Behind the Scenes: Just-In-Time—How Food Gets From the Farm to Your Shelf

At Food Connects, we are committed to offering our customers fresh, high-quality, source-identified products. Because we desire to cultivate a transparent value chain, the Food Connects team wants to share with you each week’s sequence of events to offer all our customers access to an array of fresh, regionally sourced products. 

To maximize freshness and quality, most of our perishable product is received into our warehouse within 24-48 hours before being delivered to our customers. These products are what we classify as Just-In-Time (JIT). Sometimes the product stays in our warehouse just a few minutes before it goes from the farm field or the bakery to the customer—all on the same day!

Generally, most JIT products are received into our warehouse on Tuesdays for Wednesday and Thursday customer deliveries and received on Thursday for Friday and Monday customer deliveries. Rather than purchasing excess and keeping the product in our warehouse for an extended period, we purchase JIT items “to order” based on customer demand for each given order cycle. In addition to ensuring maximum freshness, this model also helps to reduce food waste. On the other hand, we make sure to keep on hand a readily available supply of all our shelf-stable dry, refrigerated, and frozen products.

Food Connects sources products from 36 JIT producers to fill customer orders every week. The fact that we have not one but two weekly order cycles means that we often receive products into our warehouse from the majority of our JIT producers twice per week. 

The national food industry generally does not lift up and promote the names of all the frontline workers. Without those workers, our chain grocery store shelves would not stay filled. In contrast, the Food Connects team knows that collaboration and strong relationships are vital to building a vibrant and healthy community. We want to know who is part of getting your food from the farm to the table every step of the way. We celebrate and thank each of those individuals for helping us bring fresh, regional food to our community.

Want to see an example of how we make that happen in practice? Check out the timeline we’ve created! We encourage you to take note of all the people whose actual hands are involved in handling this product.  

By Monday at 10:00 AM, John Truncale, Produce Manager at the Brattleboro Food Co-op, places an order including a few cases of red leaf lettuce from Harlow Farm located in Westminster, VT. Our Procurement Specialist, David Paysnick, sends out orders to all our JIT producers by noon that same day, including to Harlow Farm. Then the job passes to the Harlow Farm employees, including Leroy Campbell, Raymond Carridice, and Gerald Berry. Throughout the remainder of that day and into the following Tuesday, they pick, wash, fill, sort, and stage our order of red leaf lettuce in addition to any other fresh veggies that our customers ordered.

On Tuesday, one of our drivers, Bob Blackmer, picks up our order from Harlow Farm and several other JIT producers, including Echo Farm Puddings, Kitchen Garden Farm, and Orchard Hill Breadworks. Once Bob returns to the Food Connects warehouse, members of our operations team, including Scott Berzofsky, Raymond Johnston, and Emma Bliss, receive, sort, and stage orders ready to be delivered to our customers. By Wednesday afternoon, another driver David Pontius delivers the cases of red leaf lettuce to the Brattleboro Food Co-op, ready to be received by their dedicated staff, who will then display the product on their shelves for customers to purchase. 

As you can see, it takes a host of people to grow, process, aggregate, distribute, and sell fresh products. Our Just-In-Time distribution model requires significant coordination across every organization and every set of hands to move the product along the value chain. 

From an aggregation perspective, we admit that it would be more efficient for Food Connects to buy fresh products in bulk instead of only ordering enough products to fill customer orders for a given week. However, this process would lead us to compromise on one of our core values: doing our best to offer our customers fresh, long-lasting products. At Food Connects, we refuse to jeopardize product quality and are willing to put in the required time and effort to aggregate and distribute fresh, perishable products on a Just-In-Time schedule. 

Behind the Scenes: Driving is more than getting us from point A to point B

If you know anything about food distribution, you know drivers are absolutely critical to the operation. At Food Connects, our Food Hub drivers are our front-line workers—picking up from the people who make and grow our food and delivering that food to co-ops, schools, hospitals, and more. Five days a week, they are out on the road representing Food Connects and, more importantly, our values. As the people who are physically delivering New England food to New England customers, they are indispensable in achieving New England's 30-by-30 Vison. We are grateful for the critical part they play in building a better food system.

