ARCADIA FOOD INC
9000 Richmond Highway, Alexandria, VA 22309 www.arcadiafood.org

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Organizations Filed Purposes: The Arcadia Center for Sustainable Food and Agriculture is dedicated to creating a more equitable and sustainable local food system in the Washington, D.C. region. We achieve this through a thoughtfully constructed network of programs that add to the supply of quality, fresh food; increase the number of farmers by training military veterans for new careers in agriculture; building demand for quality food through on-farm and in-school experiential education programs; and finally, dismantling the primary barriers to access through our Mobile Markets, which offer fresh, affordable food in neighborhoods passed over by traditional retailers.

The Arcadia Center for Sustainable Food and Agriculture is dedicated to creating a more equitable and sustainable local food system in the Washington, D.C. region. We achieve this through a thoughtfully constructed network of programs.

Arcadia Theory of Change Arcadia takes a holistic approach to reforming the food system to achieve not just public health benefits but environmental and economic benefits as well. We approach food systems reform by addressing the gaps and root causes, rather than just the symptoms. Our work repairs the frayed links between the urban and rural areas to the economic, environmental and health benefit of both. Our interlocking programs achieve strong results individually but maximize their impact when combined.For instance, rather than distribute free food, we are increasing the supply of wholesome food and the farmers who grow it; the affordability and fair distribution of that food in neighborhoods that lack access; and the desire for the food among children and families who may not have developed an affinity. While we are not an anti-hunger organization, if we do our work well there will be fewer hungry people.We work hard to anticipate and avoid unintended consequences with each of our programs. For example, introducing children to healthy food via school gardens is a laudable effort with a proven impact on their willingness to eat vegetables, but it does not make a lasting impact if their families can't obtain, afford, or prepare the vegetables at home. Building demand among low-income families for healthy food does little if there is not also a steady and growing supply of sustainably grown, affordable wholesome food produced on local farms by an increasing number of skilled farmers. We grow food and farmers to meet the demand. We grow the demand through our school programs. We satisfy and further stoke demand through our Mobile Markets, which in turn triggers the production of more food, and the training of more farmers. Our commitment to regenerative agricultural practices underlies all this work.Arcadias Mission AreasSustainable Agriculture: Growing the supply of responsibly grown, affordable food & the number of sustainable farmers Production FarmArcadia cultivates a four-acre sustainable vegetable farm with 15 more arable acres to plant in coming years. Arcadia grows using methods rooted in the organic program that build soil fertility and protect pollinators, wildlife, the watershed, and the staff, trainees, schoolchildren, and many volunteers who work on and visit the farm.Since 2016 we have produced more than 500,000 servings of fruits and vegetables.Demonstration FarmArcadia cultivates a one-acre demonstration farm used for Veteran Farmer training, field trips, farm camp and Mobile Market production. It is also used extensively with volunteers and models small-scale production appropriate for home growers. Veteran Farmer Program: Growing the next wave of farmersThe nation needs 700,000 new farmers to replace the farmers aging out of the profession over the next 20 years. The military produces 200,000 new veterans annually. This demographic is particularly well suited -- through their resourcefulness, grit, physical capabilities and entrepreneurialism -- to careers in agriculture if they have the opportunity to be retrained for it. Arcadia trains military veterans to farm on land that George Washington once cultivated a few miles outside of the nations capital. Through 2020, Arcadia has trained 95 military veterans, with nearly half already working on farms or starting their own. There are three training tracks: The Veteran Fellowship is a one-year, salaried on-farm apprenticeship for military veterans to learn and practice and sustainable agricultural methods. It is approved by the Veteran Administration as an official OJT program, allowing participants to draw down GI Bill benefits while they train. The Veteran Farmer Reserve program meets one weekend a month for 12 months for intensive cultivation, business, botany, and farming skills training, along with field visits to successful farms to explore the full range of agricultural businesses. The Reservists also work two weeks a year on Arcadia Farm to experience the challenges, rewards, and day-to-day rhythms of agriculture.The Veteran Farm Incubator dismantles the primary barrier to new veteran farmers -- access to affordable land and infrastructure. Graduates of our training program may apply for farm pots on our vegetable farm, supported by our irrigation, power, greenhouse, farm equipment and market access. They establish their own farm businesses on our farm paying modest rent and adhering to sustainable agricultural practices. Arcadia offers a one-year wholesale buying contract so they can focus on building their business and cultivation skills. Three years on our low-cost, low-risk incubator qualifies our graduates for low-interest FSA loans as farm operators.

