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Author Archives: Honesta Romberger
FMC at Conferences in Louisiana & Pennsylvania
Honesta Romberger February 8, 2019It’s conference season! And this week, FMC took to the road to present at two events across the country; The Fresh Central Certified Institute hosted by the Central Louisiana Economic Development Alliance in Alexandria, Louisiana, and the Pennsylvania Association of Sustainable Agriculture’s (PASA) annual conference in Lancaster, Pennsylvania. Get a quick overview from both events below. Fresh…
Farmers Markets Aid Communities During Times of Disaster & Hardship
Honesta Romberger February 4, 2019by Cindy Bunch – Executive Market Manager, Olde Beaufort Farmers’ Market oldebeaufortfarmersmarket@gmail.com *FMC Note: Farmers markets are renown for helping and bringing communities together in times of difficulty. Most recently, farmers markets nationwide offered support to federal employees impacted by the government shutdown. News sprung up from markets across the country including the Lewisburg Farmers…
BREAKING: Novo Dia Group, Inc. secures $2 million investment from Square
Honesta Romberger January 30, 2019In an effort to provide continued support to its customers and farmers markets nationwide, Square will invest $2 million in Novo Dia. “Investing in Novo Dia is a no-brainer—their SNAP and WIC payment-acceptance tools provide a critical service to important and underserved customers,” said James Loftus, Square Corporate Development Lead. “Our investment will make sure…
Welcome, New FMC Board Members!
Honesta Romberger January 24, 2019Last week, FMC’s membership elected new leaders from a very strong slate of candidates to join our Board of Directors. FMC is pleased to welcome Elise Ashby, Amy Crone, and Anupama Joshi, along with Gary Matteson who was re-elected. We also want to thank two former members of the board that have put in countless…
A Letter from FMC Interim Executive Director, Ben Feldman
Honesta RombergerDear FMC Members, It’s been three weeks since I began my new position as Interim Executive Director with the Farmers Market Coalition, and it has flown by. It is my great pleasure to take the reins of this organization for the next six months and hopefully beyond. When I began my work with local…
FMC Partners with Ambetter to Provide $84,000 in Vouchers to Farmers Markets
Honesta Romberger January 17, 2019by Liz Comiskey, Membership & Outreach Director | liz@farmersmarketcoalition.org FMC recently teamed up with Ambetter Health to provide $98,000 in mini-grant funding to farmers markets across the country. During the early winter open-enrollment period, Ambetter sponsored 14 farmers markets in Arizona, Georgia, Illinois, Texas, Missouri, and Florida. Each market distributed recipes, tote bags, and $5 vouchers for…
Farmers Market SNAP Programs Face Challenges from Gov’t Shutdown, Novo Dia Uncertainties
Honesta Romberger January 16, 2019by Ben Feldman, FMC Executive Director | ben@farmersmarketcoalition.org Since its inception, FMC has prioritized advocating for support for SNAP EBT equipment and administrative funding to increase SNAP access at farmers markets. In 2012, the USDA Food and Nutrition Service (FNS) first began offering support using $4 million in funds from the President’s annual budget for…
Back to Your Roots: A Sustainable Agriculture Masters Series – March 7-9, 2019
Honesta Romberger January 15, 2019CAMPTI, Louisiana (January 15, 2019) – Campti Field of Dreams will host Back to Your Roots: A Sustainable Agriculture Masters Series March 7 through 9, 2019, at Reese Hall on the Louisiana Tech University campus and other locations in the Ruston, Louisiana, area. This 3-day conference has much to offer those in all phases and…
A Look Back at a Big Year: FMC’s 2018 Annual Report
Honesta Romberger January 14, 2019From advocating for a strong farm bill, to co-hosting our first national summit, to celebrating the most widely-observed National Farmers Market Week to date, to new and exciting resources and partnerships, FMC has had quite a year! Check out highlights from 2018, as well as a sneak peak of the results from our State of the…
FMC Begins 2019 With New Leadership: A Letter from FMC Executive Director, Jen Cheek
Honesta Romberger December 20, 2018It is an incredible privilege to lead the Farmers Market Coalition and work every day with FMC’s staff to advance the goals of our distinguished board and inspiring members. While I enjoy this work immensely, I’ve come to a time where it makes sense to “lean out,” if just a little, to make room for…
