Organically Grown Company Awards Mission Fund Grants to 25 Stakeholder Partners

We’re excited to announce the recipients of OGC’s most recent round of Mission Fund investments. This fall, we are awarding $160,000 in grants to 25 local nonprofits and businesses as part of our purpose-focused giving program. 

 OGC’s Mission Fund grants are central to our mission to invest in people, practices, and organizations contributing to equitable and sustainable agricultural systems for local and global health,” said Sarah Brown, OGC’s head of stakeholder strategy. “Reinvesting profits across our stakeholder groups is embedded in our trust-owned business model, recognizing that our wellness is interconnected, and their success is ours.” 

OGC’s Mission Fund grantmaking is dedicated to positively impacting a broad range of stakeholders, chosen for their alignment with the company’s priority funding areas which focus on: 

·        Supporting growers, handlers, and customers with direct relationships to OGC. Grants target projects that increase resiliency, viability, strengthen our relationships or address consistent supply chain barriers 

·        Building equity in our regional farm and food system by supporting underserved or underrepresented communities, including those who identify as Black, persons of color, Indigenous, and LGBTQIA+  

·        Promoting small and medium farm viability 

·        Strengthening grower and eater communities by funding product innovation, engagement, and research  

·        Growing the organic trade and sector  

 After a months-long grantmaking process, which included coworker-led nominations, reviewing, scoring, and selection, the following partners and community allies received Mission Fund grants from OGC: 

 Boldly Grown Farm - A certified organic farm located in Mt. Vernon, Wash., focused on growing fall and winter vegetables. OGC’s investment will help farmers Amy Frye and Jacob Slosberg transition to a new 30-acre parcel, providing space to grow their wholesale and CSA operations. Hear how OGC’s grant will help these farmers in short video. 

 Calypso Farm and Ecology Center - A grassroots nonprofit situated within a boreal forest near Fairbanks, offering hands-on education programs and fresh food for the community. OGC’s investment will support their Alaska Native Agriculture Project, which provides training and networking support for rural and indigenous farmers.

 Circle h Farm - An organic herb and vegetable farm located in Oregon’s southern Willamette Valley. OGC’s investment will provide operational resiliency for this small family-run business. 

Commonplace Farm - A 24-acre farm focused on fresh organic salad greens and sprouts, located in the Willamette Valley. The grant from OGC will support building infrastructure for their growing business.  

 Dinner Table Ideas dba Pacific Coast Harvest - This Seattle-based food hub partners with immigrant, young, BI&POC, women, and underrepresented farm communities to serve residents in homes, apartments, houseboats, historically disadvantaged preschools, restaurants, and wholesale buyers. OGC’s investment will support leadership development and an exploration of alternative ownership models.

 Ecotrust - Ecotrust creates and accelerates triple-bottom-line innovations to benefit the NW region and inspire the world. The OGC grant will assist the Viviane Barnett Fellowship for Food System Leaders. This 18-month cohort-based program supports BI&POC fellows in exploring new possibilities, solving challenging problems, and creating mutually beneficial opportunities related to Indigenous and Afro-indigenous farming practices, climate justice, and soil regeneration.

 Eloisa Organic Farm - This diversified organic vegetable farm, owned by immigrant farmers Vicki Herrera and Zenon Ramirez, needs equipment to support their growing operation. An OGC Mission Fund grant will help the couple purchase a tractor to tackle farm work and alleviate some of the challenges in finding workers.

Food Access & Aggregation Community Team (FAACT) - This collaborative partnership, made up of community-based organizations and businesses, addresses inequities in the local food system. An OGC grant will assist with operating FAACT’s shared farm site, Horseneck Farm, which focuses on connecting low-income, BI&POC, immigrant, refugee farmers and communities with resources. 

Gathering Together Farm (GTF)- A well-known, 65-acre organic farm in Oregon’s Willamette Valley, established in 1987, GTF will invest its OGC Mission Fund grant in competitive wages and benefits that include a monthly farm clinic, daily meals, access to fresh organic produce and a safe and inclusive work environment for their crew.

 Viva Farm’s Grow Food - Viva Farm (VF) empowers aspiring and limited-resource farmers by providing bilingual training in holistic, organic farming and access to land, infrastructure, marketing and capital. An OGC grant is supporting their practicum in sustainable agriculture, an applied course in certified organic production and small farm business management, offered in Skagit and King County, Wash. The course is a prerequisite for prospective farmers interested in joining VF’s incubator program, which helps them launch their own farm businesses.  

 Growing Gardens - This Portland nonprofit uses the experience of growing food in schools, backyards, and correctional facilities to cultivate healthy, equitable communities. An OGC grant will purchase CSA boxes filled with culturally appropriate produce grown by local BI&POC organic farmers to distribute to low-income families in need. 