So, what is it like to work for an entrepreneurial non-profit Food Hub? And who are the drivers that make our work possible? Meet two members of our driving team, Elisa and Tracy. Their hard work and dedication over the past few years has significantly fostered and shaped the growth of our Food Hub.

Elisa and Tracy have both been with our team for quite a while and have seen us through some major transitions. Fun fact: Tracy has technically been with us for more than 5 ½ years—he worked for the Windham Farm & Food Network (WFF) (which eventually became Food Connects) while he was at Harlow Farm in Westminster, VT.

What is your professional background? 

Elisa (E): I started in landscape architecture (residential in CA) and got into edible landscaping, which ultimately helped me transition into farming and urban farming.

Tracy (T): I worked for Paul Harlow, at Harlow Farm, for a while. My daughter is a farmer too—Sweetland Farm in Norwich, VT!

Are you doing other work outside of Food Connects? How do you split your time? 

E: Farming takes up a lot of my time outside of Food Connects. I enjoy pickup sports like soccer, ultimate frisbee, and basketball, and also play Settlers of Catan.

T: I’m not doing other work outside of Food Connects. When I’m not driving, I like to cross-country ski and maintain.

Why did you choose Food Connects? 

E: I had heard lots of good things on the street about working here. When I started working at Food Connects, I was new to the Brattleboro area. This was an opportunity to get to know people and Windham County—I got to know the roads and culture a little bit more. I also have done a lot of networking with producers and wholesale buyers for my farm.

T: My job melded from one to the other. I went to high school with Paul Harlow and was loyal to Paul and his farm. As I did more and more work for WFF, I even insisted on working for Paul in title only. But eventually, it made sense to be a member of the Food Connects team and I switched. There are good people all the way around, on the staff, on the farms, and on the receiving end. 

What do you like about your job? What is hard about it? 

E: The hardest part is definitely driving in the dead of winter because of the weather and New England roads—the managers are very reasonable around driving expectations in poor conditions. My favorite thing is that Food Connects is a successful nonprofit as it continues to grow and avoids mission creep—some nonprofits do go beyond their original mission and purposes, and do too much of it. Food Connects has two main enterprises (the Food Hub and our Farm to School Program) and does it better and better each passing season.

T:  To reiterate Elisa, winter driving can be tough—but I never feel unsafe. I would have to say that this is probably the most social I’ve been in my entire life—connecting with all the farmers and customers through the region. I like that Food Connects can also be a resource—I can inform my daughter about interesting news and opportunities from other farms.

Have you driven for any other businesses before? If so, how is Food Connects different from a normal driving job? 

E: In the past I have driven for farms going to farmers’ markets. It’s similar, but different because when you go to a farmers’ market it is very full when you go and empty when you come back. Plus that it’s just one stop versus constantly stopping to make deliveries. I drove around the San Francisco Bay area which also had a lot more, and often unpredictable, traffic. Here… it might be a cow in the middle of the road and I definitely would rather have that than urban traffic.

What would you tell a potential driver who is looking to work with us? Why should someone want to drive with Food Connects?  

E: Good people and good management—the people are really genuine here. It’s also good pay for relatively easy and consistent work that’s reliable. Plus there are great systems in place and good food and discounts on it! If you live in Windham county, it’s close to downtown Brattleboro and centrally located.

T: Good people. Plain and simple.

Any fun stories to share with us about being on the road? 

E: I wasn’t joking before. A literal cow crossed the road and I had to wait! 

T:  It can sometimes be scary with the snowstorms but I grew up around heavy equipment and respect the machinery.

Are you or someone you know looking for a driving job? Apply today!

Meet Our New Food Hub Warehouse Specialist—Raymond Johnston

Food Connects is excited to welcome Raymond Johnston to the Food Hub team as Food Connects’ Warehouse Specialist. Though not on the road often, Raymond will play a key role in distribution for our Food Hub. In this new position, Raymond will work to increase efficiencies in our Food Hub’s warehouse, maintain and oversee systems and regulatory compliance, and take on the daunting tasks of inventory management.

