Feed Each Other Well

• Posted on 1 October 2022
• By Holly K.
• 0

PHOTO CREDIT: VILLAGE FARMSTAND WEBSITE OhmS hosts food advocate Marty Travis to share with community outreach group Let Growth Unite Us a compelling story of shifting direct to consumer creating local farm food interdepence in neighboring Livingston County

When it comes to mental health, what we put in our bodies is the beginning step to optimal function. Dense vitamins and minerals give the brain fuel to respond and engage in balance to stimulus around us. Consuming them from fresh food, grown locally is one way to assure top quality ingredients are the recipe for long-term preventative health. 

FEED EACH OTHER WELL

11:45 Community Roundtable following 10:30am OhmS InterFaith Service

SUNDAY   NOV 6th, 130 SYLVAN AVE Farm Ridge Township Hall GRAND RIDGE IL 61325

Potluck Immediately Following: First Name A-L Bring sides, M-Z bring desserts. Not kitchen savvy? Bring plastic forks, napkins or paper plates. On a tight budget? Write one rainy day note for our Lift Me UP penpal list.

MEET MARTY TRAVIS 

7th Generation Farmer, Spence Farm; Fairbury, IL

excerpt shared with permission.

Marty Travis is partner at Spence Farm. One step onto the Spence Farm in Illinois, co-owned and operated by Marty Travis and his son, Will, and the story begins to unfold. A former furniture maker who inherited the old family farm decided to return to farming, but saw the opportunity for true sustainability was a long away from corn, soybeans and convention. Instead, he turned to the city of Chicago and its restaurant community. As it so happened, they were looking for farmers who would give them unique food and vegetables, and work with them to build their seasonal menus. It was, simply put, a match made in foodie heaven. A thriving, sustainable business model grew from the ground up, from the hard work Marty Travis and his family put into the soil, the livestock, and the surrounding acreage, into the community of buyers he fostered with kindness, amazing products, and dedicated work. Today, the model has shifted again to encompass individual families in the wake of the COVID crisis. Caring and compassion along with a helping of gratitude is what leads a cooperative group of farmers lead by the Travis family. Currently serving dozens of restaurants and over 1000 families, this network of farmers is leading the way to a change in the landscape around food. (Fairbury, IL)

Every Wednesday father and son team Marty and Will Travis, load up crates and packages of fresh produce and proteins from over 60 farms into their refrigerated truck. The packages contain standard fare like broccoli, beets, and bacon, as well as unique offerings like heirloom tomatoes, multi-colored chicken eggs, and rainbow carrots. Over 17 years ago the Travis’s, farmers themselves, began working cooperatively with other farmers across Central Illinois to aggregate and deliver products to Chicago. They believed in land stewardship, in raising produce without chemicals and raising livestock on pasture, and they knew that working together with other like-minded farmers, they could better market their products and create new sales opportunities to help sustain each of their farms. Today, the Travis’s distribution company, Down at the Farms, LLC, is the only farmer-led distribution company in Illinois.