Project Overview
YENC22-186
Project Type: Youth Educator
Funds awarded in 2022: $5,815.00
Projected End Date: 01/15/2024
Grant Recipient:
Allen Neighborhood Center
Region: North Central
State: Michigan
Project Manager:
Kelsi Smith
Allen Neighborhood Center
Information Products
(Video)
Commodities
- Additional Plants: herbs
Practices
- Crop Production: food processing, food processing facilities/community kitchens, food product quality/safety, intercropping, no-till
- Education and Training: demonstration, display, mentoring, networking, on-farm/ranch research, participatory research, youth education
- Farm Business Management: budgets/cost and returns, community-supported agriculture, farmers' markets/farm stands, marketing management
- Natural Resources/Environment: biodiversity
- Pest Management: mulches - general, herbs as pest control
- Production Systems: organic agriculture, permaculture
- Soil Management: composting, organic matter, soil quality/health
- Sustainable Communities: community services, employment opportunities, ethnic differences/cultural and demographic change, food hubs, local and regional food systems, new business opportunities, partnerships, public participation, social networks, sustainability measures, urban agriculture, values-based supply chains
Abstract:
This project will focus on the processes involved in local sustainable agriculture via wholesale market participation. Youths aged 11 to 17 will grow, process, and distribute their own herbal tea blends while learning about the experiences of other local farmers, the resources available to develop agricultural products, and the communities that they serve. Each session will denote how a portion of the local agricultural market operates, from the farm spaces to the endpoint distribution.
Project objectives:
- Provide youth with vocational practice in sustainable agriculture sectors, as well as local networking connections with farmers and distributors.
- Educate youth on sustainability within local food systems in a culturally relevant and economically applicable manner by collaborating with a diverse group of local farmers.
- Prepare young community members for favorable prospective career paths in sustainable agriculture through wholesale marketplace participation with tea blends.
- Allow the community access to locally grown, shelf stable food products that are lacking in current distribution yet in high demand.
- Report on the results of this project for the benefit of community members and other educators.
Any opinions, findings, conclusions, or recommendations expressed in this publication are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily reflect the view of the U.S. Department of Agriculture or SARE.