The period that this report covers, April 2021 through March 2022, was a time of resilience, recovery, and renewal, in our world and here at Foodwise (formerly CUESA).
Since the start of the pandemic, keeping our farmers markets running smoothly and safely as critical food access points has been number one priority. In a time of uncertainty and financial hardship, we expanded our food access programs, so that families on a tight budget could increase their purchasing power at the farmers market. We provided direct marketing opportunities for next-generation, BIPOC, and women farmers and food makers, so their businesses could grow and thrive. We developed a new platform for home produce delivery to support our local farmers and feed our Bay Area community when shopping in person became more difficult.
As vaccines began to roll out and the world reopened in 2021, we were able to reinvest in our education programs, which had been scaled back or modified for distance learning during the pandemic. We welcomed students back to the farmers market and classroom through in-person field trips and cooking classes, delivering much-needed community connection and learning experiences for thousands of Bay Area kids.
And through much listening and soul searching during this time, we changed our name from CUESA to Foodwise to reflect our deepened commitment to food access, equity, and education. If these times have taught us anything, it’s the collective wisdom of you, our community, in taking action to create the equitable and sustainable local food system our world needs. Let’s look back on what we accomplished together.
Keeping Local Farms Thriving
The last two years have reaffirmed that our survival depends on local farms and connected communities. While we are still in the midst of recovering from the pandemic and must continue to adapt to the uncertainties of climate change, our farmers markets remain a constant, supporting the livelihoods of our farmers and food makers. Our community is emerging stronger, with a clearer focus on what’s at stake to create the just, resilient, and climate-wise food future we urgently need.
Rebounding from the Pandemic
The pandemic dealt an immediate blow to small family farms when restaurants closed, but farmers markets were a critical lifeline that carried our farmers through the uncertainty. We worked hard to keep our markets open to be a bridge for our farmers and food makers and our Bay Area residents. The last two years have been a challenging but clarifying time for all of us, crystallizing what is truly essential: our community.
[The market] doesn't stop just because there's a pandemic. People still need food on their tables, people still need to pay their rent, people still need that person-to-person communication, so that's what keeps me going.
—Andrea Akers, Foodwise Market Manager
I’m very lucky because my customers supported me throughout the pandemic. They supported me every week. The community is great, especially here at the Ferry Building. People come to support us every week and that is very important for us. Because without people, we are nothing.
—Farmer Sonia Rojas, Rojas Family Farms
Expanding Farmers Market Home Delivery
In April 2020, we launched the CUESA Farmers Market Box program to keep our community well fed during the pandemic and support our local farmers, who lost vital restaurant accounts. For over 12 months, we delivered 4,900 fresh produce boxes and directed $175,000 to 60 small, sustainable farms and food crafters.
In June 2021, we sunseted our box program and, in partnership with The FruitGuys, launched Ferry Plaza Farmers Market Delivered, a robust online market providing an à la carte shopping experience. The program helped diversify income for small local farms and food makers in a time of financial hardship, while providing home delivery of fresh, local food for shoppers who were not able to visit the market in person.
When COVID hit, we, along with most other farm businesses, had to pivot. CUESA also pivoted very quickly and figured out the logistics to provide a safe way to still get fresh vegetables to people while helping out farms. The box program helped to provide some guaranteed sales for us when the foot traffic at the market waned.
—Farmer Sandi McGinnis, McGinnis Ranch
Farmers markets have been a place of community, nourishment, and livelihood during the pandemic. Hear from farmers, chefs, and market staff about what the market has meant to them in this time.
Advancing Equity for Food Entrepreneurs
Our farmers markets provide marketplaces for more than 130 family farms and food entrepreneurs and offer popup opportunities for new food businesses, reflecting the talent, innovation, and diversity of our community. Your support ensures access to economic opportunity for local, sustainable, and BIPOC-, immigrant-, and women-owned farms and food businesses, so they can grow and thrive.
