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 Arizona:
The Ajo Center for Sustainable Agriculture
The Ajo Center for Sustainable Agriculture in Ajo, AZ is a community-based sustainable food, environment, and social justice organization. Their Backyard Garden Program supports over 50 family gardens through mentoring, workshops, and seed distribution.
The Arizona Nutrition Network, initiated by the Arizona Department of Health Services, promotes healthy eating habits to people across Arizona through recipe ideas, food games for kids, and general nutrition information.
Baja Arizona, formed in 2000, is a nonprofit that organizes teachers, farmers, and consumers around a common goal to strengthen sustainable agriculture and local food systems in southern Arizona. They have programs on solar cooking and the mainstreaming of ingredients from the desert environment.
Cosechando Bienestar (Harvesting Wellbeing) is a new initiative of the Mariposa Community Health Center in Nogales, AZ that promotes community awareness of local, healthy foods. The program supports home and community gardens and has ties to Nogales Mercado, the new regional farmers market. Community garden leaders receive training from support staff at Mariposa Community Health Center so they can provide nutritional education to program participants.
Saint Mary’s Food Bank Alliance
Saint Mary’s Food Bank Alliance, based in Phoenix, AZ and founded in 1967, is one of the largest and oldest food banks in the U.S. It helps people in need through food distribution, nutrition programs, and catering education.
Waste Not specializes in reducing food waste. The organization rescues more than 6,000 pounds of perishable food daily and immediately distributes it to appropriate partner organizations to alleviate hunger in Maricopa County, AZ.
