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24 <br /> 1 Ashley Heger said that the slide in the packet was the wrong slide and the one on the <br /> 2 screen is correct. She apologized and said not to consider slide #9 in the packet. She said they <br /> 3 created a category called "multiple" to include the Inner Faith Council and others that provide <br /> 4 wraparound services. <br /> 5 <br /> 6 Slide #10 <br /> Expanding Local Food Markets Pilot Project <br /> At the recommendation or the chair of the Orange Counq Board of County Commissioners, the <br /> Foal Council and Cooperative Extension have Geer exploring options for a pilot program to <br /> expand markets for Orange County grauers and increase access to local foods far reeomal <br /> buyer, <br /> a Stakeholder interview$ <br /> • 18 m,omth pilot pragram <br /> a Support 6-8 growers in u online sellingimarketing platform to conmect to regional <br /> buyers <br /> 4P Pilot participants will help advise pragram implememtatian and evaluation <br /> -w Data collection and 2-4 staff reports annually <br /> + lutended timeline; July ROU to Demam er 2023 <br /> 7 <br /> 8 Ashley Heger said that in Spring 2021, Chair Price recommended that the Food Council <br /> 9 work with Fresh Fire. She said they asked for feedback from stakeholders, including the Black <br /> 10 farmer group they've worked with, and asked them what they think about this. She said that she <br /> 11 has worked with Cooperative Extension to complete those stakeholder interviews. She said they <br /> 12 chose from a wide spectrum of food producers in the county, and they selected a diversity in <br /> 13 product, size, and how long they have been around. She said they said they were already <br /> 14 engaged in wholesale markets or looking to do so. She said that five years ago, the Board had <br /> 15 created a gap fund for farmers, and they thought there would be a line out the door to help get <br /> 16 them certified but farmers in the county were doing direct sales and said there was no desire to <br /> 17 move beyond that. She said that now there has been a switch and there is a higher demand <br /> 18 here for local goods. She said that this pilot program will help small local growers expand into <br /> 19 wholesale. She said they are proposing an 18-month pilot that would start in July. She said the <br /> 20 funding would support eight growers in the county to become able to participate in online <br /> 21 wholesaling. She said this would cutout the middleman and allow more local engagement. She <br /> 22 said they hope they can also supplement the buyers, but they are not quite sure what they <br /> 23 buyer side looks like at this point. She said that the third portion of funding will be for more <br /> 24 frequent and more detailed data on the local food system. She said that the Fresh Fire <br /> 25 specialized in data collection and can do customized reports, help interview, and give them key <br /> 26 information on how program is working or if it is not. <br /> 27 <br /> 28 <br />