national

Food Day will be October 24—in 2011 and in years to come. Food Day seeks to bring together Americans from all walks of life—parents, teachers, and students; health professionals, community organizers, and local officials; chefs, school lunch providers, and eaters of all stripes—to push for healthy, affordable food produced in a sustainable, humane way. We will work with people around the country to create thousands of events in homes, schools, churches, farmers markets, city halls, and state capitals.

Rhode Islanders are participating in the first National Food Day with a great number of events around the state before, on and after October 24. A number of schools, businesses and other organizations are showing their support by holding private events. Below is a list of all the public events as collected by the Department of Health and the other organizations involved with Food Day RI. For more information on the events, please see any contact information, or check the Food Day RI Facebook page or Food Day RI Google Calendar.

The primary RI event for Food Day is the launch of the RI Food Policy Council and the “Opportunities for Action” summary of the soon-to-be completed RI Food Assessment, which is a comprehensive report on the current state of the food system in Rhode Island. Department of Environmental Management Director Janet Coit will join First Lady Stephanie Chafee; Department of Health Director Michael Fine, MD; Senator Susan Sosnowski; Henry Herrera, MD, general manager for Dig Deep Farms & Produce, a project of the Alameda County Deputy Sheriffs Activities League; and others for the 10 a.m. launch at the State House which will focus attention on the importance of ensuring a healthy, affordable, sustainable, and locally-grown food supply.

Following the State House event, the RI Food Policy Council will host a community presentation and discussion entitled “Come Talk About Food!” The event will take place from 4 – 6 p.m. at the URI Providence campus located at 80 Washington Street. Karp Resources will present their findings on the current state of the food system in Rhode Island. The public will have an opportunity to discuss the RI Food Assessment findings and share their ideas for making RI’s food system stronger, sustainable, and more equitable.

In addition, the Office of Providence Mayor Angel Taveras will be rolling out Farm Fresh Rhode Island’s Veggie Box Program on Food Day. For those City Employees who enroll, the program delivers fresh produce directly to City Hall from local farms each week, increasing the convenience of buying well priced and healthy options for employees and their families. Farm Fresh Rhode Island is expanding this program to businesses and organizations throughout the City of Providence. Providence Mayor Tavares, Cranston Mayor Allan Fung and the town of North Kingstown have each issued Food Day proclamations.

Events on National Food Day, Monday, October 24:

• 9 – 10:30 a.m. – Meet Casey’s Farm with Adam Lowe at West Bay Family YMCA Welcome Center, North Kingstown
• 10 – 11 a.m. – Food Policy Council Launch at the State House, 82 Smith Street, Providence
• 10-30 a.m. – 12 p.m. – Meet Bevan Lindsley of the Coastal Grower’s Markets at Casey Farm and Lafayette Mills at West Bay Family YMCA Welcome Center, North Kingstown
• 3 – 4 p.m. – ECO Youth Food Day Flash Mob, Burnside Park next to Kennedy Plaza, Providence
• 4 – 6 p.m. – Providence Mayor Angel Taveras’ Food Day Proclamation and community presentation of the statewide food assessment at URI downtown campus Feinstein Auditorium, 80 Washington Street, Providence
• 7 p.m. – Free Screening of the film, “Urban Roots” at JWU Harborside Campus, 265 Harborside Boulevard, Providence

Events Before Food Day

• Thursday, October 20, 4 – 7 p.m. – Nutrition Workshop for kids in afterschool program at the Cranston YMCA, 155 Gansett St.,Cranston
• Friday, October 21, 7:30 a.m. – 1:30 p.m. – Free Food Festival with cooking demos, nutrition education and a visit from local farmers at the Health and Wellness Institute, 291 Promenade St., Providence
• Saturday, October 22, 8 a.m. – Temas Familiares: Healthy Eating Workshop for Parenting Conference, 182 Thurbers Ave, Providence (for registered participants)
• Saturday, October 22, 10 a.m. – 4:30 p.m. and Sunday, October 23, 12:30 – 6:30 p.m. – RI Local Food Day with featured local farmers, sample recipes and more at all Shaw’s Markets in coordination with the NE Dairy Council

After Food Day and ongoing events:

• Wednesday, October 26, 6 – 9:30 p.m. – Food and Farming Community Forum at CCRI to engage the wider community on how to expand local farming and fisheries 1 John H. Chafee Blvd., Newport
• Thursday, October 27, 6 – 8:30 p.m. – West Bay YMCA hosts presentation on Making it Easier to Get Healthy Foods at Wickford Middle School, North Kingstown
• Friday, October 28, 6 p.m. potluck, 7 p.m. presentation – Witness for Peace brings in speaker from the Humboldt Center in Nicaragua for a dialogue on “The Human Face of U.S. Policy” at Friends Meeting House 99 Morris Ave., Providence
• Friday, October 28, 6:30 p.m. – “Supersize Me” Movie/Discussion Night at the Cranston YMCA 155 Gansett Ave, Cranston
• Saturday, October 29, 10 a.m. – 12 p.m. – West Bay YMCA hosts presentation “Keeping Farms and Local Food in our Future” at the Cold Spring Community Center, North Kingstown

Food Day events and activities have been planned in coordination with the following RI organizations, universities and businesses: Southside Community Land Trust New England Dairy Council, Environmental Justice League, YMCA of Greater Providence, West Bay YMCA, Town of N. Kingstown, Whole Foods, Brown University, Johnson and Wales University, University of Rhode Island, RI School of Design, Farm Fresh RI, Lifespan Hospitals, Shaws, Health and Wellness Institute, RI Department of Environmental Management, RI Department of Health, RI Department of Administration, New Urban Farmers, Amica, Chartwells School Dining Services, Aramark School Nutrition Services, Kids First, League of Women Voters, Edible Rhody, Eat Drink RI, Rhode Island Community Food Bank, Grow Smart, African Alliance, RI Resource Recovery Corporation