Indiana Grown Puts Members In Spotlight
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As a subscriber you can listen to articles at work, in the car, or while you work out. Subscribe NowThe Indiana Grown initiative’s signature event returned today to downtown Indianapolis. Program Manager Heather Tallman says the Monumental Marketplace has already paid dividends in its two-year history. "We had wineries that met blackberry growers that were able to buy blackberries and then distribution who came here and met different people they could start using in restaurants and grocery stores," said Tallman. Indiana State Department of Agriculture Director Bruce Kettler says the business-to-business connections make the initiative stand out from similar efforts in other states.
More than 150 Indiana Grown vendors took part in the Monumental Marketplace in the heart of downtown Indianapolis. In addition to food and beverages, the event included additional handmade and hand-grown and hand-crafted products, ranging from flowers to beauty products and handbags.
In March, the nearly three-year-old initiative announced it had reached 1,000 members. At the time, Lieutenant Governor Suzanne Crouch told Inside INdiana Business the program had members in every Indiana county. Indiana Grown received state funding for the first time last year. Crouch said program leaders are looking to beef up marketing efforts to make more producers aware of the resource and help connect them with retailers, wholesalers and consumers.
Indiana Grown has partnerships with multiple grocery stores to display its members offerings. It also works with organizations like Eskenazi Health, which is partnering with the program to offer more locally-sourced food. You can learn more about Indiana Grown by clicking here.
