Food Policy Council Archives

Current news releases—Eat Drink RI is not the source for these items—please follow any links for more information.

Blackstone Valley Culinary News – January 11, 2022

Harvest Kitchen
2 Bayley Street, Pawtucket, RI 02860
401-335-3766
farmfreshri.org/programs/harvest-kitchen/

Harvest Kitchen is doing a “Ready-To-Go” Mediterranean inspired dinner for two, including 1 appetizer to share, 2 entrees and 2 desserts. You must order ahead and ordering will close at midnight on January 14. Pick up is January 21 between 10 am and 4 pm at Harvest Kitchen at 2 Bayley Street. Check out the full menu and details here

Foolproof Brewing Company
241 Grotto Avenue, Pawtucket 02860
401-721-5970
Foolproofbrewing.com

Foolproof hosts Trivia night every Thursday with WRIK Entertainment on topics including pop culture, history, sports, current events, a music round, a picture round and more. Trivia night this week is on January 13 from 6 pm to 8 pm. Have a beer and some fun at Foolproof on Thursday!!

German-American Cultural Society of Rhode Island
78 Carter Avenue, Pawtucket, RI 02861
401-726-9873
https://www.gacsri.org/events

The January Trachtenabend will be held at the German-American Cultural Society on January 21 from 7 pm to 11 pm. Providing entertainment will be the Tubafrau Hofbräu Band. Dinner is a hearty goulash served with spätzle and carrots. This is a pre-ticketed event – click here for tickets ($15.00) and more information.

I’m happy to share with you that the Blackstone Valley Tourism Council will soon be moving their office to Central Falls, on the third floor of a renovated mill building along the Blackstone River – and we’ve got some fantastic culinary neighbors!!!

Shark’s Peruvian Cuisine
1420 Broad Street, Central Falls, RI 02863
401-599-5038

Shark’s is our “downstairs neighbor”, occupying the first and second floors of the building. They are already open and their food is delicious and the presentation is beautiful! The restaurant is on the first floor and there is event and meeting space on the second floor. There is also an outside deck overlooking the Blackstone River. Shark’s is open 7 days a week from 12 noon to 10 pm. Their website is coming soon, but you can check them out on Facebook. Their location in Pawtucket (25 Pawtucket Avenue) is still open as well.

Royal Fried Chicken
1400 Broad Street, Central Falls, RI 02863
401-642-0230
Royal-fried-chicken-central-falls.business.site

Our neighbor “across the parking lot” is Royal Fried Chicken in a beautiful new building. (They also have locations in Pawtucket and North Providence). Their Grand Opening in Central Falls will be on Saturday, January 15. From 11 am to 3 pm on opening day, get a free lunch plus 50% off the full menu. We were fortunate to have a “sneak peek” lunch there and the food is so good! Don’t miss out on free lunch at the Central Falls location this Saturday!

CHAMPIONS FOR A MORE JUST AND RESILIENT RI FOOD SYSTEM, APPLY WITHIN

New Seats are Open at the RI Food Policy Council’s Table

The need to strengthen and develop Rhode Island’s food system has never been greater, and the Rhode Island Food Policy Council (RIFPC) is working diligently across our 49 cities and towns to create those solutions. Their goal: to build a more equitable, economically vibrant and environmentally sustainable local food system. The organization’s annual call to join the Council opens January 10.

As an independent statewide network, RIFPC is composed of Rhode Islanders who work in and around the food sector who want to have a hand in creating new systems, promoting good food policy, filling gaps, and strengthening the capacity of our local and regional food system. Issues like universal free meals at schools, dockside fisheries permissions and American Rescue Plan Act funding recommendations are some of the priorities the Council addressed in 2021.

“Simply being able to make a difference in the lives of others means so much to me. My involvement with the RIFPC has reinforced this and I am grateful. You know you are alive because of the existence of other people around you and to touch their lives in a meaningful way is the essence of life. It is a blessing to share what you have been blessed with.” Council Member Alice Howard, SunRise Forever, Inc. and World Financial Group

Council members represent a diverse and culturally-rich Rhode Island, offering unique perspectives from across the food landscape. Collaboration among RIFPC Council members has reached every facet of the food system, from cultivation to composting.

Applications close February 18. Nominations welcome. To apply or learn more about Council membership, and other ways to get involved with RIFPC’s initiatives, visit www.rifoodcouncil.org.