Raymond joined the Food Connects team in late July and has spent years in the food industry, primarily in warehouse distribution.

Meet Raymond today!

What interested you most about Food Connects and why are you excited to start working here?

What interested me most about Food Connects is its strong and growing presence as a key player in the supply chain of New England’s local food system. I am excited to start working at Food Connects to leverage my corporate sales experience and passion for philanthropy and community service to drive sustained growth and distribution of the Food Hub.

What sparked your interest in Food Connects and why are you excited to be here?

My partner let me know there was an opening and I was eager to apply. I had been aware of Food Connects having utilized the Food Hub myself in the past and was excited to be part of an organization making a positive change.

Why is the local food movement important to you?

I think it's important for people, in general, to know where their food comes from, and to at least think about how it gets to them. The less stuff in general, but perhaps food especially, we ship long distances across the country or around the planet the better we'll all be.

What do you see for the future of Food Connects and what you will do here? What are your hopes and dreams for this position?

I would love for organizations like Food Connects to become more and more about how food gets distributed, instead of long-distance distribution across the continent. My hope is to make the Food Hub as efficient and streamlined as possible so we can serve larger orders and customers seamlessly in order to make that a reality in our local market

How will your previous food systems work impact your work at Food Connects?

I'm hoping my knowledge of how larger operations work will help me realize the steps we need to take to scale up the Food Hub without impacting the great service we provide. I'll also be keeping in mind the frustrations and inefficiencies of the larger distributors I've worked for in order to make sure we don't fall into those same pitfalls.

How do you spend your time outside of work?

I like to spend my time outdoors, usually relaxing but oftentimes doing some of the never-ending upkeep on our small chicken coop. I always enjoy hiking in whatever woods I can find which previous positions I've held didn't really allow the time or energy for so that's something else positive which may come from this position! Most of my free time is definitely spent around the home though with my family.

What is your favorite or least favorite food?

My favorite food is lasagna, and I'll eat almost anything, so it's kind of hard to think of a least favorite.

If you could trade places with anyone for a day, who would you choose?

Joe Biden—but only to try and executive order some decent policies into place given the chance, not really a position I'd get gratification from experiencing. For that I'd probably pick someone from a different culture entirely, as different from me as possible, but probably no-one famous or known. Guess I'd spin a wheel!

What is an experience you've always wanted to try?

Spinning that "trade places" wheel sounds pretty appealing right now

Meet Our New Food Hub Local Food Institutional Sales Associate—Tom Brewton

Food Connects is excited to welcome Tom Brewton to the Food Hub team as Food Connects’ first Local Food Institutional Sales Associate. In this new position, Tom will work to help Food Connects better serve institutions in our area—including K-12 schools, colleges, universities, and healthcare facilities—in their goals to increase purchasing of local and regional foods.

Tom joined the Food Connects team in mid-January and previously worked at the largest grocery wholesaler in the U.S, C&S Wholesale Grocers. Tom is excited to make the shift to focus on New England’s regional food system.

What interested you most about Food Connects and why are you excited to start working here?

What interested me most about Food Connects is its strong and growing presence as a key player in the supply chain of New England’s local food system. I am excited to start working at Food Connects to leverage my corporate sales experience and passion for philanthropy and community service to drive sustained growth and distribution of the Food Hub.

Why is the local food movement important to you?

In my role as the Local Food Institutional Sales Associate, I will have the opportunity to directly impact the health and wellbeing of our youth by increasing the distribution of New England’s local produce into our schools. I grew up in inner-city Pittsburgh, PA, and attended an underfunded public high school. While I was fortunate to come from a stable household, I understood that some of my peers didn’t have the means to access healthy foods. My background is what will fuel me to work hard in contributing to a more just food system.

What do you see for the future of Food Connects and what you will do here?

