2022 Local Food Scholarships
At the Northeast Indiana Local Food Network, our mission is to grow our local food system. To do this, we promote the demand for local food in our region, and through our Local Food Scholarship Fund, we help to support our local food farmers and entrepreneurs as they work acquire the expertise they need to grow and sustain their local food business.
Meet our 2022 Local Food Scholarship winners and learn how each of them is taking on the challenge to learn new skills, so they can bring more and different locally-sourcedBe foods from our land to our tables!
Kara Filler
Kara Filler of Filler Family Apiary
Kara Filler founded Filler Family Apiary in Columbia City in 2019 out of a pure passion for bees. The company currently sells honey, beeswax candles, personal care products and teas.
Kara is using her Local Food Scholarship to enroll in the Better Process Control School offered by Purdue University. This online course will teach Kara the skills she needs to safely expand their product line to include flavored honey, sauces and other canned products from her farm. These new value-added products will allow Filler Family Apiary to expand and diversify their local food business.
Zachary Banks
Zachary Banks of Ivy Tech Community College Greenhouse
Zachary Banks manages the Ivy Tech Community College Greenhouse in Fort Wayne. This indoor controlled environment growing space includes several types of agriculture production including hydroponic and aquaponic production.
Zachary is using his Local Food Scholarship to enroll in the Flourish Farm Online Aquaponics Course offered by The Aquaponic Source in Wheat Ridge, Colorado. With the in-depth knowledge he will gain about the construction, operation and integrated pest management of aquaponic farming systems, he plans to increase the food production at the greenhouse, and share his knowledge with others.
Foy Spicer
Foy Spicer of Joyfield Farm
Foy Spicer works with Cliff and Arlene Kindy of Joyfield Farm in North Manchester. The Kindys have been saving their own fruit and vegetable seeds since the early 1980s. In 2021, Foy began cataloging the varieties that are particular to Joyfield Farm which grows almost one hundred different kinds of annual food plants each year.
Foy is using her Local Food Scholarship to enroll in the Seed Seva Seasonal Mentorship Online Course which is a holistic, indigenous permaculture based approach to seed stewardship. She hopes to learn more about how the cultural context and history of Joyfield's plants should be kept and could be used to aid our larger community by sharing these locally grown strains. She believes seed keeping knowledge will help us be more resilient in the future.
Sarah Trombley
Sarah Trombley of Lunar Infusions Kombucha
Sarah Trombley is the owner of Lunar Infusions Kombucha in South Whitley. Lunar Infusion currently uses a limited number of locally-sourced ingredients seasonally, However, the business is in the midst of a significant expansion with a new taproom location in South Whitley and a new kombucha bar opening at the Union Street Market at Electric Works. Sarah intends to work with local farms to source more local ingredients as she ramps up production.
Sarah used her Local Food Scholarship to attend the Kombucha Kon Conference & Expo in Long Beach, CA. As she grows and refines her business, she knew she wanted to learn more about a variety of topics from maintaining draft systems to leveraging social media, and fine tuning the Lunar Infusions brand. She also wanted to learn how other founders tackled the challenges of infrastructure, hiring, finances, and day to day operations.
Congratulations to all our 2022 Local Food Scholarship winners! Thank you for working hard to produce delicious food for our community and for eagerly taking on new challenges so your business can grow and thrive. We’re here to help! Watch for news about our 2023 Local Food Scholarships to be announced this Fall.