MISSION STATEMENT
The Davidson County Local Food Network (DCFLN) is dedicated to promoting community health and strengthening the community through an equitable and economically viable local food system. We strive to ensure affordable access to local food, encourage sustainable agriculture practices, support farmers, educate the community about local foods, engage with diverse stakeholders, and ultimately improve community health by fostering a thriving local food economy.
Our Goals:
Affordability and Accessibility: DCLFN is committed to ensuring that local food is affordable and accessible to all community members. We believe that everyone should have access to fresh, locally sourced products, fostering a healthier and more sustainable community.
Responsible and Sustainable Agriculture: We strive to encourage responsible and sustainable agricultural practices, fostering a robust farming community. By promoting climate resilience and environmentally-friendly farming methods, we aim to ensure the long-term health and resilience of our local food system.
Support for Farmers: DCLFN is dedicated to facilitating support for beginner farmers and expanding existing farms to increase the supply of farm-fresh products. We aim to create a thriving environment for farmers, fostering growth and sustainability in the local agricultural sector.
Education and Awareness: Our mission includes educating and increasing awareness of local foods, thereby boosting consumer demand in Davidson County and the greater Triad region. By providing information and promoting the benefits of locally sourced products, we aim to create a knowledgeable and engaged consumer base.
Community Engagement: DCLFN seeks to engage local government, institutional, and grassroots leaders to support our network and contribute to the growth of Davidson County's local food economy. Collaboration with diverse stakeholders is essential to building a strong foundation for a sustainable and inclusive local food system.
Health Improvement: At the core of our mission is the commitment to improving the health of the community through enhanced access to locally grown food. We believe that a robust local food system contributes to better nutrition, overall well-being, and a healthier community.
In pursuit of these goals, DCLFN aspires to be a catalyst for positive change, promoting a thriving local food economy that benefits the entire Davidson County community and beyond.
Priorities
developing FOOD STRATEGY TO MITIGATE DAMAGE FROM
THE COVID-19 PANDEMIC
The current COVID-19 Pandemic has moved the following items to the forefront of priorities: provide access to healthy meals for students, seniors and furloughed workers; support and provide resources to farming and food businesses to increase food production and improve distribution in the county; provide resources for residents to move towards food sustainability through gardening and community gardens.
Health promotion and ACCESS TO HEALTHY FOOD Workgroup
Davidson County Local Food Network has set up a workgroup where those engaged in providing meals, access to healthy food and groceries to vulnerable members of our community meet periodically to discuss various operations, strategies and long-term solutions to improve health in Davidson County. Currently. If you are interested in being part of this workgroup, please email us, and we will add you to our workgroup meetings.
farm and food economy workgroup: local food education and awareness, FARM TOUR and local food meet-ups
FARM TOUR - Davidson County Local Food Network is hosting our third county farm tour, June 18th. This event is a public education and awareness initiative to teach people about how and where food is raised in their own community.
FARMERS MARKETS -Currently, Davidson County has two operating farmers markets: one in Thomasville and the other in Lexington. Both markets are producers' only markets, which means that the items are grown, raised or produced by vendors who live in Davidson County or surrounding counties. During the summer, Lexington offers a Wednesday pop-up market behind Conrad & Hinkle Food Market and Thomasville hosts a Tuesday morning market and a Thursday late afternoon-early evening market. We are working to offer online ordering options with satellite pick up locations to make it easier for people to purchase local food.
COMMUNITY and home vegetable GARDENS (Workgroup)
Community gardens can be found in Davidson County. Both Thomasville and Lexington Parks & Recreation have initiated small community gardens targeted towards youth. Other community gardens exist and are managed by local churches. DCLFN would like to encourage and facilitate more community gardens across the county to be used for not only food access, but for skills training, education and awareness about local food.
We have a Community Garden Workgroup meeting approximately once a month to develop better strategies and models for more community gardens and skills-based instructional content to encourage residents to grow vegetables in their yards, or in containers. If you are interested in being involved with this workgroup, please email us and we will include you in our meetings.
FOOD SYSTEM DATA ASSET COLLECTION
To collect data about existing assets in Davidson County such as, current farmers market traffic and sales, farm tour traffic, number of farms selling direct to consumers, types of farms, number of community gardens, number of commercial kitchens, number of food pantries and their locations, identify restaurants and retailers using and selling local produce, and then analyze the information to set metrics with which to measure growth, deficits, improvement and success in our food system.