Fair Food Access: Building equitable access to nutritious food in underserved communitiesMobile Market:Arcadia launched its Mobile Market in 2012, as a rolling farm stand stocked with locally, sustainably grown foods including fruits and vegetables, herbs, pastured eggs, grass-fed and pastured beef, pork, organic milk, cheese, handmade bread and honey.The Mobile Market has sold more than $1.4 million in affordably priced, high-quality local fresh food in under-resourced neighborhoods in Washington, D.C. since 2012. The significance of this figure is not just the sales but what it represents: the growing and barely scratched surface of the demand for fresh healthy food in resource-constrained neighborhoods that suffer a disproportionate rate of chronic diseases that correlate strongly to the food to which these neighborhoods do -- and do not -- have regular access. The Mobile Market makes regular weekly stops in low-food access neighborhoods and accepts and doubles the face value of food stamps (SNAP, WIC, and Senior FMNP). The neighborhoods we serve typically have high SNAP usage, low car ownership, and are at least a mile from a grocery store that can support a healthy diet.In testament to the success of the model, SNAP customers have increased the amount of food they take home from an average of $8 per transaction in 2012 to $20 per transaction in 2019. In 2020, during the pandemic markets, the average SNAP sale value was nearly $50 per transaction. Our sales have increased by almost 500 percent over six seasons with almost no marketing budget just customer word of mouth.The Mobile Market is not just about food access. It also supports the local farm economy. Arcadia grows much of the food on the Mobile Market but we also purchase food at wholesale prices from other farmers to resell. This diversifies their businesses and gives them new customers in a market at no risk that they would not otherwise reach. The Mobile Market represents more than $1 million in wholesale revenue for local farms. The remarkable effectiveness of the Mobile Market is attributable to our high quality food, excellent customer service, affordable prices, and locations that are convenient to people with limited incomes.Equally important, strong sales at the Mobile Market demonstrate the growing and unmet demand for healthy food in low-income neighborhoods. Year over year increases in sales subvert the pernicious idea that low-income people dont support healthy food retail. We have demonstrated every year since 2012 that if the food is high quality, conveniently available, and affordable, customers will flock to it regardless of income. Arcadia Farmers Register: Using data to drive food policy and access With software partner Perigee, Arcadia developed an elegant iPad-based mobile point of sale system for the Mobile Market. The Arcadia Farmers Register speeds customer transactions, tracks inventory, and expedites financial reporting. Because it associates every transaction with the form of tender used to purchase it, the location, time, and price, it also yields valuable data on the food purchasing patterns of our customers. Arcadia is now working with the city of Washington to use the data to inform and design food policies and interventions that encourage the purchase of nutrient-dense foods.The Arcadia Farmers Register is a scalable solution to creating a national database of healthy food purchasing behaviors available free of charge to government policy makers and public health researchers. It can also be used to ascertain prices at farmers markets nationwide, and to improve the farm business valuation system used to determine capital lent to small farmers. Dozens of mobile market organizations around the country now use the Farmers Register

Farm and Nutrition Education: Building the demand for nutritious foodField Trips:Arcadia offers field trips to our sustainable farm for children pre-K through 5th grade. The field trips meet DC and Virginia standards of learning. The visits introduce children to food at its source, and the tenets of sustainable agriculture. The children harvest eggs from our flock of laying hens; dig in the compost pile; interact with worms and pollinators, harvest fresh vegetables and use them to prepare delicious, healthy snacks.Nearly 10,000 children have been educated on Arcadia Field Trips since 2012. Based on pre-and post testing, we see 37.5 percent increase in the number of children who report liking to eat beets after their farm field trip than before they came. Farm Camp:Arcadia offers five weeks of summer day camp on our farm. The children tend the chickens and compost pile; plant, weed, harvest; interact with visiting goats; create farm-based art; learn about pests and pollinators; make cheese; cook with professional chefs; and follow their own curiosity through independent farm exploration. Twenty-five percent of farm campers attend on full, needs-based scholarships funded by Arcadia donors. More than 1000 children have attended farm camp since 2012. In 2018, 85 percent of campers reported trying a new food, and 75 percent reported looking forward to eating more fruits and vegetables with their families after their camp experience. HyperLocal Salad Bar: In partnership with Fairfax County Public Schools, Arcadia provides fresh vegetables and fruits for three elementary schools close to our farm. These schools all attend field trips to our farm and meet with our farmers, and our farmers then conduct taste tests at the school to promote the new foods. These multiple touch points increase childrens enthusiasm and willingness to eat fresh, healthy foods. Live Eat GrowIn partnership with Northern Virginia Health Foundation, Arcadia headed a three-year school garden and nutrition intervention that includes a school garden, garden educator, nutrition educator, and food access projects including a Mobile Market stop and new in 2018 an experimental low-cost CSA.In 2019, we launched the Live, Eat Grow program -- a nutrition intervention and school garden support program in elementary schools near our farm. We worked with area health providers and food pantries to conduct food insecurity screenings and connect those affected by hunger with resources. In 2020, we are continuing school & community garden support and have launched a youth garden entrepreneur program. The Live Eat Grow program has also led our food security response to the pandemic crisis, financially supporting and distributing fresh food to more than 50 families who live near our farm.

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