I am eager to first access the wealth of knowledge from my colleagues in regards to our existing customer relationships and then work with them to sell the mission and services of the Food Hub to new customers. It’s exciting to join Food Connects during a season of significant growth. I’m looking forward to doing my part in enabling Food Connects to achieve its sales targets! As Food Connects continues to expand its customer base, I am looking forward to strategizing with my colleagues on ways to sustain its growth while living with our values as an organization.

How will your other food industry experience impact your work at Food Connects?

Previous to Food Connects, I worked for the largest wholesale grocery company in the United States, C&S Wholesale Grocers, where I managed relationships with more than 100 manufacturers. I look forward to using my technical and interpersonal skills I learned in my previous role to promote the Food Hub.

How do you spend your time outside of work?

I enjoy making pottery and hope to be selling my work in the near future! I also enjoy all things outdoors including cliff jumping, hiking, camping, and skiing. Once a vaccine is publicly distributed, I look forward to participating in local theatre again!

What is your favorite or least favorite food?

It’s hard to pick, but one of my favorite foods is tacos from Three Stones.

If you were stuck on a desert island, what book would you bring with you?

The entire Harry Potter series.

What’s the best single day on the calendar?

The day I got married to my beautiful, talented wife, Carissa, July 21st.

Meet Our New Food Hub Local Food Procurement Coordinator—David Paysnick

Food Connects is excited to welcome David Paysnick to our team as the Food Hub Local Food Procurement Coordinator. This new position will serve farms and food producers in our region, working to increase community access to their products through our food distribution networks.

David joined the team at Food Connects with 25 years of experience in a variety of food-related occupations. Most recently, David operated Rainbow Harvest Farm in Greenfield, MA, producing organically grown vegetables, herbs, nursery plants, fig-trees, and specialty food products for sale at Western Massachusetts farmers’ markets. David also managed the produce departments at the two Franklin Community Co-op markets in Greenfield and Shelburne Falls, where he then served on the Board of Directors, including 2 years as President.

What interested you most about Food Connects and why are you excited to start working here?

So many reasons!  I’ve been feeding people my whole life, starting with volunteering at a Soup Kitchen in Springfield, MA to working in restaurants, food co-ops, and 20 years of organic farming. Improving food access and creating equity in food systems have been some of the passions that have driven my work over the past many years. When I learned about the goals and programs at Food Connects, it seemed like a perfect fit. I’m thrilled to see the successes of the Farm to School program and excited to be working with so many highly motivated people working to create positive change in the world.

Why is the local food movement important to you?

At the most basic level, the local food movement is important to me because I like to know where my food comes from. I also want it to be fresh and minimally processed. I believe that access to fresh food should be a right and not a privilege. If we outsource our food production, that goal becomes significantly harder to achieve. Local farms are far more likely to donate to our local food banks than those 3000 miles away. 

Beyond that, the local food movement provides economic, environmental, and social benefits for those that embrace it. Supporting the local food movement leads to more local jobs, more food dollars recirculating within the region, increased food security, and fresher, safer, more nutritious food. It also helps to preserve farmland and genetic biodiversity while reducing emissions as compared to transporting food across great distances. Farmers who direct market and sell their food locally are more likely to use more environmentally sound production practices, which benefits our soil, waterways, neighbors, and those who consume their goods. The local food movement supports the many interwoven relationships between our farms, families, institutions, and natural resources and aims to strengthen those relationships for the benefit of all.

What do you see for the future of FC and what you will do here? What are your hopes/dreams for this position?

While what we do is a bit more complex, from a practical standpoint the role of the food hub is to support our regional farmers by providing a sales outlet for their products and support the people of our tri-state region in providing fresh, nutritious local food to local markets and institutions. As the Local Food Procurement Coordinator, my goals are to be able to support any and all producers who wish to get involved with the food hub. Whether they are a small farm or business with no wholesale experience, or a veteran farmer looking to expand their markets, I hope to be able to provide the logistical support needed to make partnering with Food Connects a mutually beneficial relationship. My ultimate goal would be that Food Connects is able to help all of our producers ensure that no food goes to waste and all farm products find a good home!