Market Opportunities for BIPOC-Led Food Businesses
Farmers markets must reflect the diversity of our communities and food cultures. In collaboration with La Cocina, Mandela Partners, and En2Action's Ujamaa Kitchen, we’re working to lower barriers and increase equity for small farms and food entrepreneurs by offering opportunities for BIPOC, immigrant, and women food entrepreneurs to pop up at the Ferry Plaza Farmers Market and Mission Community Market. Some of those businesses have become permanent market vendors.
Participants in Mandela Partners' Entrepreneurs Program like Chef Kirby of Oakland's Rebel Fare (pictured) joined us for month-long engagements to connect with the greater Bay Area community, sharing their passion and delicious handcrafted foods.
In collaboration with our partners, 24 BIPOC-, immigrant-, and women-led businesses popped up at our farmers markets:
Alicia’s Tamales | Asúkar | Aurora Glogg | The Baking Endeavor | Briya Be Cookin’ | Buko Bakes | Cafe Anbesa | Crisps & Crackles | East Oakland Soul Kitchen | Herbs to Your Mother | Kitiya | Kube Nice Cream | Layla's Kuhinja | LoJo’s Tacos | Loyale Studio | M&D | Minnie Bell’s Soul Movement | Nusa | Nyum Bai | Oakland Bloom (pictured) | Pimpin’ Chkn | Prima's Corner | Rebel Fare | Reem’s
Popping up at the Ferry Plaza has been amazing. I was super nervous at first, but it was really great. I think it was around 97% new customers, according to Square. It was fun to revamp my menu a little bit for a larger volume, and also play into the idea of the farmers market and incorporating fresh produce.
—Chef Loren Johnson, LoJo’s Tacos
Growing the Farmers Market Community
We work with innovative business owners who prioritize sustainability, social justice, and community health. Despite the challenges of the pandemic, innovative food businesses have bloomed, and our farmers markets have provided a platform for new farmers and entrepreneurs to grow their audience and meet customers in person, as they begin to formalize their businesses.
We welcomed these new farms and food businesses at Foodwise farmers markets:
Bolita | Encina Farms | Mark 'n Mike’s | Nusa (pictured) | Papa’s Dumpling | Saltwater Bakeshop
The market feels like a huge family, like everyone is part of it. People know every single vendor, and recognize this is a new vendor right away. I love chatting with customers because they want to know what they’re eating, and everything about your product. Most people are curious about our pork buns, because most buns are sweeter, but our buns are savory. They’re surprised by that.
—Chef Jojo Zhu, Papa’s Dumpling
An Inaugural Juneteenth on the Waterfront
In the first year when Juneteenth was officially recognized as a national holiday, we were honored to partner with MegaBlack SF and the Port of San Francisco to cosponsor the first Juneteenth on the Waterfront. Thousands of Bay Area visitors, including Mayor London Breed, joined us on June 19, 2021, at the Embarcadero Ferry Terminal Plaza and Ferry Plaza Farmers Market to commemorate the anniversary of Black Emancipation in the United States, when freedom from slavery was proclaimed in the state of Texas.
Investing in Black Food Entrepreneurs and Community Health
We celebrated Juneteenth with a day of community and delicious handcrafted food, partnering with more than a dozen Black-owned food businesses (like Peaches Patties, shown here) and community organizations dedicated to racial equity. Together, our market community raised $10,000 for the MegaBlack SF Black Wellness Fund, which invests in organizations that address issues of mental health, wellness, economic development, and education for African American residents in the San Francisco Bay Area.
I'm so happy to see how well this has turned out and how everyone is now saying let's not wait until the next Juneteenth...Let's make sure we're providing sustainable opportunities for our community, for our people, as much as possible.
—Shakirah Simley, cofounder of MegaBlack SF (right), shown with Mayor London Breed and Director Sheryl Evans Davis of the San Francisco Office of Racial Equity
At the inaugural Juneteenth on the Waterfront, chefs and participants share what Juneteenth means to them:
Ensuring Fresh Food for All
Like you, we believe that healthy food is a right, not a privilege. Since the start of the pandemic, the number of customers using CalFresh (food stamps) at our farmers markets has nearly tripled, as more families needed help putting fresh food on the table. With your support, Foodwise invested in food access programs to make farmers markets inclusive and affordable for all, while supporting local family farms.
