When it comes to putting our definition of Healthy Food into practice, there is an important thing to keep in mind: while there are some general characteristics that are common to foods we call “healthy†(such as nutrient-rich and low in added fats, sugars, or salts), everyone is going to have a different approach to…
Over the last six months we have been highlighting an affordable farm market that is a part of the HAELFS Collaborative. HAELFS stands for Health, Access, and Equity in our Local Food System. The Collaborative is finishing its third year and includes five pantry resource centers. Since the collaborative has begun, each partner site has…
West Michigan is known for its deeply rooted and abundant philanthropy. In the food access sector we have hundreds of non-profits, churches, and agencies working to address hunger and food insecurity via an emergency charity food system that is now over four decades old.  As the global pandemic hit our local community, food access organizations that existed before COVID-19, and those that…
We wanted to share a few resources our Good Food team have read, and are talking about in our community! The two books below are some of our Good Food System Initiatives go-to resources when talking about how we can move forward from a charity mindset, transforming how we think about food pantries in our…
Cultivating solutions to food insecurity is far from a single-organization job. It requires a community of activists for the good food system. On Tuesday, April 11, Access of West Michigan hosted the Food Justice Training event to promote greater awareness of “good food system” values. In attendance were 45 members and leaders of local organizations working…