 How will your farming and other food industry experience impact your work at Food Connects?

My food industry experience provides a background that enables me to have a greater understanding of the needs and perspectives of both our producers and our customers. Understanding their needs enables me to work towards serving our partners with greater efficiency and compassion.

I’ve been growing organic vegetables for farmers’ markets and local wholesale for nearly 20 years, and have also spent 7 years working in retail food co-op produce departments. As the produce manager for Franklin Community Cooperative, I found my farming experience to be invaluable in working with our growers and understanding their needs and how to best serve them. I have also spent time working as a wholesale bread baker and restaurant cook, as well as numerous other production and retail food positions from grocery stocker to ice cream maker to running a community farm. 

How do you spend your time outside of work?

Growing food, cooking, eating, and outdoor activity tend to be my top priorities. I love to take daily walks with my fiancé, Melinda, as well as kayak, hike, and travel to the beach. I love to cook with my teenage daughter, Aliza, and visit our favorite spot, the family lake house on Newfound Lake in New Hampshire. When I’m home, I can often be found under my cat, who is clearly the Alpha of the household.

What is your favorite or least favorite food?

I can’t say I have a favorite food, it’s too hard to choose, can I list 20 or 30? Least favorite? That’s easier, probably carob, anything that pretends to be chocolate is just plain evil. It should probably come with a big red warning to keep people from utter disappointment when they have an expectation for the magical flavor of chocolate.

If you wrote a book, what would you title it and why?

Ha! I’ll spend too much time writing and rewriting every paragraph trying to perfect each sentence that I’ll never get to the final step of titling it.

Do you have a hidden talent? What is it?

Observation. For better or worse, I notice things all around me on a daily basis that the people I’m with never seem to notice.  

Meet Our New Food Hub Operations Coordinator—Deborah Sadler

Food Connects is excited to welcome Deborah Sadler to their team as their new Food Hub Operations Coordinator. Deborah is the first in a series of new hires that will help Food Connects operations continue to grow. Deborah splits her time between coordinating pickup and delivery of Food Hub products and driving delivery routes. 

Deborah joined the Food Connects team in August after managing a goat dairy and creamery. In graduate school, she researched the effects of government policies on farmers’ ability to adapt to drought. Her passion for building local food systems and supporting farmworkers is a huge asset to the growing Food Hub team. Take some more time to learn more about Deborah today!

What interested you most about Food Connects and why are you excited to start working here?

I know how difficult it can be as a small producer to reach customers. Food Hubs offer an important connection for producers to access larger markets. I'm excited to be a part of strengthening our local food system!

Why is the local food movement important to you?

Community has always been based around food, our most essential need. Local food systems are the ultimate way to build community, especially in an increasingly disconnected world! With non-local foods, mistreatment of the land, ecosystem, and farmworkers is often out of sight, out of mind. Local farmers and producers are personally invested in the effects their businesses have on their neighbors. Local farmers who live in the communities they feed want to preserve and improve their soil and water resources. Local producers can see and address inequities in the food system that is overlooked by national brands and chains. When individuals, restaurants, and institutions buy local food, they are voting with their dollar to keep their money locally and to support their neighbors. And of course, fresh local food just plain tastes better!

What do you see for the future of Food Connects and what you will do here? What are your hopes/dreams for this position?

The Food Connects Food Hub is in a period of growth and is well-positioned to take on a leadership role in building a network of local food hubs throughout New England. As the new Food Hub General Operations Coordinator, I hope to help alleviate some of those growing pains with new, efficient systems that allow us to do our work more effectively!

How will your farming experience impact your work at Food Connects?

As a farmer, I understand many of the difficulties faced by local producers, and look forward to supporting them! Most recently, I have worked as a small dairy farm manager and cheesemaker, so I am used to wearing lots of hats and jumping in to do whatever is needed. I also believe farmers can serve as educators, to help teach consumers about the foods we provide.

Now for the fun ones!

What are your hobbies?

