Michigan farm helps address food insecurity
Enbridge lends a helping hand
Oct. 2, 2024
Founded in the 1800s as a mining town, and later becoming the birthplace of organized skiing, Ishpeming, MI, is home to the U.S. Ski and Snowboard Hall of Fame and Museum.
Today, the Marquette County city also can boast that it's home to an intergenerational farm dedicated to providing the region with fresh, affordable food.
Established in 2013, the non-profit Partridge Creek Farm initially worked with volunteers to manage several community gardens as a way to address food challenges in the rural area.
Volunteers at Partridge Creek Farm’s community garden plant potatoes.
It worked well—until the pandemic.
“The region had a fragile food system prior to the pandemic,” said Sara Johnson, who joined the organization in February as executive director.
“We experienced a rapid growth in demand and needed to respond to a dire situation.”
The organization in 2020 hired its first part-time staff member and now has a staff of seven. In 2022, it broke ground on a 3.75-acre space in downtown Ishpeming that now houses its farming operations.
With those farm operations underway in 2024, the organization is using only one-third of an acre for now; however, that alone yielded approximately 8,000 pounds of food this summer, compared to the community gardens that produce approximately 2,000 pounds of food.
Important mission to fight hunger
According to Feeding America, one in six children face hunger in Michigan. The U.S. Department of Agriculture reports that 11.9% of Michigan households went without food due to money concerns between 2020 and 2022. In rural areas in the state. food insecurity is worse. In Michigan’s Upper Peninsula, that rate is 14%. There's also a clear connection between food insecurity and poor health: food insecurity is linked to conditions like diabetes, hypertension and heart disease.
Johnson’s team helps Michigan families who represent these numbers. They are making a difference through the farm and community gardens.
“With the farm, we are able to help many more people and scale on a greater level than we can with the community gardens,” said Johnson.
Youth take a tour of the garden as part of Partridge Creek Farm’s farm-to-school program.
“As with the community gardens, though, our staff continues to work with the community and volunteers.”
In particular, Johnson notes that the farm is situated directly behind a senior apartment complex, as well as a middle and high school.
Fulfilling its mission to educate and create a sustainable food system, the organization offers farm-to-school and healthy cooking programs, as well as a community school garden, to its new neighbors.
Providing the community with access to nutritious food that helps reduce food insecurity requires passion, skill and commitment, though also practical items.
Human energy teams up with energy company
“We are thankful to Enbridge,” said Johnson.
“It funded in 2023 the purchase of one of our first coolers, and in time for our farm’s first growing season!”
"This is critically important work. Nearly 60% of folks that live in Ishpeming are food insecure."
—From left, Sara Johnson, Executive Director, Partridge Creek Farm, and Lauren Brown, Enbridge community engagement advisor
The energy company says it’s committed to supporting and strengthening communities where it does business, and where its people work and live.
“Partridge Creek Farm is a wonderful organization,” said Lauren Brown, an Enbridge community engagement advisor who toured the farm.
“Approximately 60% of Ishpeming residents qualify as working poor. The farm is vital to helping put food on their tables.”
Brown also emphasized how farmers from northern states like Michigan use propane heat to dry crops and grain, underscoring the need for the continued safe operation of Line 5 and noting that fall harvest is approaching.
Fresh squash harvested from the garden.
Another important point: Enbridge’s Line 5 pipeline carries raw material that is refined and turned into propane. Michigan uses a large amount of propane each year—the top state in the country, in fact, for both retail and residential propane sales.
“It’s all about doing the right thing. It takes human energy to help feed people, through the good work of organizations like Partridge Creek Farm,” continued Brown.
“It also takes raw energy, like the one carried by my company’s Line 5 pipeline, to help heat homes and businesses, as well as provide the raw material for some 6,000-plus products. The pipeline is important for Michigan and this region.”
Partridge Creek Farms is providing year-round access to food, and making a difference one person and one family at a time.
To find out more about Partridge Creek Farm, or to donate, click here.