We're coming with fresh produce to this market. We want to make it affordable for all people, so CalFresh is helping us a lot, and not only us but the customer, too. We depend on these markets just in order to survive.
—Farmers Poli and Silvia Yerena, Yerena Farms
Expanding Food Access, Welcoming Community
Farmers markets are for everyone. The pandemic has deepened inequities in the food system, especially in terms of food security, but through it all, the farmers market has been a lifeline between small California farms and San Francisco families in need. The Market Match program doubles shoppers’ CalFresh benefits (aka food stamps or EBT) to make fresh, nutritious food more affordable for families on a budget.
When a shopper uses their EBT card at Foodwise markets, they receive an equal amount in Market Match tokens for free. With your support this last year, we increased Market Match by 50% to meet the growing demand. Shoppers' CalFresh dollars are now matched up to $15 per market (previously $10) to purchase fresh fruits and vegetables.
Fruits and vegetables are the number one thing that I feed my son. I'm so lucky to have a teenager who likes vegetables. CalFresh and Market Match make it more affordable, and we get to support the farmers directly.
—Katy Barnhill and her son, Amitai, Mission Community Market regulars
Food Recovery for Neighbors in Need
At Foodwise, we believe everyone should have access to healthy food, and that no fresh and healthy food should go to waste. Through our longstanding partnership with Food Runners and a new partnership with Replate, our markets donated thousands of pounds of fresh, healthy food to our neighbors in need. These organizations collected local produce that might otherwise go into the compost pile at the end of the farmers market day, and made sure it went to community members through pantries and pickup sites.
Feed Hospitality
In April 2020, CUESA launched the Feed Hospitality program to provide fresh produce to unemployed hospitality workers and their families during the pandemic, while supporting small, sustainable farms. Over 17 months, we distributed over 3,000 fresh produce boxes to members of our local hospitality community and directed over $100,000 to local farms.
As restaurants began to reopen, we wound down the Feed Hospitality program in August 2021. In this time of need, we were honored to give back to the people who dedicate their lives to feeding us, and we remain committed to providing vital lifelines between local farms and hospitality workers at our farmers markets through programs like CalFresh and Market Match.
This program means so much right now. It is a literal lifeline for us. With so much uncertainty in our industry in this time, these boxes not only feed us and keep us healthy—they give us hope.
—Nora Furst, Feed Hospitality participant
Empowering Future Food Leaders
A sustainable food future depends on today’s youth. At Foodwise, we believe every kid deserves access to fresh food and opportunities to learn and grow. Throughout the pandemic, Foodwise has been here for students and their families, offering free food education at a critical time for their health and wellbeing. Through our Foodwise Kids and Foodwise Teens programs, Bay Area kids and teens can access fresh food, learn about their role in a sustainable food system, and build community together.
Foodwise Kids & Families
In 2020, Foodwise Kids, our free farmers market field trip program for elementary school students, went on pause as schools closed during the pandemic, but in spring of 2021, we hired new education team members and radically adapted the curriculum for distance learning. With support from a Specialty Block Crop Grant provided by the California Department of Food and Agriculture, we reenvisioned how to bring the joys of the farmers market to students at home and in the classroom, and later resumed in-person classes for thousands of San Francisco Unified School District students.
Expanding Foodwise Kids through Distance Learning
Our education team worked with our farmers market community to create a series of six videos for the virtual classroom. Sharing these videos through our network of SFUSD educators, kids are now able to visit the farmers market, meet farmers and see food growing on the farm, and learn about fruits and vegetables, wherever they are.
We also provided synchronous virtual classes through Zoom, delivering fresh produce to teachers to distribute to students who were not able to visit the market in person. Students learned about the farmers market, practiced sensory tasting while trying unfamiliar foods, and shared their experiences with classmates, all through remote learning.
