Six Awesome Food Organizations in Arkansas

Launched by Food Tank and the James Beard Foundation, the first annual Good Food Org Guide identifies and celebrates more than five hundred U.S.-based groups who are cultivating a better food system, including these six from Arkansas:

The Arkansas Hunger Relief Alliance

The Arkansas Hunger Relief Alliance based out of Little Rock, AK works to increase regional food security through food distribution, cooking and nutrition education, and engaging elected officials in food policy issues.

The Arkansas Local Food Network

The Arkansas Local Food Network, which started as the Arkansas Sustainability Network before shifting its focus to food, is a nonprofit dedicated to connecting farmers to consumers and promoting local food. Its main program is its online farmers market, the Little Rock Local Food Club.

The Center for Agricultural and Rural Sustainability at the University of Arkansas System Division of Agriculture

The Center for Agriculture and Rural Sustainability at the University of Arkansas works to develop sustainable agricultural communities in rural Arkansas through research projects focusing on community prosperity, economic growth, and the food industry.

Feed Fayetteville

Feed Fayetteville was founded to cultivate solutions to local hunger and childhood obesity and to create community food security. The organization’s mission is to create a sustainable local food network. The programs include nutrition education for youth and adults, a food drive to get healthy food into hungry bellies, and a food recovery initiative.

The Indigenous Food and Agriculture Initiative

The Indigenous Food and Agriculture Network, launched by Janie Simms Hipp at the University of Arkansas Law School in Fayetteville, AK works to support the agricultural pursuits of tribal youth. The network aims to increase native student university enrollment in food- and agriculture-related disciplines, while creating new food and agriculture academic programs that encompass tribal governance and land rights and support native farmers with strategic planning and technical assistance.

Southern Sustainable Agriculture Working Group

The Arkansas-based Southern Sustainable Agriculture Working Group was founded in 1991 and is active in 13 southern states. Acting primarily as a hub for hundreds of organizations working to create a sustainable food system, their annual conference is an opportunity for more than 1,200 people to exchange ideas about sustainable food.

Sarah Small

Sarah Small is the former Chief of Staff at Food Tank. Sarah previously served as the Global Events Director & Special Assistant, Research Associate, Membership Manager, and Research and Communications Intern for Food Tank: The Food Think Tank. She helped launch an urban agriculture walking tour in Chicago, Food Tank Tours, and has been published in Christian Science Monitor, The Telegraph, Thomson Reuters, The Daily Meal, The Huffington Post, TakePart, and The Chicago Council on Global Affairs Global Food for Thought blog. Sarah served as Founder and Event Director of Yoga Rocks the Park Chicago, a yoga and music movement sweeping 20+ U.S. cities. She served as an Associate Board Member of Growing Home, Inc., a nonprofit organization providing workforce development and organic produce on Chicago’s south side. Sarah is also a certified Health Coach with the Institute for Integrative Nutrition and the Institute for Nutritional Leadership. She is the founder of a health and lifestyle brand for women with autoimmune disease, called Autoimmune Tribe. Sarah is also a Yoga Alliance Registered Yoga Teacher (E-RYT) and a graduate of the Dale Carnegie Leadership Institute where she received Breakthrough and Outstanding Performance Awards. She graduated from DePaul University with her Master’s in International Public Service with distinction. Sarah also has a Bachelor’s in Biology and Art from Kalamazoo College.