Thank you, local growers and producers, for participating in our inaugural Producer Survey this spring -- a collaboration between Monadnock Food Co-op and Cheshire Country Conservation District. We plan to offer this survey every other year to track our progress and identify new trends.

You said your most significant challenges were hiring labor, generating a profit, and developing marketing options. Survey respondents shared that we could improve our relationship with your business by supporting consumer Eat Local education, boosting grant programs, and investing in labor resources and training.

In response to the survey results, we plan to follow up with those who included an email address and requested a follow-up about selling their products. We also plan to look for ways to improve our communications, problem-solving, and overall support of our local producers. This newsletter is a step towards that.

We additionally decided to launch our Monadnock Food Co-op Producer E-Newsletter. We will send out this e-newsletter four times a year.

The goals of sending out these e-newsletters include:

Have events and resources you'd love us to highlight? Please send an email to our Community Coordinator, Jen Risley.

Ready to begin selling (or selling more) to us? Please reach out directly to our Store Manager, Stephanie Wright, at 603-355-8008 or storemanager@monadnockfood.coop to set up a time to meet with her and any relevant department buyers or share any other feedback that would be important to our relationship.

The Monadnock Region Community Supported Solar (CSS) project brings together farmers, investors, and champions to use available financial models to help local farms benefit from the renewable energy economy. This project stabilizes and lowers the costs of electricity for participating farms through the Community Supported Solar framework and, in turn, increases the viability of those farms.

Thanks to the generous support of our community through our recent crowdfunding campaign, farmers can now save 21% off of our solar shares. One solar share now costs $3,570. Accessible annual payment plans of $714 for five years are also available.

Interested farmers should contact CCCD directly to reserve their shares, available on a first-come, first-served basis until sold out. Contact benee@cheshireconservation.org or call 607-756-2988 x 3011 and leave a voicemail.

Vital Communities and its partners developed digital toolkits to help farmers adopt climate-friendly practices and communicate them through their marketing efforts.

Climate Adaptation and Mitigation on the Farm: Resources that any farm can use to adapt to climate change and lessen its output of greenhouse gases – regardless of the farm’s type (livestock, produce, and more), size, or certification in terms of organic or regenerative practices.

Climate-Friendly Digital Marketing Toolkit: Designed to help VT farmers promote their certified organic farm as climate-friendly, specifically through digital outlets like e-newsletters, websites, and social media.

Cheshire County Conservation District (CCCD), in partnership with UNH Cooperative Extension, the National Center for Appropriate Technology (NCAT), and Stonewall Farm, will host two 3-hour BCS Tractor trainings. To be eligible to rent the BCS Tractor through CCCD's equipment program in 2022, you must attend this training.

In the Monadnock Region, it's been challenging to leverage Independents Week -- since many leave for vacation in July. What if we could encourage folks to consider taking a STAYCATION -- showcasing our unique independent businesses -- instead?

As of today, the WINNER of our Staycation Package will receive:

We're looking for donations of products and services to expand our Staycation Giveaway. Email us today for more details.

Monadnock Food Co-op joined the Northeast Organic Family Farms partnership, and we hope you'll join, too. This partnership was created to encourage ALL stakeholders in the food system—consumers, retailers, and vendors—to support and safeguard our region's organic family farmers.

Grocers, restaurants, cafeterias, and even online retailers always try to obtain and sell whatever products we consumers seek. So, when large numbers of consumers demand increased availability of certified organic products from northeast family farms, retailers and vendors will work hard to offer those products.

Your pledge to purchase one-quarter of your weekly dairy items from the brands that buy their milk from northeast organic family farms sends a clear signal to food outlets that you want them to prioritize these farmers' products. Learn more.