About Oneida Community Integrated Food Systems
Mission and Vision
Vision:
Creating healthy food choices by growing, educating, and reaching out to community members.
Mission:
The Oneida Community Integrated Food Systems members are here as a team to educate the Oneida community about food, agricultural opportunities, nutrition and health risks via events and workshops, and integrate Oneida and locally produced foods into the Oneida community and institutions.
What We Do
The Oneida Community Integrated Food Systems (OCIFS) group is here as a team to help families by housing a community food system that will include traditional food products and help create a local economy that will provide jobs, and promote and encourage long term solutions to farm and nutrition issues on the Oneida Reservation.
The OCIFS group is tirelessly working to improve the Oneida Nations quality of food, educating them about food related health risks, increasing employment and youth opportunities, and assisting in bringing people closer together around food. Some of OCIFS projects have been:
- Annual Youth Day on the Farm – taking the 6th grade class to various agricultural operations.
- Food Film Series – educate the community about the correlation in food, nutrition & health.
- Farm to School – utilize the Oneida 4-H club as a Food Buyers group for Oneida schools.
- Farm to School Evaluations – part of a 2 year project evaluating effectiveness.
- Growing Gardeners Workshops – host gardening workshops each spring for the community.
- Oneida Farmers Market – have vendor activities each week.
- Youth Entrepreneur project – have youth harvest, process & market various nutritional products.
- OCIFS Activity Book – used as a learning tool at area elementary schools (food, health & culture).
