TNP Gets $197K to Create Farmers Market Network

WARREN, Ohio – The Trumbull Neighborhood Partnership received $197,452 from the United States Department of Agriculture Farmers Market Promotion program to market food grown by local farmers. 

TNP will manage the funds over a three-year period to provide support and assistance to farmers in the Mahoning Valley, building capacity and long-term sustainability through the creation of the Mahoning Valley Farmers Network. 

The network will serve as a collaborative entity of both market managers and vendors, and will promote practices in marketing and food safety in support of the farmers market system in the Mahoning Valley. Through this project, markets will be able to increase their capacity to promote this piece of the local food system in the Mahoning Valley, where many residents lack sufficient access to fresh produce. 

“Many folks in the Mahoning Valley are still unaware there is a plethora of fresh and local goods being sold in their communities by way of farmers markets,” said Cassandra Clevenger, TNP community resource coordinator, in a statement. “TNP seeks to collaborate within the local food system to make sure our local farmers are successful.” 

Through its GROW and Warren Farmers Market programs, TNP has worked since its 2010 inception on mitigating the impact of food deserts in Warren and Trumbull County. 

The organization released the Warren Community Food Security Strategic Plan in 2017, which identified impediments to healthy food access and emphasized the need to take a multifaceted approach to working within the food system to increase fresh food offerings. 

Published by The Business Journal, Youngstown, Ohio.