Spade & Spoon: Localizing the Way Westerners Eat

Grow Montana Snags National Award

By Kisha Lewellyn Schlegel, 10-02-07

Over the last two years, it has become difficult to talk about the creation of local food systems in Montana without discovering a project or policy supported by Grow Montana. In a short time, the broad-based coalition that promotes Montana-owned food production, processing and distribution as a sustainable economic development strategy has catalyzed and coordinated efforts to support a vibrant Montana food system. 

Led by the National Center for Appropriate Technology’s (NCAT), Nancy Matheson and coordinated by Crissie McMullan, Grow Montana’s work is directed by a steering committee, which includes members from across the state. Through university research and reports about the distance food travels, the coalition has revealed the conventional food system’s inefficiencies and the potential economic benefits of a state-based system.

To strengthen local food systems, Grow Montana also created FoodCorps with four AmeriCorps VISTA volunteers who work to create Farm to School institutional buying programs at schools and institutions around the state. This year, the coalition also worked with the Montana legislature to pass a procurement bill that allows state institutions to more easily purchase Montana made food, opening a $33 million market to local farmers and ranchers.

Because of this work, the Coalition was recently awarded the national 2007 Good Neighbor Harvest Award by the Glynwood Center, a nonprofit organization supporting community stewardship through educational and community-based agricultural initiatives. The annual award is given to an individual or organization that supports regional agriculture in innovative ways. And although the Center received over sixty nominations from twenty states for the fifth annual awards, the Center found that, “Although a young project, Grow Montana has accomplished a tremendous amount through its joint efforts and tremendous drive.  The project demonstrates the potency of using economic development as a cornerstone argument for building regional food systems.  The project also is a model for the importance and power of collaboration.”

Such success has come quickly, but not always with ease. According to Crissie McMullan, Project Coordinator for Grow Montana, the coalition’s bill to allow institutions to purchase more Montana-grown food actually died during the 2005 legislative session.

With this lesson, the coalition prepared for the 2007 session (the legislature meets every two years in Montana) by holding fifteen community meetings across the state to better understand the food policies people wanted to change. The Coalition also focused on building relationships between nonprofits, individuals and institutional food purchasers. According to McMullan, Grow Montana solidified relationships that already existed in the state that many refer to as a small town with long streets. But Grow Montana solidified those relationships around localizing our food system. With urban and rural, broad-based and state-wide support, the coalition passed the procurement bill with unanimous support from Democrats and Republicans.

For Grow Montana, strengthening Montana’s food system is a continuing challenge. Even with the new procurement law, many large purchasers still face challenges when buying local food because Montana lacks the infrastructure for a local food system. Large purchasers such as universities have trouble finding the quantity of food they need and experience issues with processing and distribution of Montana-made food. But for Grow Montana, even these issues provide possible opportunities for economic development in the state as new processing facilities and distribution networks are formed.

With these and other issues in mind, Grow Montana has already begun preparing for the 2009 legislative session. But for now, McMullan will travel to New York City to receive the prestigious Good Neighbor Harvest award for all of her and Grow Montana’s work.

Writer’s note: Crissie McMullan and the author were a part of the Local Yokels Theatre Troupe together, and both attended the University of Montana’s Environmental Studies program together.

Check back each week for Kisha’s Spade & Spoon column at www.newwest.net/spadeandspoon.

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