I especially liked how we ended the program with the tasting and then used our senses to describe. The visuals and word bank were very helpful for my English learners [and] my students enjoyed the guessing game.
—Tina Lau, first-grade teacher, Gordon J. Lau Elementary School
Watch the intro to our Foodwise Kids series to hear from farmers and kids about what makes the farmers market cool!
Welcoming Foodwise Kids Back to the Farmers Market
Starting in summer 2021, we began welcoming summer camp groups from YMCA, Boys & Girls Club, and other community organizations back for in-person field trips at our outdoor classroom the Ferry Plaza Farmers Market. And by the fall, we were ready to welcome SFUSD classes back for in-person farmers market field trips, too! Children once again have been able to explore the farmers market, meet local farmers, and learn how to prepare healthy, seasonal foods—all while having fun as a team.
Foodwise Kids Expands into the Classroom
Because nurturing kids’ love for fruits and veggies takes multiple experiences, it has been a goal of ours to expand the Foodwise Kids from a one-time farmers market field trip to hands-on cooking lessons that engage students, teachers, and families in the classroom. Starting in fall 2021, we began offering cooking lessons at SFUSD schools, hosting 14 classes with 150 students, who learned how to hand-press tortillas and make butternut squash tacos from scratch.
Foodwise has provided my students with invaluable experiences that teach about food production and farming, wise food purchases, nutritious eating, and cooking lessons that embrace healthy eating. The experiences cooking in the classroom and with their parents and classmates via Zoom are so memorable that students will remember the lessons for a lifetime!
—Hazel Mak, 1st grade teacher, Gordon J. Lau Elementary School
Foodwise Teens
Amidst the challenges and uncertainty of the pandemic, the Foodwise Teens program has been a source of hope and empowerment for students in our community. When schools closed due to the pandemic, we radically adapted the semester-long program for hybrid distance learning, while providing outdoor opportunities for learning at the farmers market and in the garden. An antidote to Zoom fatigue and isolation, the program offered a nurturing space for students to engage with nature and community outside of a screen, while learning important life skills.
I think it's important for young people to have experiences like this because I didn't know anything about, like, growing my own food. I feel very empowered because I know where my food is coming from, I know how to grow it, I know what went into it...Learning how to grow your own food, it’s basically like learning how to read and write. It’s something nobody will ever take away from you.
—Erika Torres, Foodwise Teens graduate
Foodwise Teens Cultivate Community in the Market and in the Garden
While Foodwise Teens learn about food justice, sustainability, and growing their own food, they also get job experiences at the Ferry Plaza Farmers Market working directly with farmers and market visitors, all while getting paid for the work. Students graduate from the program reporting increased self-confidence and deepened awareness of the food system and their agency within it. For many students, it was their first time getting paid for their work!
Participating in Foodwise Teens during the pandemic gave me something to look forward to every week. In the program, I have grown my people skills. I used to be very shy and now I can talk to a bunch more people, feeling way more comfortable.
—Devin Lee, Foodwise Teens graduate
Foodwise Teens Explore Careers Paths in Food and Farming
Following their participation in Foodwise Teens, nine graduates were offered part-time jobs to continue working at the farmers market on Saturdays with local farmers, food businesses, and our market operations team. For the Foodwise Teens, it has become a way to build their resume, earn a steady income, deepen their food knowledge, and engage in their local community. For the farmers, it has become a way to fill critical staff roles while building lasting connections with young people in San Francisco. Some of those students are still working at the farmers market a year after their participation in Foodwise Teens, and even considering careers in food.
Luzaneth learned really quickly and has come out of her shell while working with customers and market visitors. She has learned about the different vegetables as we bring new crops to the market. She’s getting to learn about each one, how it’s grown and harvested, and how to cook it. It’s been wonderful to have her working with us.
—Farmer Marsha Habib, Oya Organics
I make my own money. I also pay my own phone bill. So, it’s definitely made me more independent...I want to go into culinary, and being in the market, I’ve learned a lot of new recipes. It basically solidified that I want to go into culinary because when customers and vendors tell me their recipes, it sounds delicious.
