Summit Fresh Mobile Market Participates in Northeast Ohio Regional Resilience Convening Focused on Strengthening Local Food Systems

Spot the truck, score the ducks: post a picture of the Summit Fresh Mobile Market truck on social media (share, tag, like and follow) to win 4 tickets to an Akron RubberDucks game. AKRON, Ohio — Summit Fresh Mobile Market, a 501(c)(3) nonprofit mobile market serving food deserts throughout Summit County, participated in the first Northeast Ohio Regional Resilience Convening held April 9-10 in Cleveland’s MidTown neighborhood. The two-day event brought together leaders from 50 organizations and enterprises supporting farms and value-added producers across Northeast Ohio. The convening focused on building new relationships, identifying shared needs and opportunities and developing collaborative next steps to strengthen the region’s food and farm systems. Participants were selected through a competitive application process and represented all aspects of Northeast Ohio’s agricultural and food economy. Attendees came from rural, urban and suburban communities and included professionals in education, funding, advocacy, policy, research, communications, farming, aggregation, distribution, processing, marketing and retail operations. The event was co-organized by The Ohio State University Northeast Ohio Ag Innovation Center, Forest City Food Collective (formerly Oberlin Food Hub), and The Fare Project with support from USDA Rural Development funding. Kim Hines of the North American Food Systems Network facilitated the convening activities. Attendees also enjoyed meals prepared by MidTown chefs using ingredients sourced from regional farms, along with flowers provided by local growers. Two Million Acres of Farmland in Northeast Ohio During the event, Dr. Shoshanah Inwood shared information about Northeast Ohio’s agricultural assets, noting the region contains more than 2 million acres of farmland, 62.7% of which is considered nationally significant by the American Farmland Trust. Inwood also emphasized the importance of social infrastructure in building resilient food systems, stating, “You don’t make friends in a disaster, it’s our relationships that hold us through the good times and bad.” Bob Norman, Chief Operating Officer for Summit Fresh Mobile Market, said the transition toward locally procured and sustainable food options is gaining momentum across public, private, nonprofit, rural, urban and niche sectors. Norman noted that rising food costs, supply chain challenges, concerns about food quality and sustainability, and the health impacts of highly processed foods are driving increased interest in local food solutions. What’s Next The convening concluded with strong interest in continuing regional collaboration efforts, including future networking opportunities and the potential formation of a Northeast Ohio Food and Farm Coalition focused on shared projects and long-term resilience. For more information or to be included in future communications, contact Summit Fresh Mobile Market at Summitfreshmobilemarket@gmail.com or the Northeast Ohio Ag Innovation Center at NEO-AIC@osu.edu .