Fwd: [Food-news] Oregon Food Bank, OSU Extension, Launch Food Resource Web Site

[Guest guest]

>

> *Editor's Note:* An innovative community food

> security website is now

> online in Oregon, USA. Championed by the Extension

> Service

> of the University of Oregon and the Oregon Food

> Bank, the site aims to,

> through its database to increase access to local

> food and act

> as a repository for sustainable food resources. The

> community food

> program's database, when complete will provide

> state-wide listings

> of community food security initiatives ranging from

> food policy

> councils, community kitchens to farmers' markets.

> Creating partnerships

> and using the internet to full advantage could serve

> as a template for

> other jurisdictions looking to enhance community

> food security and

> increase consumption of local food in a sustainable

> manner. *JK**

>

>

http://www.medfordnews.com/articles/index.cfm?artOID=328516 & cp=10996

>

>

<http://www.medfordnews.com/articles/index.cfm?artOID=328516 & cp=10996>

>

> 6:36 am PT, Monday, Mar 13, 2006

> Oregon Food Bank, OSU Extension, Launch Food

> Resource Web Site

>

> by Bob Rost, 541-737-3381/OSU

>

> CORVALLIS, Oregon - Wherever you live in Oregon - be

> it in a larger city

> or smaller town - finding up-to-date information

> about local

> food resources will be a lot easier with the

> introduction of Food for

> Oregon, an online database just launched by the

> Oregon State

> University Extension Service in cooperation with

> Oregon Food Bank.

>

> Food for Oregon fulfills a recommendation to develop

> a database to

> " provide information and to help coordinate

> community food security

> efforts across the state, " that is part of the

> Oregon Hunger Relief Task

> Force's Act to End Hunger.

>

> Community food security means reliable access to

> nutritious, affordable

> and culturally appropriate food resources for all

> citizens.

>

> " Connecting Oregonians to local and regional food

> resources is good for

> hungry citizens and good for food producers, " said

> Oregon Gov.

> Ted Kulongoski. " We can only win the fight against

> hunger if we all work

> together - government, universities, business,

> nonprofits, the faith

> community and every individual.

>

> " By improving access to high-quality, locally

> produced foods, increasing

> Oregonians' self-reliance in providing for their own

> food needs, and

> supporting our local food systems, the community

> food programs database

> will move us closer to the goal of eliminating

> hunger in Oregon, "

> he said.

>

> You can find the Web site at:

> http://foodfororegon.oregonstate.edu

> <http://foodfororegon.oregonstate.edu/>.

>

> " The Food for Oregon database will include a broad

> range of locally

> available food outlets, including community gardens,

> farmers' markets,

> community kitchens and gleaning organizations,

> faith-based food

> providers, and other local food producers and

> processors, " said Sally

> Bowman, OSU Extension family and community

> development specialist.

>

> The audience for this project is all Oregonians, she

> added.

>

> The main feature of the Website is a searchable

> database of

> non-emergency food resources throughout Oregon,

> along with many links to

> other food resource Web sites.

>

> " Oregonians in need of emergency food will find

> links to those resources

> on this site, " said Bowman. " However, our plan is

> that Food for

> Oregon will become the most current and complete

> collection of community

> food resources in the state. "

>

> To help reach that objective the database features

> registration and

> e-mail templates that provide an easy-to-use pathway

> for food resource

> providers to add and update database listings.

>

> " In a broader sense, we hope that the communication

> tools built into the

> Food for Oregon database will serve as a gateway for

> citizen

> involvement in community food policy and volunteer

> efforts to expand

> public access to community food resources, " said

> Shawn DeCarlo,

> Oregon Food Bank agency relations coordinator.

>

> Another important goal of Food for Oregon is to

> emphasize availability

> of sustainable community food resources, added Garry

> Stephenson,

> OSU Extension small farms program coordinator.

>

> " Some of our best sustainable food resource outlets

> are farmers' markets

> and community gardens, " Stephenson said. " Listing

> local

> producers in the database is an important way that

> we can support the

> smaller farm operations around our communities and

> bolster

> their ability to continue providing locally grown

> food products. "

>

> According to Bowman, the OSU Extension Service and

> Oregon Food Bank have

> partnered on several projects in recent years.

>

> " Working together on the Food for Oregon database

> project was a natural

> collaboration since hunger issues in Oregon are

> addressed

> by the Extension Service through education and by

> Oregon Food Bank

> through advocacy, " she said.

>

> /About the OSU Extension Service: The OSU Extension

> Service is the

> statewide educational outreach arm of the

> university, working to

> help Oregonians find solutions to high priority

> economic, environmental

> and social issues. Extension delivers research-based

> educational

> programs in agriculture, forestry, family and

> community development,

> marine and fresh water issues and 4-H youth

> development.

> /

>

> /

> ***/*James Kuhns is a Contributing Editor to

> Foodnews*

>

>

>

>

> --

>

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