News/Events

Susan Jutz, ZJ Farms is Voted "Best Farm/Farmer" in the 2009 Edible Iowa Local Hero Awards

Despite losing a barn to the 2008 storms, Susan Jutz has continued to operate one of the area's most popular Community Supported Agriculture ventures, Local Harvest. With lots of help from fellow farmers and artisans, Jean Donohue of HueHill Farm who grows the herbs and most of the vegetables for the winter share, and Laura Krouse who also operates Abbe Hills CSA in Mount Vernon, Susan has expanded the operation to include winter shares, multiple pick-up locations and even Thanksgiving turkeys.

As if that weren't enough, Susan also helped create Local Foods Connection, which is now a two-time Local Hero Award winner. Active in many organizations that support local, organic, sustainable agriculture, Susan is a true hero to women in farming and to fans of good fresh food everywhere.

 

 

Laura Dowd and Local Foods Connection is Voted "Best Local Non-Profit" in the 2009 Edible Iowa Local Hero Awards

We're not sure we could have thought of a better choice to be the first repeat winner of the Local Hero award than Laura Dowd and Local Foods Connection. Laura's tireless work for this important cause is a testament to the vitality of the movement for real food.

Local Foods Connection, which was founded in 1999, is a charity that recruits volunteers to help on CSA farms, and in turn collects shares from those farms to distribute to families who cannot afford them. More than that, they provide cooking and nutrition education, farm visits, even cooking utensils, pots and pans. Laura often liked to say that while some families are reluctant to go on the requisite farm visits, the only thing harder than getting them to go is getting them to leave - they enjoy the farms that much.

 

Edible Iowa River Valley
Spring 2010 Issue, Number 15