The U.P. Food Summit will be held on Monday from 10am-4pm at the Northern Center, on the campus of Northern Michigan University.
This event celebrates local food, highlights projects from around the Upper Peninsula, and provides networking opportunities. The keynote speakers are Roger LaBine, Water Resource Technician for the Lac Vieux Desert Band of Lake Superior Chippewa, and Kathleen Smith, Manoomin Ganawandang or “She who takes care of the wild rice,” for the Great Lakes Indian Fish and Wildlife Commission. Kathleen and Roger will present findings on the impact of climate change on wild rice in the Great Lakes area.
Other presentations planned for the day include an overview of the U.P. wide Prescription for Health and farm-based cold storage grant program that was launched in 2022, training for food producers on schools as markets, and results of a food aggregation and distribution hub feasibility study. The day will include more than presentations – it is also built around opportunities to participate in interactive demonstrations, discussions, and local food story telling.
“Our local food system is something to be celebrated. This event gives people from different parts of the food system a chance to connect with each other. We want to think collectively about where we are now with local food in the UP, and what the future could look like,” says Rachael Pressley, Regional Planner at the Western Upper Peninsula Planning and Development Region (WUPPDR) and member of the UPFE Food Summit Planning Team.
This event, which includes lunch and refreshments, is free thanks to generous funding from the USDA Regional Food Systems Partnership Grant, or Food SPICE, Food Systems Partners Investing in Communities and Entrepreneurs, and MSU Center for Regional Food Systems.
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