Hello again!
Have you ever noticed how just when things are starting to slow down and you think you have a moment to catch your breath, everything starts getting really busy again all at once? Enter, September!
The farmers in our foodshed are wrapping up the busiest parts of their season and starting to think ahead. From equipment upgrades, climate resilience strategies, and overall efficiency, to finding ways to take better care of themselves and their teams, regenerative farmers are looking for flexible, affordable ways to fund their work—which means we've got some exciting new loan applications in our pipeline.
And it's a critical time to be funding regenerative farmers. With another year of record-setting extreme weather, there has been a substantial increase in the percentage of Americans that believe climate change is happening and an increasing focus on the role regenerative agriculture plays. The work farmers do to increase soil health, facilitate carbon sequestration, protect fresh water supplies, and contribute to resilient local food economies is ever more essential.
This essential work has us doubling down. At FoodCap, we're streamlining the way we work internally, creating a clearer loan framework for applicants, and beefing up our outreach and technical support for existing borrowers. We're also especially excited to be assembling our full team and board for a long overdue in-person retreat next week, focusing on how we can better understand racial inequities in our food and finance systems.
You're receiving this newsletter because you also understand the essential work regenerative farmers do. As always, we hope you enjoy the following highlights and that you are heartened by the ways your support facilitates this work. If you haven't yet contributed to Foodshed Capital, please consider joining our growing number of Perennial Supporters.
Until next time,
Erica Hellen
Director of Operations
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Our newest borrowers, Allison, Erin, and Emily of Siller Pollinator Company, are helping people help pollinators. From installing habitats and gardens, hosting bee camps and beekeeping lessons, managing hives at homes and businesses, re-homing swarms, and harvesting honey... these gals do it all to ensure a thriving pollinator population in central Virginia.
Given the demand for their services, they're putting their loan funds to work straight away by hiring a new staff person. Need help with your hives? Not seeing much pollinator activity? Check their website to learn more! |
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Thanks to new grant funding from the Small Business Association, we'll be collaborating with Charlottesville's Community Investment Collaborative to present a series of free workshops specifically tailored to farmers and food entrepreneurs.
FoodCap will share our in-house expertise in direct-marketing and capital access. We'll also be joined by Kitchen Table Consultants for thorough guidance on farm bookkeeping, as well as FarmRaise, who will share ways to find and apply for grants and public funds.
>> Dates and times TBD! <<
Be on the lookout for specific details next month. In the meantime, if there's a particular topic you'd like us to include, please let us know!
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Mark of Real Roots Food Systems (and one of our 2020 borrowers) showing off his unique Afro-Caribbean crops and discussing the intersection of cultural sustenance and climate resilience.
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FoodCap was pleased to sponsor the 5th Annual Real Local RVA Tour highlighting a trio of farms working collaboratively and regeneratively in central Virginia. Board member, Tracey Wiley, and yours truly enjoyed a bright September Sunday exploring Real Roots, Hazel Witch Farm, and Shine Farms.
Photo cred: Co-sponsors Ellwood Thompson's
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FoodCap is participating in the Virginia Good Food Fund, a network of food system lenders, funders, technical assistance providers, and other stakeholders working to build more long-term viability and healthy food access into our food system. Our Executive Director Michael Reilly recently sat down with partners at Virginia Community Capital and the Virginia Food Access Investment Fund (VDACS) to talk about the role of equitable access to capital in increasing food system resilience.
Hear their thoughts in the video above, or read more about the partnership here! |
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Although not a brand new release, we're enjoying veteran food journalist and former farmer Tom Philpott's Perilous Bounty, an illuminating—and ultimately hopeful—look at the ways big ag stakeholders benefit from the very structures that threaten our country's major food production regions, and the ways regenerative farmers are fighting back. |
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Put Your Money Where Your Mouth Is |
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We're a small team trying to make a big impact.
Just like the farmers we support,
it's vital for our operations to have reliable funding.
That's why a small monthly gift is actually the most effective way
to support what we do.
Whether it's $10 or $100 a month, sustained support allows us to stay focused. We can spend more time providing low-cost loans, offering robust technical support, and covering our operational costs, and less time designing fundraising campaigns.
If you believe in our work, will you chip in a little bit each month?
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