I enjoy hiking and backpacking, having hiked most of the Appalachian Trail. I am also a long-time runner and yogi. I enjoy the well-being of running, but will never win races. Creatively, I play piano, but not in public, and I write fiction that I hope to one day publish.

If you had to be shipwrecked on a deserted island, but all your human needs—such as food and water—were taken care of, what two items would you want to have with you?

If it's not included in food, I would bring a pair of goats and raise goats for milk, cheese, meat, fiber. And a deserted island that I could populate with goats would be a lot more fun and interesting! Otherwise, could I bring a Kindle and a solar charger?

What is your favorite or least favorite food?

As a former dairy farmer and cheesemaker, I love cheese and ice cream! Brussel sprouts are a hard pass, on the other hand.

When you were little, what did you want to be when you grew up?

When I was maybe five to ten years old, I wanted to be a Paleontologist, and get to dig up dinosaur bones, or else be a Tiger Trainer, like Siegfried and Roy. Of course, this was well before Roy was attacked by a tiger onstage.

Meet Our New Sales Associate—Beth Lewand!

Food Connects is excited to welcome Beth Lewand to their team as their Food Hub Sales Associate.

Beth joins the team with over 10 years of experience in the food industry. Most recently she was the Operations Manager at Cricket Creek Farm, a grass-based dairy and artisanal cheese producer in Williamstown, MA. Previously, she and her husband Chris founded, owned, and operated Eastern District, a food shop specializing in craft beer and artisanal cheese, in the Greenpoint neighborhood of Brooklyn, NY. 

“I think my experience as both a producer and a buyer will give me a greater understanding of our partners' needs, and hopefully help me to help them succeed,” says Beth. “I love the fact that this is a nonprofit food hub, rather than a traditional distributor, and that education and other community efforts are prioritized.”

Food Connects focuses on local food, so we asked Beth why the local food movement was important to her. “I care about it for so many reasons: because of its impact on environmental and economic sustainability; for its potential to deliver fresh, healthy food throughout the community; and because of the simple joy it brings us to connect with the land and the people who feed us.”

Beth’s passion for local food and drive to increase its impact will help propel Food Connects into the future. As a rapidly growing organization, it is important to continue to diversify products and increase the number of local producers and customers they work with. Beth’s experience will help bring on new customers and partners, offer more local products, and expand the network that Food Connects is a part of.

When Beth isn’t working with Food Connects she spends time gardening, cooking, listening to music, sewing and other textile arts, hanging out with her husband and cats, and spending time outdoors. And her favorite food, by far, is cheese! She’ll fit right in with the rest of the Food Connects crew!

And now some of the fun stuff:

If Beth was shipwrecked on a deserted island, but all her needs—such as food and water—were taken care of, she would bring along a universal jukebox and a gigantic set of Legos. And when she was little she wanted to be everything when she grew up—from a doctor to a ballerina, to a window display designer. “Oddly I never daydreamed about the food business as a kid, but now I know it's the best!”

“I'm grateful to the Food Connects crew for a warm welcome, and I'm really looking forward to meeting all of our customers, producers, and partners!” And we are excited to have you on our team, Beth!

Food Connects Favorites: Free Verse Farm

RICHARD’S FAVORITE: FREE VERSE FARM

HERBES DE VERMONT

Buying local food is important to the work that we do. But almost just as important is its preparation! And that’s where Free Verse Farm comes in.

Located in Chelsea, Vermont, Free Verse Farm joined the Food Connects in early 2019. It is a beautiful Vermont farm perched on another beautiful hillside overlooking forests and valleys. And its your farming family working hard to raise a livelihood from the land. Owned by Taylor and Misha, artists and farmers, Free Verse Farm is small herb farm and apothecary specializing in naturally-grown tisanes (herbal teas), culinary herbs, medicinals, and herbal remedies.

One of their great products of their Herbes de Vermont, a popular culinary herb blend made with freshly dried herbs from their farm. It had a great depth of flavor to a variety of savory meals—in particular savory pancakes, meats, and grilled chicken.