Rhode Island Food Policy Council

Rhode Island Receives $437,000 through USDA’s Food Insecurity Nutrition Incentive Grant Program

The Rhode Island Food Policy Council (RIFPC) is pleased to announce that federal Farm Bill funds have been secured for Rhode Island through a multi-pronged collaboration to support increased access to fruits and vegetables for the food insecure of Rhode Island, while also benefitting small and mid-sized farmers in the region. Last week, Rhode Island celebrated USDA Secretary Tom Vilsack’s announcement of $31.5 million granted through the Food Insecurity Nutrition Incentive Program (FINI). Rhode Island received two grants through this funding stream, an impressive accomplishment for the smallest state in the nation.

The Rhode Island Public Health Institute received $100,000 to extend the reach of its “Rhody Food on the Move” initiative. Farm Fresh Rhode Island received $337,000 (over three years) to double the amount of nutrition incentives distributed at farmers markets across the state. Farm Fresh is a subgrantee of the national nonprofit Wholesome Wave, who received a $3.77 million FINI grant. Funds from this grant, in both projects, incentivize the spending of SNAP (Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, formerly known as “food stamps”) on fresh fruit and vegetables.

“These grant awards are the result of a truly collaborative effort that brought together leaders in public health, food systems, and government. The FINI grants provide a double benefit for Rhode Island: the most food insecure residents in the State have increased purchasing power to buy fresh fruits and vegetables, and local and regional producers, processors, and distributors directly benefit from the increased sales,” says Kenneth Payne, Chair of the RI Food Policy Council.

Since 2004, Farm Fresh Rhode Island has been committed to building a local food system that values the health, environment, and quality of life for Rhode Island farmers and eaters. They have offered nutrition incentives named “Bonus Bucks” to SNAP recipients at farmers markets since 2009. SNAP redemption at farmers markets has subsequently grown from $500 in 2007 to over $80,000 in 2014. The grant issued to Farm Fresh will enable further expansion of Bonus Bucks incentives for SNAP shoppers through partnership with independently-managed markets across Rhode Island. Markets that offer Bonus Bucks will expand in number from 13 in 2014 to 25 in 2015.

“Bonus Bucks are a win-win for Rhode Island,” says Sheri Griffin, Co-Executive Director of Farm Fresh Rhode Island. “They ensure that federal food benefit dollars support our state’s agricultural economy, while enabling our neighbors affected by poverty and food insecurity to share in the local bounty.”

Farm Fresh received this award as a subgrantee on a larger $3.77 million grant, which nonprofit, Wholesome Wave, obtained from the USDA to support their national network of nutrition incentive partners. Farm Fresh is one of 32 community-based organizations that will join Wholesome Wave in this Large-Scale FINI Project.

The Rhode Island Public Health Institute (RIPHI), a 501c3 non-profit housed at Brown University’s School of Public Health, will use its FINI grant to expand their ‘Rhody Food on the Move’ mobile markets and introduce financial incentives into their project. ‘Rhody Food on the Move’ builds upon the experience and success of the ‘Fresh To You’ (FTY) mobile market program, which was the focus of three, recent Brown University research studies conducted by Kim Gans, PhD, MPH, LDN and Gemma Gorham, MPH. The long-term goal of the grant is to increase SNAP recipients’ purchase and consumption of fruits and vegetables by ‘making the healthy choice easy and affordable’.

“One of the big challenges with helping people to improve their diets is the lack of access to fresh produce in their neighborhoods,’’ said Dr. Amy Nunn, Executive Director of the Rhode Island Public Health Institute. “And even when it is accessible geographically, the costs can be price prohibitive.”

One of the Rhode Island Food Policy Council’s four central goals is that every Rhode Island resident will have access to safe, fresh, affordable, nutritious and culturally appropriate food, regardless of income or race. The Bonus Bucks expansion and Rhody Food on the Move projects are two prime examples of statewide efforts to pursue this vision.

Food Policy Council

News Bites: Blackstone Valley Culinary News / RI Food Policy Council Nominations / Social Enterprise Greenhouse Impact Accelerator Applications

Blackstone Valley Culinary News – January 11, 2022

CHAMPIONS FOR A MORE JUST AND RESILIENT RI FOOD SYSTEM, APPLY WITHIN

RI Food Policy Council Media Release: Rhode Island Receives $437,000 through USDA’s Food Insecurity Nutrition Incentive Grant Program

Rhode Island Receives $437,000 through USDA’s Food Insecurity Nutrition Incentive Grant Program