SNAP(Food Stamp) Outreach and Application Assistance Webinar!

Join the Montana Food Bank Network for a free Webinar on SNAP and outreach assistance.  Food System Advocates and Organizations around the state of Montana are working to provide nutritious and locally-grown food to members in our community through the SNAP program. Learning more about the SNAP program has helped people around the nation discover the benefit of buying fresh, nutritious, local products, farmers and farmer’s markets are seizing the opportunity to broaden support by reaching out to SNAP recipients and those eligible for SNAP benefits.

Click here to read about how SNAP education has been used in Farmers Markets around the nation to support local farmers and to increase the number of people who have access to healthy and affordable food for their families.

Many people do not apply for SNAP simply because they do not know that they may be eligible, they do not know how to apply, or they have misconceptions about the program. YOU can help clients overcome these barriers by providing accurate information, referrals, and assistance.

Anyone who works with low-income clients has the perfect opportunity to help connect families, seniors, and individuals with additional resources and programs. SNAP (food stamp) benefits make a tremendous difference as families work to stretch their budgets every month. SNAP benefits help free up money for other necessities such as rent, utilities, child care, and medical costs. Learn how to connect people in your community to this valuable resource by participating in our SNAP Outreach and Application Webinar.

NEW: This webinar will also highlight WIC, LIEAP (the Low Income Energy Assistance Program) and other resources that can help your clients.

The webinar will be offered at the following times (there is no need to participate in both sessions):

• Tuesday, September 20th, 11:00am – 12:15pm
• Wednesday, September 21st, 2:00pm – 3:15pm

**If you would like to participate, please contact Lorianne Burhop for connection information:   721-3825 Ext. 230 or lburhop@mfbn.org.  Please provide the following information:

• Name
• Organization
• City
• Contact information (phone, email)
• Which session you would like to participate in
• The number of people planning to watch the webinar at your organization (if you do not register separately)

For more information or if you are unable to participate but would like materials contact Lorianne at 721-3825 Ext. 230 or lburhop@mfbn.org.

Sandisfield, Massachusetts and Trenton, Maine join the list of towns with new food sovereignty ordinances

From David E. Gumpert at the Complete Patient blog:

“Two additional towns have approved the Food Sovereignty laws developed out of coastal Maine.

What may be the first town outside of Maine to approve such a law is Sandisfield, MA. Brigitte Ruthman, who has been battling with Massachusetts regulators over the legality of her one-cow herdshare, reports that her town earlier this months “adopted a resolution as follows…..’We the people of the town of Sandisfield, Berkshire County, Massachusetts, have the right to produce, process, sell, purchase and consume local foods thus promoting self-reliance, the preservation of family farms and local food traditions.’”

And Deborah Evans, one of the original promoters of the Food Sovereignty idea, says the Maine town of Trenton just approved the ordinance as well, by a 29 to 25 vote.

That makes a total of five towns–four in Maine and one in Massachusetts–to approve the ordinances. I understand others are waiting in the wings….”

One of the chief goals of such legislation is to create a local zone in which state and federal regulators are prohibited from interfering with sale of controversial foods such as raw milk.

We are working on our website – thanks for being patient with us!

A new projected has sprouted up in the Flathead Lake area for senior citizens who don’t have a lot of space or time for growing their own food. The Montana Conservation Corps (MCC), Agency on Aging and Nourish the Flathead, are working together for their second year of an initiative that helps seniors obtain container plots using locally sourced materials so that they can do “square foot gardening.”
The Flathead has a fairly high elderly population. “There are quite a few folks who have the interest in gardening but who aren’t physically able to go about that task easily or they just don’t have the space at their home to make a huge garden plot,” says MCC leader Kate Mower. “They might also not be able to get to a community garden.”
MCC worked with the Agency on Aging to identify seniors who were interested in the container gardening. And the agency provided a budget. The MCC workers volunteered their time, working with Nourish the Flathead—an organization aiming to get more interest in local food consumption and food production sustainability in the area. (One initiative they’ve worked on is creating a new community garden in conjunction with the Flathead Valley Community College). With the container gardens, Nourish the Flathead provided sheet mulching lessons to MCC leaders.
The permaculture gardening technique involves actually creating your own soil taking into consideration the ratios of nitrogen and carbon. They used a process of layering (“like lasagna,” says Mower) composted manure (which they got from a local dairy) and leaves (you can use grass clippings or hay, too) that are already broken down a little. Over time the material decompose into a rich soil.
“It took a little bit of convincing [to the consumers] that it was going to break down and be a good choice for their plants,” says Mower. “But as we found last year it was a great choice and last year folks got a lot of food out of their boxes.”
The container boxes are 3 feet wide by 5 feet long, and 2 feet deep. This year, the MCC crew took diseased trees from downtown Kalispell that the city was going to remove, milled them (with the help of a local woodsman) and used the boards to make the container boxes, which they delivered all over the Flathead Valley along with seeds and starters.
Despite such small containers, Mower says the amount of food harvested from each box was amazing.
“You split the box off into foot by foot sections and you can plant pretty densely because there’s so much room for the roots to grow downward,” says Mower. “The box looks super crowded but the plants are actually thriving.”