Today we’d like to introduce you to Lauren Cox.
Lauren, please share your story with us. How did you get to where you are today?
I got my start in the food world, in earnest, 10 years ago, when I took a leap of faith and applied to work a growing season on an organic farm here in Georgia. After spending a year learning about farming and learning that I loved growing food, I was given the opportunity to start my own farm business on someone else’s land- an incubator farm- so to speak- that had the infrastructure, the healthy soil and water, and most importantly, the support and guidance of a retired farmer on site, to guide me through my first two years of business. In 2014, I moved to Athens to manage a Certified Organic farm that had been around since the early 2000’s and had a legacy of not only growing amazing food but also of having deep relationships with their customers, many of them ‘farm to restaurant’ chefs. Life is a journey and nothing is certain but change so in 2016 I decided to switch gears and step away from the field and made a move to Atlanta where I helped create a taste education program for clients of Concrete Jungle, an Atlanta based non-profit that searches out and forages fruit growing on trees around the city to feed clients of soup kitchens and food pantries. While it was deeply transformative work, I was also looking to translate my farming skills into something useful for the community. That’s when I read that Georgia Organics was looking to start a Farm to Restaurant program and needed someone who knew growing and knew restaurants to build it out. I am now currently about to enter my third year in the organization and have been able to support farmers in connecting with chefs, customers is knowing which restaurants are supporting farmers (thusly how they can support them as well!), and in doing exciting things like hosting a Speed Dating themed Farmer/Chef Mixer and most recently being a part of Food Fight GA, that provides weekly produce boxes for restaurant industry professionals affected by the Covid-19 pandemic.
We’re always bombarded by how great it is to pursue your passion, etc – but we’ve spoken with enough people to know that it’s not always easy. Overall, would you say things have been easy for you?
With all struggle there is an opportunity for growth. I would say the #1 lesson I learned from farming is that there needs to be a balance between control and letting go and knowing that you can create great conditions to make ‘things happen’ but it may not always work out. I’ve taken that idea and have had to remember that when working with people who aren’t considered inside our current system (what I saw during my time at Concrete Jungle) and in my current Farm to Restaurant work with chefs that may want to support their local farmers but don’t have the budget or the bandwidth to do so. During this pandemic, those barriers to maintaining the current (and vibrant) farm to restaurant community are even more profound.
So, as you know, we’re impressed with Georgia Organics – tell our readers more, for example what you’re most proud of as a company and what sets you apart from others.
Georgia Organics is a non-profit, member based organization that works with Georgia farmers to bring organic food to Georgia families by creating opportunities for farmers to convene, share knowledge and gain access to grant and project funding. Another focus of the organization is to support Georgia communities, educators, and now chefs and restaurants that want to strengthen the local food system.
My work is focused on the Farm to Restaurant program within the organization that works specifically with farmers and restaurants/chefs to increase awareness around sourcing locally and promoting new and deepening farm-chef relationships.
I’m most proud of the current work I’m doing with a number of restaurants and farmers through a program called Food Fight GA that provides a locally sourced box of vegetables to restaurant employees affected by the Covid-19 pandemic. We have been running the program since April and the positive feedback from restaurant employees has been overwhelmingly positive, although also heartbreaking.
I would say that having come from a farming background and having owned a farm business sets me apart in my work. I know how much I can push farmers and I also know what immense pressure they’re under. Likewise, having worked with restaurants for a number of years, I know what they’re looking for and what a successful farmer-chef relationship can look like.
So, what’s next? Any big plans?
In 2021 I plan on digging in with the ‘restaurant’ side of the Farm to Restaurant program. It’s my job to say ‘Hey folks… if you’re going to spend your money going out to eat then you should spend it here and this is why.”
In 2019 I worked with a group of chefs to establish what it means to be a ‘Farmer Champion’- whether it’s a chef buying from Georgia farmers each week or a restaurant supporting the local good food community through fundraisers or one-off special dinners.
While the right thing to do during the pandemic was to put a hold on this conversation, I think this topic will be even more important going into a winter of uncertainty for many of our favorite ‘farm to table’ Georgia restaurants.
Pricing:
- $5/month recurring for a Georgia Organics single membership
- $5, $10 or, $20 per month for a Cast Iron and Collard Society subscription or $60 one time annual price.
- $500 for small businesses and restaurant groups; $150 for single restaurants, nonprofits, or educational partners. (+ 50% discount for BIPOC, woman-owned, and LGBTQ businesses)
Contact Info:
- Address: 200 Ottley Drive NE, Atlanta, GA 30324
- Website: https://farmtorestaurant.georgiaorganics.org/
- Phone: 5016802091
- Email: laurencox@georgiaorganics.org
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/georgiaorganics/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/GeorgiaOrganics/
- Twitter: https://twitter.com/georgiaorganics
Image Credit:
Rinne Allen (harvesting picture only)
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