I like how take the “Herbes de Provence” concept and creatively adapt it to Vermont. Its taking the idea of “terroir,” which is implicit here with so many great local products, and making it explicit, more like in Europe. I think its something that more local food consumers need to embrace and help local producers promote more.

Want to learn more about the farm? Check out their Producer Spotlight!

Meet Our New Operations & Fleet Coordinator—Nathanael Matthiesen

Join Food Connects in welcoming Nathanael Matthiesen to the Food Hub Team. Nathanael is our new Operations and Fleet Coordinator, responsible for delivering orders, assisting with IT, and overseeing and maintaining the Food Hubs growing fleet of vehicles.

Nathanael comes to Food Connects from the Brattleboro Food Co-op and is very interested Food Connect’s mission. “As a small farmer myself, I have been particularly excited about the Food Hub, which is doing indispensable work for local agriculture in our region,” says Nathanael. “I am extremely excited to be a part of the Food Connects team, as it dovetails perfectly with my other endeavors in life, and I am proud to be involved with an organization that is making a difference in my local community. We have a great team and I am looking forward to being a part of the Food Hub’s growth and future success. I know we are already a model for the state of Vermont and I am glad to play a part.”

As a local farmer Nathanael is invested in the local food movement for a myriad of reasons:

“As someone who studied large-scale economic systems, it became apparent to me that something about our system is broken. Although the issues cannot be parsed down to one root cause, I believe that local, sustainable agriculture is of paramount importance to solving our larger environmental and economic issues.

Aside from the environmental and economic impact of local food, food brings people and communities together and fosters a sense of place, identity, and shared history. In a world where we are increasingly disconnected and distanced from our neighbors, local food provides an opportunity to build bridges and connections. It also ensures that dollars remain local and keeps small towns thriving instead of repatriating capital to far-flung regions of the country and even world.

Additionally, the local food movement is providing innovative solutions and alternatives to the severe health issues that our society is facing in the wake of the so-called Green Revolution, Big Ag’s dominance, and the pervasiveness of processed, GMO, and pesticide laden food.”

Nathanael is already out on the road making deliveries!

And Nathanael is very excited to grow with us. “I believe that Food Connects will continue to be a model for the state and region and I foresee growth of the Food Hub, as well as the more mission-based work of the organization. I am excited to be a part of this growth as the Food Hub enters a new phase in a new physical space, and couldn’t be more proud to play a part in making a difference for our region. Working here is a natural extension of my interests and experience, and I hope that I can offer the organization the experience and insight that I have gleaned over the years as a farmer and someone who has studied these issues from a more academic perspective in the past.”

Nathanael spends most of his time outside of Food Connects working on his small farm and spending time with his wife and two year-old son. When he does have time outside of that he enjoys tinkering with machines and computers, photography, music and collecting vinyl records, hiking and generally being outdoors. In the recent past, he was an avid rock-climber, and looks forward to getting back into the sport in the future.

Nathanael’s favorite food is pizza! “Although I am dedicated to local food, I have a secret inclination to foods that aren’t good for me. You can’t change everything at once, right?” When he was little, he wanted to be a race car driver or teacher, but we are glad he ended up working with us!

Be sure to say hi to Nathanael when he delivers local food to you!

Food Connects Favorites: Liebe Bavarian Style Quark

Food Connects works with so many amazing producers, offering such a wide variety of great products, it is sometimes hard to pick out something new to try. So we are introducing Food Connects Favorites—a blog to highlight some of our staff’s favorite products.

JULICIA’S FAVORITE: LIEBE BARVARIAN STYLE QUARK

STRAWBERRY KISS

It’s back to school time for schools across the U.S. We see yogurts galore flying off the shelves and filling up the lunchboxes of students heading back to school. They’re even great for a mid-work snack. So why don’t you try something different and have some Liebe Bavarian Style Quark produced by Commonwealth Dairy, or more commonly known as Green Mountain Creamery, located in Brattleboro, VT.

What I love about this product not only taste great, but it great for you. It is rich in proteins and probiotics and has limited sugar and no artificial colors or flavors. This particular product contains two types of healthy bacteria that are great for you, unlike traditional yogurts that contain one.

