Midwest Foods & The Good Food Festival and Conference

This March, Midwest Foods was present at one of the most notable events in the industry, the Good Food Festival and Conference, a massive public celebration of the fast-growing Good Food Movement. The Good Food Festival is coordinated by Family Farmed, a non-profit organization committed to expand the production, marketing and distribution of locally grown and responsibly produced food, in order to enhance the social, economic, and environmental health of our communities.

The Good Food Festival and Conference was first held twelve years ago as the Local Organic Trade Show, the first event of its kind. The event plays an essential role in building local food infrastructure and creating lasting relationships that have contributed push the Good Food Movement forward.

The festival helps connect financial resources to farms and Good Food Businesses, helps grow local procurement capacity, engages local school districts, provides a forum to discuss local, statewide and national food policy, and educates the public about the importance and impact of locally sourced food.

The show brought together leading panelists who shared their perspective about the future of our agricultural system, amazing chef demos highlighting local food, and engaged more than 100 farmers, food businesses, and non-profit exhibitors at the Good Food Marketplace. No other event brings together such a wide range of farmers, food entrepreneurs, food policy stakeholders, sustainable agriculture visionaries, and community members all in one place.

Midwest Foods core mission is to distribute as much locally sourced produce as possible, and to emphasize the importance of sustainable farming methods in our community. For this reason, in our attempt to prospect and connect to more of our local farms, on Friday, the 25^th of March, we were part of the Good Food Industry Showcase, exhibiting a large variety of products.

On the same day, visitors to the festival were able to enjoy some of our locally grown gold, red and candy stripped beets, rutabagas, parsnips, turnips, from the Rice Lake Farms in Grant, Michigan, delicious red apples from the North Bay Produce in Traverse City, Michigan, and cello radishes from the Miedema Produce farm in Hudsonville, Michigan.

In regards to our non-produce range, Midwest Foods displayed delicious cherry, blueberry and strawberry preserves, from our partner farm in Michigan, the Brownwood Farms.

Supportive of the local dairy producers, Midwest Foods showcased a few of our cheeses varieties. Part of the Roth Cheese wide selection, the Dill Havarti, winner of the 3^rd place in 2013 at the American Cheese Society, had the perfect creamy delicacy to lace in the flavor of dill for a subtle and savory finish. Courtesy of the Red Barn Family Farms, to honor and sustain Wisconsin’s rich family dairy farming heritage, the smoothness of the white cheddar and its sweet, nutty flavor was the perfect addition to a memorable day. Saxon’s Creamery signature cheese, The Big Ed’s Gouda, due to its creamy and sweet, rich milk flavors was complimented to be the perfect table cheese.

Midwest Foods is constantly working to improve opportunities for our local growers and producers. As a wholesale buyer, we have a very strict quality and food safety guidelines, and we expect the same standards from our partner farms. Recognizing the need for an extensive information and training, our company was also present at the Good Food Festival on Saturday, the 26^th of March, to talk about our local specialized program, Veloccity. Fresh food requires proper handling to insure it is as safe as it is delicious. Each and every grower on Veloccity needs a written food safety document outlining their Good Agricultural Practices (GAP) listing their procedures and own scheduled as well as random audits performed from the field. Midwest Foods is dedicated to conduct onsite visits to help and assist the farmer in document preparation and safe practices.

We are grateful for having the opportunity to represent and promote our local movement at America’s longest-running sustainable and local food trade show. It gave us the most contentment to be part of the Good Food Festival and we are looking with excitement to the next years’ event.

Exhibiting at the Good Food Festival

Fresh Produce – Delicious Red Apples, Acorn Squash, Butternut Squash, Spaghetti Squash, Carrots, Rutabagas, Green Peppers, Green and Red Cabbage, Turmeric, Cello Radishes, Ramps.

Local – Cello Radishes from Miedema Produce in Hudsonville, Michigan, and Rutabagas from Rice Lake Farms, in Grant, Michigan

Local Red Delicious Apples from North Bay Produce farm, in Traverse City, Michigan

Gold, red and candy striped Beets from Rice Lake Farms in Grant, Michigan; Zucchini, Yellow Squash, Green Beans and Celery

Local Cherry, Blueberry, and Strawberry Preserves from Brownwood Farms

Made from fresh, plump, handpicked Michigan Blueberries

Local Cheese: Big Ed’s Gouda from Saxon Creamery, Dill Havarti from Roth Farms and the Red Barn White Cheddar

Our Local Program – Veloccity