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Saying Goodbye to 2016 with ACEnet!
2016 was a busy year for us here at ACEnet! There are so many things we're proud of, but we'd like to share just a few with you. From our work with healthy food access and farmers markets to key funding partnerships and awards, here is our year in review!
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Healthy Food Access & Farmers Markets
In 2016 ACEnet helped increase local food access in Athens County through our work with the Athens Farmers Market, Nelsonville Farmers Market and Lakeside Farmers Market, which included the creation of marketing materials, incentives programs, special event organization and social media trainings.
Thanks to generous support from the Rocky Community Improvement Fund, marketing materials were created for the Nelsonville Farmers Market and posted within the city of Nelsonville. Materials include two vertical banners posted within high traffic business locations, posters, window stickers and rack cards supported and promoted through the Athens County Visitor's Bureau and a multitude of local businesses within the Nelsonville Community. ACEnet staff provided financial management and social media marketing trainings to the Nelsonville Farmers Market Vendors, worked with Nelsonville businesses to create an incentives program for shopping at the market and secured free Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) equipment for the 2017 farmer's market season.
ACEnet staff coordinated a series of events for the Nelsonville Farmers Market as well, including the Farm Fresh Foods for Your Junior Chefs event. This event collaborated with the Hocking College Epicurean Club and Live Healthy Appalachia to teach kids about healthy foods and healthy cooking.
ACEnet staff has coordinated with the Athens County Health Department and the Ohio Department of Health to implement the "Double Up Produce Perks Program" at the Nelsonville and Athens Farmers Markets. This program allows customers redeeming SNAP benefits to get dollar for dollar match up to ten dollars to spend on fruits and vegetables.
Two billboards are being erected to showcase market hours, location and benefits available at each market. These efforts are being leveraged by a coordinated social media strategy between ACEnet staff and market managers. ACEnet provides social media graphics and tips for posting on market pages while also cross promoting through ACEnet social media outlets.
ACEnet staff helped both the Athens and Nelsonville Farmers Markets take part in the Farmers Market Coalition's national #LoveMyMarket Instagram contest during the 2016 National Farmers Market Week. Staff ordered "I Heart Farmers Markets" temporary tattoos from the FMC, distributed them at both markets, encouraged both farmers and patrons to put them on and get their picture taken for the contest.
The newest market in Athens County is the Lakeside Farmer's Market in Albany. ACEnet has helped the market manager with marketing strategies, a business plan and social media resources.
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Food Policy & Food Microbusinesses
In 2015, thanks to a
Central Appalachian Network small grant, the Appalachian Ohio Kitchen Incubator Network was formed. This networks consists of ACEnet, Youngstown's
Common Wealth Kitchen Incubator, Muskingum County's
FoodWorks Alliance and the
Perry County Community Kitchen. The project's purpose was to bring together four local shared-use kitchens to create a peer-learning community to share best practices and strengthen the network of food hubs in the region to increase distribution and affect local and state food policy.
As a follow-up to the 2015 Small Grant, in May 2016, representatives and business owners from ACEnet and the other three shared-use kitchen incubators traveled to the Museum Gallery of the Columbus Statehouse for a Showcase of Ohio Micro Food Businesses.
This legislative day, done in collaboration with the SBDC based at Columbus State, brought together the state representatives and state senator that represent the four facilities and other state officials to meet clients and to hear about the collective impact of these facilities and was a great opportunity to promote and support the expansion of the Appalachian Ohio Kitchen Incubator Network.
Mad Sweet Heat Candied Jalapeno Relish,
Silverbridge Buckeye Buzz & Jamaican Me Crazy Coffee,
Vino de Milo/JB's Best Salsa,
Oliver Farms BBQ Spice Rub,
Road Hog Willy's Real-Pit Bar-B-Q Sauce,
Lapp It Up Kombucha Tea,
FoodWorks Alliance Pizza Sauce, Doctor Kathy's Trail Mix & an Ohio-shaped magnetic key holder with the ACEnet logo, made from local Athens wood, by
Ohio is Home, all went into a re-usable canvas tote bag from Ohio is Home.
Over 20 of these bags were given to politicians and policy makers who stopped by to meet the entrepreneurs & shared-use kitchen incubator staff.
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ACEnet & the USDA
U. S. Department of Agriculture officials from the agency's national and statewide branches visited Athens County briefly Friday to explore the region's local food system. Val Dolcini, Administrator for USDA Farm Services Agency, Elanor Starmer, Administrator for USDA Agricultural Market Service, Steve Maurer, State Executive Director of USDA Farm Services Agency, and Tony Logan, USDA Ohio Rural Development State Director began their tour in Nelsonville, at ACEnet's Nelsonville Business Center & Food Hub.
After Nelsonville, the group continued to Athens to tour ACEnet's Food Ventures Center. Our Director of Programs & Business Development, Leslie Schaller, and our Executive Director, Larry Fisher were on hand to walk them through our commercial, shared-use kitchen, warehouse storage space and thermal processing room.
The next stop was to tour graduated ACEnet client
Little Fish Brewing Company and sample their new beer, "No Fracking Way," which is the first beer ever to be brewed with all Ohio ingredients, including Ohio-grown hops. While there, the USDA officials got to meet with a few more of ACEnet's clients and partners. Athens Mayor, Steve Patterson also stopped by to say hello!
