ABOUT US

GOOD FOOD FOR ALL IS POSSIBLE

We are pretty sure you’ve heard that Muskegon county is struggling to have both healthy residents and a healthy economy. These statistics are probably not new to you: in Muskegon County, 14.75% of the population struggles with food insecurity and 19.95% of the population lives below the poverty level.

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We believe one primary reason for this is that our current Food System is not designed for the health of our residents or the health of our economy. Large industrial farms, and grocery stores filled with food-like products that come from all over the world, continue to be the primary way Muskegon County residents feed themselves and their families. Small, sustainably minded farmers have to work full time jobs off the farm in order to make ends meet.

Currently, in Muskegon County, there are many independent efforts to solve some of these problems. Many people are concerned for the health of our residents and are doing amazing work. However, there is one thing missing from all of this good work; efficient coordination. If you are doing this work you can sometimes find yourself around a table several times a week with the same people for a similar purpose; you sometimes find yourself in competition for funds to do the same kind of work; and the worst thing is that sometimes you find that you have a neighbor that you could have helped, had you known they had a need.  A Local or Regional Food System is a massive web of interconnected moving parts that needs a shared vision and efficient coordination.

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We believe that together, we can create a just and sustainable Food System built on relationships of trust between farmers; both rural and urban, small local grocers, food entrepreneurs, small locally owned restaurants, food distribution companies and their consumers. We believe we can coordinate efforts to create a vibrant local food economy creating jobs paying fair wages as well as feeding our residents healthier food. We believe that between the natural resources available for agriculture and the beauty of our lakes, we can become a model for agritourism that draws people from all over the world. We agree that this is a huge undertaking but we believe that through the power of a shared vision and community collaboration.

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THIS IS POSSIBLE.  

This work is happening all over the state of Michigan, the United States and the world as a network of Local Food Councils is forming. We believe the power of communities united around the cause of creating just and sustainable Food Systems is one of the strongest forces in the world today.  We hope you will collaborate with us as we discover how Muskegon Food Alliance could help all of us do more.

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Alone we can do so little; together we can do so much. - Helen Keller