe avocados
1 teaspoon garlic powder
salt and pepper (to taste)
corn or flour tortillas
Directions:
Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Toss peeled and cubed squash with 1 tablespoon olive oil, cumin, chile powder, salt, and pepper. Spread out on a baking sheet. Bake for about 30 minutes, until cubes are starting to caramelize, stirring halfway through.Toss cabbage, radishes, red onion, cilantro, and jalapeño in a large bowl. Whisk together half of lime juice, white wine vinegar, and 5 tablespoons olive oil. Season with salt and pepper. Toss cabbage mixture with dressing.Peel and mash avocados in a medium bowl with the remaining lime juice, garlic powder, and salt to taste. Fill tortillas with a spoonful of squash, guacamole, and cabbage slaw. Enjoy!

PHOTOGRAPHER SPOTLIGHT
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Our December photo of the month comes from Mary Squire of Herb Mountain Farm : [link removed]. The season is wrapping up and planning for the next one begins. Support local food, strong farms, and healthy communities by making a donation to ASAP : [link removed] or by getting involved : [link removed] in our work and events.

MEDIA HIGHLIGHTS
“It’s hard to remember what it was like 20 years ago, but there was not much that you could buy that was grown locally. When we started promoting the idea of local food, it was pretty new. Asheville’s growth and development and the whole region around food and its connection to farms all developed together."

—ASAP founder and co-director Charlie Jackson, interviewed by the Mountain Xpress : [link removed] about ASAP's origins and the local food movement 
 

“We couldn’t be more excited for the future of ASAP under Molly [Nicholie]’s continued leadership. Molly has firsthand, boots-on-the-ground experience in each of ASAP’s programs—as well as experience as a farmer and classroom teacher. I couldn’t imagine someone better suited for the job.”
—Carrie Keller, ASPA's incoming president of the board for 2022, quoted in an Asheville Citizen Times : [link removed] food news roundup about ASAP's leadership transition

CONNECT WITH US
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asapconnections.org : [link removed] | growing-minds.org : [link removed]
appalachiangrown.org : [link removed] | fromhere.org : [link removed]
 
Donate to support local food, strong farms, and healthy communities today! : [link removed]
 
ASAP's mission is to help local farms thrive, link farmers to markets and supporters, and build healthy communities through connections to local food.



ASAP (Appalachian Sustainable Agriculture Project) - 306 W. Haywood Street - Asheville - NC - 28801

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