Food Day Oct 26

Every day is Food Day at my house!

Food Day Texas and Food Day Houston Celebrations Planned as Part of First Annual National Food Day

HOUSTON - September 29, 2011...Prominent voices for change in the food movement along with a growing number of health, hunger and sustainable agriculture groups have established Food Day 2011 as a nationwide campaign to change the way Americans eat and think about food. Modeled on Earth Day and organized by the Center for Science in the Public Interest, Food Day will encourage people around the country to sponsor or participate in activities that encourage Americans to "eat real" and support healthy, affordable food grown in a sustainable, humane way. Nationwide, activities are planned for the entire week surrounding Food Day.

To bring this important campaign to the forefront in Houston and Texas, four entities - The City of Houston, Recipe for Success Foundation, Houston Food Bank and Urban Harvest - are co-organizing the statewide effort, Food Day Texas and Food Day Houston.

"The momentum and energy around sustainable and local food has exploded in Houston. Food Day Houston is a perfect way to highlight and celebrate all of the local, healthy, affordable and sustainable food initiatives and policy work that is occurring in Houston," said Laura Spanjian, Director of the Office of Sustainability.

In Houston, the signature Food Day event will be held Wednesday, October 26 from 11 am to 2 pm at the City Hall Farmers Market, 901 Bagby in downtown Houston. Thirty five of the most fabulous farm and prepared food market vendors in town - who a part of the market each Wednesday - will be on hand showing how they make every day Food Day in Houston! Fifteen of Houston's leading food-related organizations will also be in attendance, with educational demos and activities for the whole family. Activities for October 26 include:

· From 11am-noon, Recipe For Success Foundation will host a Local Food
Throwdown featuring celebrity chefs from the Recipe For Success Chefs Advisory
Board.

· At 12 noon, the largest community lunch ever held in Houston will commence. The BYOL (Bring Your Own Lunch) will allow hundreds of neighbors to share at a huge communal table set around the perimeter of the reflection pool at City Hall. Participants may bring their own brown bag, or purchase lunch from the market vendors. A group photo will capture the moment.

· From 1-2pm, the City of Houston will host a Food Day Town Hall Meeting that will take place on the lower plaza at City Hall and will feature a panel of local food movement leaders, community stakeholders and enthusiasts in attendance. The focus will be on moving the local food movement forward through actionable ideas and solutions.

"It's important for each of us to understand the part we can play, as neighbors, parents, consumers and citizens, to bring about positive change and make healthy, affordable, local food easily available throughout the city," says Gracie Cavnar, founder and CEO of Recipe for Success Foundation. "Equitable food access begins with the promotion and protection of local food sources. Each journey for change begins with the small personal decisions we make-to eat seasonally, to buy local food, to support area farmers, to start our own garden, to teach our children the health value of fresh produce, to patronize restaurants that feature local producers. Those many individual actions converge into a river of change. We hope to inspire our neighbors to action."

The City Hall Farmers Market is the perfect setting for Food Day Houston, as it supports local, fresh and sustainable food amidst Houston's dramatic downtown urban setting. The market showcases more than 35 "micro businesses," including produce farmers, cheesemakers, coffee roasters and baristas, bakers, prepared food vendors & food trucks, olive oil producers and more. Made possible through a community partnership between the City of Houston and Urban Harvest, it is the most recent addition to Mayor Annise Parker's local food initiative.

In June 2010, the City's first vegetable container garden was built at the Bob Lanier Public Works Building, highlighting local produce and educating Houstonians about the ease of maintaining a vegetable garden in any type of environment. Employees on each floor of the building "adopted" individual containers and lovingly maintain them to create a wonderful touch of green within the cityscape. And, on September 30, 2010, Mayor Parker along with representatives from project partners, broke ground on the City Hall Victory Garden in Tranquility Park to promote nutrition, health, sustainability and self-reliance. The victory garden not only has health, environmental and economic benefits, but the vegetable gardens also create community.

"We hope these events will inspire Houstonians and Texans to take action and make every day Food Day in their own lives by supporting local farmers, neighborhood community and school gardens and locally owned restaurants with an interest in making a difference by supporting family farms and local communities," says Mark Bowen, executive director of Urban Harvest.
A complete list of Food Day Texas events and activities can be found on the Facebook page for Food Day Texas, and inquiries can be sent to FoodDayTexas@gmail.com.