WMSBF Returns to In-Person Programming with Local Food Systems Event

West Michigan Sustainable Business Forum will return to in-person programming this month with an outdoor event at Ed Dunneback and Girls Farm Market on Monday, June 14.  The luncheon and networking event will feature a discussion on the economic impact and sustainable business influence of the West Michigan Fruit Ridge. This outdoor event will be socially distanced, mask-encouraged, and limited to 50 attendants.

Featured speakers are Gordon Moeller, Secretary, and Treasurer of Ridge Economic Agricultural Partners (REAP), and Stephanie Ginsberg, current Farm Market manager at Ed Dunneback and Girls Farm Market. 

A family farm since 1922, Ed Dunneback and Girls Farm Market in Alpine Township is one of the oldest farms of Michigan’s Fruit Ridge.  Fruit Ridge is an area unique to West Michigan where elevation, soil composition, and lake effect create ideal growing conditions for a variety of fruits and vegetables.  Ginsberg will be speaking on the hundred-year-old legacy of farming in the region, and will be highlighting how the farm’s modern practices are promoting environmental health and prosperity. 

Moeller will introduce REAP and other examples of sustainable agriculture in the region. REAP was founded in 2004, as a non-profit to promote the significance of agriculture in the Fruit Ridge, where nearly 70 percent of Michigan’s apple crop is produced and shipped worldwide. Moeller joined the REAP board in 2009 and has been working to provide food security and access to healthy, locally grown food to everyone in West Michigan since. 

This event will be the first in a series of four outdoor forums leading to the 8th Annual Triple Bottom Line Bash at LMCU Ballpark on September 30.  

Learn more and register at wmsbf.org.