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Eat your veggies! GoFarm makes food equitable and sustainable in Jeffco

Last week, Community First Foundation was honored to be a part of a breakfast hosted by a previous grant recipient, GoFarm. The breakfast was more than just a gathering of community members to enjoy some delicious home-grown food – it was an opportunity to celebrate those in Jeffco and around the state who are tackling food security one local farm at a time.

Community First Foundation is proud to have accepted the GoFarm Community Investment Award. “GoFarm’s efforts to increase food access and strengthen food systems through expanded food procurement, strengthened networks and training for local farmers are vital to building thriving communities,” said MaryBeth Goodwin. “We know that together, we are making good happen.”

GoFarm was founded in 2014 due to a growing need to build a robust local food system that secures fair prices for farmers and makes sustainably-grown food affordable and accessible to everyone in our communities. They have since expanded to four main community-serving programs:

• Farmer Assistance: Support and training for beginning and local farmers who use sustainable growing practices
• Local Food Share: Connecting the community to local agriculture by offering a full season of local, sustainably-grown food
• Community Food Access: Reducing barriers around accessing and affording local food and inviting everyone to be part of their local food system
• Community Education: Educating about the local food system and instilling a greater sense of joy and appreciation for the food on our plates

GoFarm has been doing some serious good in our community! In 2021, they supported 67 local farms and equipped local producers with $323,800. They hosted 65 mobile markets with “Chuck the GoFarm Truck” and made food more accessible for 1,659 households. They also continued their mission to educate the public in sustainable farming by hosting 10 farming workshops and designed a 20-week farm planning curriculum for beginning farmers. All this effort is in addition to their work in the farmer assistance program!

Thursday’s event featured farmers, foodies and supporters of sustainability. Local farmer and award recipient, Hamnei Hoffman with Hoffman Farms, summed up GoFarm’s impact well when she said, “Access to food is available thanks to GoFarm, and we continue to break down those barriers… Without their commitment to feeding the community, we would not be where we are today.” YOU are making good happen GoFarm!

> GoFarm is on ColoradoGives.org all year round! Visit their page