—Luzanth Garcia, Foodwise Teens graduate
Foodwise Teens share their experiences working in the garden and in the farmers market:
Growing Back Our Team
After a year with a reduced staff due to the pandemic, we hired new team members to develop virtual and in-person education programming, just in time to welcome thousands of students back for in-person learning. We were excited to bring on board Tiffany Chung, Foodwise Kids & Families Education Manager, recently promoted to Director of Education; Damaris Bonner, Foodwise Kids & Families Education Coordinator; amy huỳnh, Foodwise Teens Education Manager; and Selina Knowles, Communications Coordinator.
What I really enjoy about my work are the people and the community...I also love seeing the excitement in kids’ faces when they try something unexpectedly delicious and declare that fruit or vegetable to be their new favorite.
—Tiffany Chung (left), Foodwise Director of Education
CUESA Becomes Foodwise
In March 2022 (the end of this report period), CUESA officially changed our name to Foodwise to reflect our deepened commitment to food access, equity, and education. Inspired by our Foodwise Kids and Foodwise Teens programs, the name Foodwise honors the wisdom in all of us.
At community celebrations at the Mission Community Market and Ferry Plaza Farmers Market, we reintroduced our free public education programs, which had been on hiatus throughout the pandemic. Shown here, Rachel Bolden-Kramer, author of My Food Stamps Cookbook, demos kohlrabi noodles at the Foodwise Classroom.
As Foodwise, we plan to still be all the things you know and love: a dedicated group of people running excellent education programs and farmers markets. We are still deeply committed to sustainable agriculture at our core, but we know that sustainability cannot exist without an explicit commitment to diversity, equity, inclusion and justice, and ensuring that farmers markets are truly accessible and welcoming to all.
—Christine Farren (center), Foodwise Executive Director
Volunteer Power
Over the year, 248 dedicated volunteers, interns, chefs, committee members, and board members generously donated 3,725 hours, supporting Foodwise Kids cooking classes, mentoring Foodwise Teens, helping shoppers at the farmers market, and more. Throughout the pandemic, our volunteers have radiated joy and positivity, even from behind their masks. More than ever, our volunteers were essential to keeping our work—and our team—going!
I love volunteering with the Foodwise Kids program—it’s such a joy seeing the kids get excited about fruits and vegetables at the farmers market and helping them develop an active interest in what they eat. It’s so much fun teaching them how to balance flavors and experiment with new foods.
—Zachary Berenson-Barros, Foodwise Volunteer
Interning with Foodwise Teens encouraged me to step outside of my comfort zone and deeper into the San Francisco community. It was lovely working with local farmers, vendors, everyone at CUESA, and especially with the Foodwise Teens. I believe food brings us together because it encourages conversation among those who share a meal and appreciation for all those who helped prepare it.
—Yolanda Everson, Foodwise Teens Intern (second from left)
Thank You for Making a Difference
We could not do this work without you! As we navigated the financial uncertainty of the pandemic, you answered our call. By donating directly or joining us at our Summer Picnic and Sunday Supper virtual fundraising events, 668 of you stepped up to support our farmers markets, food access, and education programs. Thank you for contributing to a world that nourishes all people, local economies, and the living earth.
Financials: Your Donations at Work
After a time of conservation during the pandemic, our 2021-22 fiscal year was one of growth. We were able to hire new staff to bring back our education programs and expanded our food access programs. We could not have done all this good work without deep investment from our community, and support from the Paycheck Protection Program for a second year. In the absence of hosting in-person fundraising events, you were critical in supporting us through your donations. Thank you!
Let's Grow a Foodwise Future Together
We have much work to do to recover from the impacts of the pandemic, to combat climate change, and to undo systemic racism and inequity in our food system and our communities. As Foodwise, we remain firmly rooted in supporting our sustainable family farms, providing critical food access, and advancing equity to grow a fair, regenerative, and delicious food future. You are essential to this work! Thank you for putting your values into action. We look forward to continuing this vital work with you in 2023 and beyond.