Valley Stewardship Network ● 124 ½ South Main Street ● Viroqua, WI 54665
Nicole Penick 608.637.3615 ● vsngeneral@gmail.com ● www.kickapoovsn.org
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:
Local Food Community Celebration & Vernon County Premier of Critically Acclaimed Movie FRESH
The Valley Stewardship Network’s Food and Farm Initiative is partnering with the Viroqua Food Co-op to host FRESH, a
movie by Ana Joanes. In addition to the movie, be the first to hear about several exciting new projects in our region that
are promoting local foods and building a healthy food system in southwest Wisconsin. Join us in celebration on Saturday,
February 6th from 3-6pm at Green Man Music Hall in downtown Viroqua, WI at 215 S Main Street. In support of the Food
and Farm initiative the suggested donation is $10 at the door.
We will be serving a winter local foods dinner with wine from Vernon Vineyards, coffee generously donated from Kickapoo
Coffee and local beer served by Cafe OZ. Wine and beer will be provided for an additional cost.
Then take your seats as the movie FRESH "celebrates the farmers, thinkers and business people across America who
are reinventing our food system. Forging healthier, sustainable alternatives, they offer a practical vision of our food and
our planet's future." Learn more at Freshthemovie.com
Following the movie there will be a FRESH Endeavors presentation. Come listen to local FRESH entrepreneurs and
volunteers who are working on new food system projects sure to change the way we as local eaters think about our food
system. You will surely be inspired by all the good work taking place here in our region!
Sue Noble, Executive Director of the Vernon Economic Development Association, and Jessica Luhning, Grant Writing
Consultant for Earth Vision LLC and Board Member of the Valley Stewardship Network will provide details about their
recently funded Buy Local, Buy Wisconsin Grant Project. The project will fund the start-up of a Western Wisconsin Local
Food Cooperative. The project is a partnership of the Valley Stewardship Network Food & Farm Initiative, Organic Valley,
Western Technical College, Vernon Memorial Hospital, University of Wisconsin - La Crosse, Three Rivers Waldorf School,
Pleasant Ridge Waldorf School, Viroqua Area Schools, Keewaydin Organics, Harvest Moon Farms, Harmony Valley
Farm, Z & E Farm, Driftless Organics, Westby Co-op Creamer and Premier Meats, Inc. As the project grows more
institutional partners and local farmers will be encouraged to participate.
Jamie Johnson, President of Heirloom, LLC will present plans for the launch of Edible Madison, a quarterly publication
that will celebrate the abundance of local foods in Southern Wisconsin. Edible Madison aims to educate Wisconsin
residents and travelers about opportunities to participate in the region’s dynamic local food movement. The publication will
be packed with stories about the agri-culture, food and farmers of the region and will establish Southern Wisconsin as a
distinct culinary region within the national network of Edible Communities publications.
Nicole Penick, Food and Farm Initiative Coordinator, will be sharing the highlights of their pilot project Kickapoo Harvest:
Gleaning for Healthy Communities as well as their plans for the 2010 growing season. The Food and Farm Initiative
provides a Direct Marketers' Guide each year for Vernon County and has published a Community Food Assessment
covering Vernon County and an economic food assessment covering Vernon, Crawford, Monroe and Richland Counties.
Kile Martz will present about Rhubarb a new retail space and community kitchen in downtown Viroqua. Rhubarb features
a baking and canning kitchen that will be geared towards people wanting to start a value added food business. The retail
space will feature food, gifts, and artisan works from the Driftless Region including those produced in the kitchen. “Our
area is rich in agricultural and artistic heritage, so we decided to bring it all together in a celebration of our area.” Rhubarb
is right next to Driftless Fair Traders on the first floor of the Hotel Fortney.
Bjorn Bergman, Vernon Area AmeriCorps Farm to School member and Kathleen Hein from Crawford Area Farm to School
will be speaking about their work in school districts throughout the region. Bjorn will share stories from the Harvest
Challenge event, teaching in the classrooms and his upcoming projects for the 2010 growing season. Kathleen will share
her experience in starting the Local Harvest project which showcases a local food item each month on the school lunch
menu. Farm to School is a nation wide initiative to bring fresh food from local farms into school lunches while educating
children about the benefits of local foods.
Laura Brown, Crawford County Community Development Educator, will share the new projects that are supporting local
food efforts. These projects include Driftless Wisconsin Grown, a coalition of producers and consumers working together
around food and farm issues, Plant Your Roots a grazing initiative, two new community kitchens in Prairie du Chien and
Gays Mills and a new farmer's market coupon program.
~People of the Kickapoo Valley working together to promote good stewardship of the watershed.~