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NOTE: The following guest opinion was submitted by two staff members of the North Coast Growers Association, Harvest Hub Director Megan Kenney and Harvest Hub Coordinator Hailee Nolte.

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A bright spot in a bleak political hellscape has been the daffodils peaking through the soil and the daydreams of the Humboldt-grown produce sprouting in our farmers’ fields. (Looking at you, asparagus!) 

As a member of our fine Humboldt community, you probably have attended one or two (or maybe all nine) of the North Coast Growers’ Association’s Humboldt County Farmers’ Markets. Maybe it has become tradition to walk the Arcata Plaza on Saturday mornings carrying your woven baskets full of local goodies, or maybe you depend on Miranda’s local market to get your odds and ends during its season.

Either way, your farmers notice you shopping at their booths. They DEPEND on you supporting Humboldt’s working landscapes. Purchasing locally gives us all the opportunity to contribute to our local economy and the resiliency of our food system. Now more than ever we need to be uplifting our food system behind the redwood curtain. 

Why? The most recent federal funding slash targeted at small scale farms, from the USDA Local Food for Schools and Local Food Purchasing Assistance Programs, has sent schools, food banks, local tribes, and our farming advocates into action mode.

Humboldt and the North Coast have so many strong and collaboratively thinking individuals and businesses that, despite the chaos and uncertainty, we know that we can use our scrappiness to get through this together. We have come together to do some amazing things over the years, from the freeing of the Klamath River and returning prey-go-neesh to the skies to the measure banning GMO crops from being grown in Humboldt and passing of amnesty city ordinances. 

So, what action can we all take to continue to build the community and economy we want to see?

1. You can make a donation to Food for People’s Locally Delicious Farmer Fund. This funding multiplies through our community as it is spent: first to purchase food to feed our community, then to NCGA’s Harvest Hub to be able to continue connecting local farmers with wholesale buyers, and finally landing with our family farmers.

2. Support your local farmers. Eating local is a journey, not a destination, so don’t think that you need to switch all of your spending at once. What if you chose to buy just 1 item per week locally instead of from a supermarket? That store won’t notice the extra head of lettuce on their shelf, but you could make the day of a new farm by purchasing from them. Where can you find local food?

• You can buy locally grown products directly from farmers at the Arcata Plaza Farmers’ Market every Saturday (with more markets opening in communities across the county starting in May). NCGA markets accept EBT and offer a Market Match to help make local food more affordable. (You can call our local Department of Health and Human Services to find out how to apply for CalFresh/EBT if you think you qualify: 1-877-410-8809)
• You can order a Harvest Box, NCGA’s multi-farm CSA. These boxes are delivered straight to your door if you live in Trinidad, McKinleyville, Blue Lake, Arcata, or Eureka (Fortuna delivery coming soon!), cost $25, and EBT customers receive a Market Match which reduces the cost of the box to just $13.
• You can make a donation directly to NCGA to Support Food Access on the North Coast. You can tag your donation for a specific program like Harvest Hub or Farmers’ Markets, or provide a general donation that will go to the area most in need.

3. Have a school aged child? Harvest Hub works with so many amazing schools in Humboldt, Del Norte, and Trinity Counties. The nutrition directors and cafeteria staff work so hard to provide our kids with nutritious food (and did so well before the Local Food for Schools funding), so consider sending them a thank you note. Also, make sure to tell your school administrator that you appreciate their choice to provide high quality, local options for your children.

4. Reserve some extra space in your garden to grow local produce for those in need. Food for People has a gleaning program and will accept produce donations from gardens (which are tax deductible!). Hint: you can purchase locally cultivated plant starts at NCGA farmers’ markets, which can be purchased with EBT or Market Match.

Thanks Humboldt, keep it fresh!

—The Harvest Hub Team

harvesthub@northcoastgrowersassociation.org