Farm and Community Collaborative

Farm and Community Collaborative (The Collaborative) (Plymouth and Bristol Counties) is receiving a $20,000 grant from the Massachusetts Food Trust Program to assist in the startup of the organization’s Farm to Future program. Working collaboratively with its community partners, The Collaborative aims to pair 10 youth with local farms in an 18-week paid agriculture apprenticeship, where in they will gain a comprehensive understanding of sustainable agriculture and the local food system.

Since forming in Lakeville in August 2018, The Collaborative has built extensive partnerships with local farms, nationwide networks, and the surrounding community. “Farm to Food Bank,” “Farm to Family,” and “Farm to Future,” are the organization’s three current programs which serve the Gateway cities of Brockton, Fall River, New Bedford, and Taunton. By using this three-pronged strategy to connect Massachusetts farms with community organizations, The Collaborative has demonstrated its commitment to combat food insecurity in the region.

Its latest program, Farm to Future, will not only provide greater food security and fresh food access to these Gateway cities, but it will also create agricultural apprenticeship opportunities. The program was designed with the aging farming community in mind. The apprentices will learn about growing, harvesting produce, farm-to-table culinary arts, and marketing and sales. Additionally, in order to source more culturally appropriate foods, the apprentices will practice cultivating crops that can cater to the need of the diverse populations which exist in the area.

The MFTP team is proud to support The Collaborative in its efforts to provide culturally appropriate food, increased access to healthy food, and more opportunities for young people to get involved in farming!

Images provided by Deanna Elliot (Farm and Community Collaborative, Inc.)