If the healthy bit doesn’t convince you, the flavor will. It’s sweet, creamy, and hits the spot. If you like Greek yogurt I would recommend you try Liebe. It’s very similar to Greek yogurt but is thicker and creamier—it kind of reminds me of a cheesecake that you don’t have to feel guilty eating for breakfast.

I am a busy lady, always on the go and this product helps me keep up with that life-style. It’s great on the go breakfast item for me. I usually will just eat it as is or add it into my morning smoothies. This product has become a delicious part of my morning routine.

Shop our online market today to order your quark!

Meet Our New Operations Coordinator—Scott Berzofsky

Food Connects extends a warm welcome to Scott Berzofsky, our new Food Hub Operations Coordinator. Residing in Putney, VT, Scott has worked to promote food justice and support local food systems for over a decade, most recently as the co-owner of Avenue Grocery in Brattleboro.

From 2007 to 2010, Scott helped found a community garden on a vacant lot in East Baltimore; By leveraging grant funding and grass-roots organizing, they engaged community members in the initiative so that it grew to be self-sustaining. Scott also worked on Calvert’s Gift Farm, a small organic farm in Baltimore County as part of a program through the University of Maryland Cooperative Extension focused on apprenticing younger generations.

At his core, Scott is an artist, organizer, and educator. He taught courses in the Sustainability & Social Practice Concentration at the Maryland Institute College of Art and holds a Master of Science in Art, Culture, and Technology from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Scott recognizes the intersection of the arts and food. “Both are about aesthetics—our senses. And how we experience the world,” says Scott. “Food is the way most people connect to the natural world and local food systems are critical for creating healthy and sustainable communities. I’m excited to work at Food Connects to help build a strong local food system and increase food justice and access to healthy food.”

“We are so psyched to have Scott on board,” says McKenna, Food Hub Operations Manager. “Scott brings with him many meaningful relationships with local farmers, producers, and customers in our region. Coupled with his passion for social justice and local food systems, I know he is a valuable asset to our team.”

So what are Scott’s fun facts? He and his partner have a newborn, he loves Vietnamese food and all the amazing Mexican restaurants in the Brattleboro area, and fondly remembers spending Christmases with his Norwegian grandmother dancing and singing around a Christmas tree in the center of the living room. Welcome Scott!

Meet Our New Sales Manager—Julicia!

Food Connects is excited to welcome Julicia Myers to our team as our new Food Hub Sales Manager. She joins Food Connects from Canajoharie, NY where she worked with farmers in Montgomery County as the Agricultural Economic Development Program Coordinator.

Julicia grew up on a dairy farm in New York state. It was never a dull moment. Her family raised a herd of registered Jersey and Holstein cattle and she took care of baby animals or had milking shifts when she was older. Aside from farm chores, Julicia participated in 4-H, Dairy Promotions Program, and Future Farmers of America.

Nurtured at an early age, her passion for farming and agriculture lead her to SUNY Cobleskill where she received her Bachelors of Science in Agricultural Business Management. She knew she didn’t want to run a farm but still wanted to help farmers make their businesses more sustainable, diversify their offerings, and grow their markets.

“I am excited to start at Food Connects,” said Julicia. “The idea of a local food distribution organization is exciting. Local purchasing keeps local dollars in the local economy.” Not only is her passion for local food evident but she brings a strong skill set of economic development and marketing tools that will help our local producers thrive.

Julicia brings her passion for local food home with her every day. She and her husband are homesteaders, owning a small herd of Herefords, broiler chickens, and egg-laying hens. In her spare time she is training her border collie, Ringo, to herd the chickens and ultimately sheep. Her recent honeymoon took her to Seattle and Alaska where she was able to take in the positive vibe and tasty treats of the West-Coast local food movement and the mind-blowing beauty of the mountains in Juneau.

But what she really loves? Getting together with family around the holidays. “We have a huge meal, where everyone comes together and reconnects. Food is the thing that brings people back together.”