Written by Claire Mai, originally published in August 2015.
June was an exciting month for local food in St. Louis! We are grateful for Maddie Earnest and Patrick Horine, who worked together to put on the St. Louis Local Foods Challenge over the entire month. Maddie is the co-owner of Local Harvest Grocery, and Patrick works at the Tower Grove Farmers’ Market. Working together on this challenge, they encouraged St. Louis to eat as locally as possible in June. They provided resources including a list of participating local foods restaurants, markets and stores with local food, as well as a map of these locations and special discounts for those participating in the challenge! In addition, the challenge hosted many events for St. Louis to learn about and celebrate local food, including farm tours and a DIY cheese making class. MCE would especially like to thank Maddie Earnest for coordinating a St. Louis Local Foods Challenge event called The Real Cost of Food, a panel discussion with farmers from five local farms as well as MCE’s own Food and Farm Coordinator, Melissa Vatterott.