Hillsboro Food Co-op - Hillsboro, Ore. community members are building a brick-and-mortar co-op store. An OGC grant contributes seed funding for this economic and entrepreneurial effort.  

 Johansen Ranch, Inc. - A Calif. legacy citrus grower, Johansen Ranch has been a longtime supplier of mandarins to OGC. A grant from OGC will help rebuild the ranch’s packing shed, which will provide added insulation to protect their farm crew, thereby improving the work experience and quality of the product.

 Kitchen Table Advisors (KTA)- San Francisco-based KTA programs focus on two complementary pillars: KTA Business Advising and KTA Regional Ecosystem Building. KTA Business Advising creates change on the individual farmer level by providing in-depth, bilingual, 1:1 coaching, tools, and connections to resources that help organic and regenerative farmers build thriving, resilient businesses. KTA Regional Ecosystem Building pilots collaborative projects that create systems change by influencing existing institutions and experimenting with new projects that enable underserved farmers to have more power, control, and influence over capital, land, and markets. Watch this short video to hear how OGC’s support will further their work.   

 Dharma Ridge Farms /Leland Valley Produce - Located in Jefferson County, Wash., this family-owned and operated farm will invest their Mission Fund grant in an irrigation system to service their fields and greenhouses. This investment will help them conserve water and labor. 

Mishjacks Catering - Mishjacks Catering is a female, minority and LGBTQIA-owned company that promotes equity and relationship building through shared food experiences. One of their major goals is helping lower-income, under-represented people understand the importance of buying and eating fresh, wholesome foods that can be traced back to the source. OGC’s grant will help them grow and increase their visibility. Hear from Mishjacks’ founder and owner, Tamisa Heacox-Jackson, in this short video. 

 Nurturing Roots Farm - This thriving quarter-acre urban farm and farming program values community, self-sufficiency, food empowerment, social justice, and education in Seattle’s Beacon Hill neighborhood. Founder Nyema Clark is a speaker and teacher on topics ranging from germination to systemic food oppression, sharing her journey as a Black female entrepreneur. An OGC grant will help fund Nurturing Sprouts, a program for pre-school-aged children, and Know Your Roots, an advanced food justice internship for middle-school youth. 

 Oregon Community Food Systems Network - The network collaborates with 59 nonprofit organizations and allies dedicated to strengthening local and regional food systems to deliver better economic, social, health and environmental outcomes across the state. OGC’s grant will support the development of an action plan and toolkit for regional food system development in Oregon that prioritizes values and practices racial equity, and fair labor. 

Our Table Cooperative - Located south of Portland, this multi-stakeholder cooperative brings together workers, producers, and eaters into a model community-scale food system owned by the community. OGC’s Mission Fund investment will help them expand their retail space and outdoor gathering hub.

Port Orford Community Co-op - This fully volunteer-run co-op serves Oregon’s southern coast and a growing community of 360+ members. An OGC Mission Fund grant will support transporting more fresh produce from distribution and farm pick-up hubs to meet the needs of its members. 

 Salud Raw Food - This Central Oregon vegan juice cafe was hit especially hard with extended closure periods during the pandemic. An OGC Mission Fund grant will help in their recovery efforts and support the wellness of their community. 

 Sunrise Organic Farm - Investing in equipment can be a very big challenge for a beginning farmer with the motivation to grow. An OGC Mission Fund grant will help farmer Paulo Martinez Cortes, owner of Sunrise Organic Farm in Albany, Ore., invest in tools that will help him innovate with new crops.

 Wakulima USA - Located near OGC’s Des Moines, Wash. facility, Wakulima USA is a nonprofit farming and food business cooperative that advances small business development and food sovereignty for low-income immigrants and people of color in the Puget Sound region. Wakulima means “Farmers” in Kiswahili, the most widely spoken language in Africa. OGC’s grant will educate youth on culturally relevant ways of farming and support them in establishing income-generating projects. 

Whitewater Ranch - A wildfire severely impacted this 80-acre organic blueberry farm in September 2020. An OGG award will help with irrigation system repairs, weed mat and fencing replacement, and safety education for their crew.  

 Yisrael Family Urban Farm - (YFUF) Located in Sacramento, YFUF was founded as part of the Yisrael family’s journey to transition to a plant-based diet. Now, as a grassroots organization, YFUF has become a tool for social change. OGC’s grant will fund the Urban Roots Initiative, which provides residents, schools, and organizations with a garden for free or low cost to increase their access to fresh food. 

 OGC’s grants are awarded annually and provide an ongoing opportunity for stakeholder engagement. For information about OGC giving, visit https://www.organicgrown.com/giving-partnerships