Simply put, people need good food to live healthy lives. And in La Plata County, where the cost of living is 270% higher than the national average, access to affordable, nutritious food is crucial.
That's where the Good Food Collective comes in. They're increasing access to healthy foods by serving as a farm-to-food access hub, partnering with local farmers to purchase produce at wholesale prices and distributing it to access entities like food banks. In fact, the Good Food Collective isn't just addressing food insecurity; they're also creating jobs with sustainable, living wages. By connecting experienced farm workers with farms in need of consistent labor, they're tackling the root causes of food insecurity head-on.
Their multipronged approach doesn't stop there. From enhancing the sense of agency to improving the sense of belonging for La Plata County residents most impacted by health inequity, the Good Food Collective is changing the food ecosystem of Southwest Colorado one initiative at a time.
The Good Food Collective is a lot of different things to lots of different people: for local farms, they’re a wholesale buyer; for foodbanks, they are a consistent donor; for farm workers, they’re an employer; for small businesses, they’re an incubator, for Mercy Healthcare System, they’re a partner.
Learn more about their impactful work in cultivating health equity in La Plata County.