The last stop on the tour was for dinner at locavore restaurant,
Casa Nueva, which is a worker-owned restaurant dedicated to sourcing locally & seasonally, and also utilizes ACEnet's commercial kitchen. The USDA group was able to meet and chat with more ACEnet partner organizations, including the
Athens County Convention & Visitor's Bureau.
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ACEnet & the 32nd Annual OCDCA Conference
In 2016, along with other local community development corporations, ACEnet had the pleasure of helping plan the 32nd annual Ohio CDC Association conference, which had never been held in Athens before. ACEnet helped plan, and lead, the Local Libations tour and the Arts & Incubation tour. The Local Libations tour visited
Pleasant Hill Vineyards LLC,
Little Fish brewing Company and the
West End Ciderhouse. The Arts & Incubation tour visited the Ohio University Innovation Center and ACEnet in Athens, and then in Nelsonville the tour visited
Stuart's Opera House and the
Nelsonville Emporium.
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Sara Marrs-Maxfield of Athens Business Remixed addresses
the tour group at
Little Fish Brewing
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Along with planning and leading tours, ACEnet also participated in workshops. Director of Programs, Leslie Schaller, planned and led the panel, "Why Localism Matters," along with members of Regionomics LLC, the Athens County Convention & Visitors Bureau and Casa Nueva Restaurant & Cantina. The panel illustrated how non-profits, tourism professionals, entrepreneurs and dedicated localists are creating new entrepreneurial opportunities for people, place and profit and showcased local initiatives such as the
30 Mile Meal regional brand and
Ohio Brew Week that celebrate the essence of Athens County, our homegrown assets and innovative entrepreneurs. Special Projects Coordinator, Rosemary Roe, participated in the panel, "
The Neighborhood Grocer: The Intersection of Food Security & Community Development." During this dynamic workshop, panelists fielded many questions from the audience while discussing support services for healthy food access initiatives, private and public collaborations aimed to increase healthy food habits, financing options for grocers in food deserts and economically distressed areas, and shared stories of current and past programming activities supporting increased access to healthy foods.
ACEnet & the 5th Annual Real Food * Real Local Conference
The Real Food Real Local Conference is an annual event put on by the
Real Food Real Local Institute, which is a partnership between ACEnet and the Athens County Convention & Visitors Bureau. The event brings together innovators in local food economies, from entrepreneurs, funders and experts to nonprofits, advocates, and conscious consumers. This year, a wide variety of discussions occurred surrounding local food efforts, including distribution, marketing, policy, funding and new models for operation.
ACEnet Director of Programs, Leslie Schaller, facilitated the conference, introducing panels on food distribution, kitchen incubators, farmers markets, food tourism, 30 Mile Meal branding, and renewable energy. One track focused on a new and upcoming model for grocery and retail stores functioning like extended farmers markets, selling only locally grown and produced foods. Another track focused on shared-use facilities helping local food businesses grow by renting kitchen space, hosting cooking competitions, or providing technical assistance to new business owners. A food distribution panel served as a collaborative conversation to improve the distribution in the "Local Food Corridor Project" planning to connect Ohio, Virginia, and West Virginia.
Guest speakers included representatives from the USDA and
SCALE, a rural economic development group. The wide array of topics presented brought many different attendees throughout the three days. Business owners, 30 Mile Meal brand supporters, policy advocates, government employees, farmers, non-profit staff and AmeriCorps members came together to celebrate the local food movement, to network, innovate and create economic opportunities for all. Representatives from Kentucky, Tennessee, West Virginia and communities around Ohio sharing models of best practices and challenges left attendees thinking about returning to their community and continuing to build economic solutions around the local food movement.
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Funding Partnerships & Awards
ACEnet staff members are very grateful to all of our funders and collaborative partners in 2016. The last 12 months have been extremely productive supporting new initiatives, facility upgrade projects and expanded training and technical assistance services across Ohio and Central Appalachia.
The USDA's Department of
Ohio Rural Development and the
Osteopathic Heritage Foundation of Nelsonville have been key investors in expanding our Food Ventures Center and equipping the Nelsonville Food Hub to increase opportunities for food entrepreneurs, farmers and social enterprises. An
Appalachian Regional Commission project secured funding in partnership with
Appalachian Sustainable Development will provide additional funds for the Nelsonville Food Hub to meet the expanding distribution corridor of Ohio products into markets in West Virginia and Central Appalachia. With improved incubation services and network development, ACEnet and our partners are building a local economy encouraging healthy foods and rural livelihoods for all.
ACEnet worked a lot with the Nelsonville Farmers Market this year thanks to funding provided by the Rocky Community Improvement Fund. RCIF's mission is to enhance the quality of life for the people of Nelsonville and the surrounding communities by promoting philanthropy among Rocky Brand associates, building an endowment and awarding grants. RCIF has awarded over $320,000 to area non-profits since May of 2009.
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Did you know that you can help support the work we do here at ACEnet, while doing your holiday shopping, without spending any extra money?
When you go to
Amazon Smile, it's shopping on Amazon, but supports community organizations & nonprofits! Sign in or create an Amazon account and Amazon Smile will donate a percentage of your purchases every time you shop! We truly appreciate your support!
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Have a safe & happy New Year!
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94 Columbus Rd, Athens, OH 45701
740-592-3854
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