County program ready to carry local-food gospel to wider area

Recognized as the most "local" of locavore initiatives in the country, the 30 Mile Meal Project is now poised to share its successful model for connecting and promoting regional food producers and enterprises, according to a news release.

As the project begins its third year of working with southeast Ohio's local foods community, the Athens County Convention & Visitors Bureau (ACCVB) has received funding from the Central Appalachian Network (CAN) "to replicate its successful brand in other parts of Ohio and neighboring West Virginia," the release said.

Describing the activities the grant will fund, project manager Natalie Woodroofe noted in the release, "We've had a tremendous response to our efforts to identify and showcase foods producers and businesses within a 30-mile radius of Athens, and are now hearing from other regions that want to adopt our approach to strengthen their own food economies. Thanks to generous funding from CAN, we will continue to build opportunities for our current partners while bringing people to our region to explore the model we're using to increase earnings for those that grow, manufacture, serve and sell local foods."

Planning is already underway, according to the release, for the first 30 Mile Meal Discovery Day, which will be held in Athens this spring. Woodroofe said this event will give people in other regions "the chance to hear from some of our local partners about how 30 Mile Meal branding has created new markets and sales for food-related businesses and nurtured community pride in supporting these farmers and homegrown entrepreneurs."

Attendees will be provided with assessment tools developed by ACCVB and ACEnet to determine if they have enough potential local foods partners to launch their own locavore initiative, the release said.

CAN funds will also support the selection of three new regions in adopting and creating their own 30 Mile Meal brand, as well as the launch of the "Real Food-Real Local-Real Good" Institute as a national resource for communities wanting to utilize regional food production as a sustainable economic development strategy. The first Institute conference will take place in July, coinciding 30 Mile Meal Month activities, and will include farm and farmers market tours, panel discussions, break-out sessions and locally-sourced dining.

Launched in early 2010 by the Athens County Convention & Visitors Bureau and the Appalachian Center for Economic Networks (ACEnet), the 30 Mile Meal Project now has over 130 local foods partners within a 30-mile radius of Athens. For more information on this initiative, visit www.30milemeal.com.