Sunday News: Providence Farm Collective honored for getting farmers back to soil
Many deserve credit for grassroots diversity achievements at Orchard Park site, executive director says
In five years, Providence Farm Collective has produced Western New York’s own definition of “grassroots systemic change.”
On 37 acres of Orchard Park farmland, the non-profit’s 29 farms help feed more than 11,000 Western New Yorkers. New neighbors arrived from places that traditionally farmed to feed their families have been able to return to the land.
This month, Executive Director Kristin Heltman-Weiss won New York State Department of Agriculture and Markets’ Empower Through Ag Award. She’ll be in the spotlight Aug. 28 at the New York State Fair Women’s Day Brunch.
Providence Farm Collective offers a quarter-acre of plowed, fenced, fertilized farmland as part of a three-year incubator program. Plus more than 20 agricultural and business workshops annually, delivered in culturally and linguistically appropriate fashion, Heltman-Weiss said. Plus one-on-one help with tech, marketing, tools, seeds, and plants, and the chance to become a long-term tenant.
A 5,400-square-foot barn, under construction, will include a multi-station enclosed wash and pack setup with hot water, two cold storage units, a commercial kitchen for minimally processing veggies for markets, and a farm store for CSA pick-up and produce sales, she said. Other amenities include storage for supplies and small equipment, two bathrooms, an office, and a covered rear pavilion.
The non-profit raised $2.3 million to own and protect its farm and build its barn, in partnership with the Western New York Land Conservancy in the region's first joint capital campaign, said Heltman-Weiss.
The award “recognizes individuals who have made significant contributions to promoting diversity and inclusion initiatives within the agricultural sector.”
Individuals is plural. Heltman-Weiss said she was just one of the people who deserve credit.
Others include Mahamud Mberwa, the collective’s farm mentor, helps create and teach a multilingual farm business curriculum. Zelalem Gemmeda, who besides operating Buffalo’s only Ethiopian restaurant, Abyssinia Ethiopian Cuisine, leads the Be Emnet Ethiopian community farm.
Hamadi Mganga, Providence Farm Collective’s marketing coordinator, and founding member of the collective. Halima Muhina, owner of Buliyaga Farm, another founding member.
Mbwera, Mganga, and Muhina were also founding members of Somali Bantu Community Farm, a 2017 pilot program aimed at addressing inequities in farmland and fresh food access. The pilot worked so well that the Providence Farm Collective blossomed in Orchard Park.
Providence farmers sell a broad array of common and hard-to-find produce at its Saturday Farmers Market, 10 a.m.-2 p.m. through mid-October in the M&T Bank parking lot at 130 Grant St. On Mondays, the market is at the farm, 5701 Burton Road, Orchard Park, 3 p.m.-7 p.m.
Cultural crops such as roselle, African eggplant, bitter balls, several varieties of Asian and African okra, beans, and hot peppers, amaranth, and Tanzania maize are offered at times during the market season.
The collective started with Somali Bantu farmers. “They have deep agrarian roots and generations of experience in farming,” she said. “When resettled as refugees, however, they were homed to West- and East-side neighborhoods in Buffalo where the legacy of redlining, disinvestment, and resultant lack of access to fresh food continues today.”
Providence’s mission remains “cultivating farmer-led and community-rooted agriculture and food systems to actualize the rights of under-resourced peoples and a vision of empowering just and equitable access to food and farmland,” she said.
It’s is the only Western New York non-profit that “directly empowers refugee and Black communities with access to rural farmland, farming and business education, technical assistance, markets, and the opportunity to farm for income,” she said. “It accomplishes this while passing important cultural traditions down to younger generations.”
The honor does not belong to her, she said, but the collective.
REVIEW: The Lexington Avenue space where Vera Pizzeria recast Buffalo’s idea of a cocktail lounge is now Saint Neri, a serene golden jewelbox with a brief, impactful menu worth contemplating. Chef Steven Gedra, who helped redefine what a Buffalo restaurant could be with The Black Sheep, offers a topnotch caviar array, and a handful of dishes. From an ideal cheeseburger to housemade pasta of the moment, Gedra makes every shot count. (Later today, for patrons.)
OPENINGS
Royal Cuisine & Banquet opened Friday at 3324 Sheridan Drive, in the Sheridan Center plaza at Sweet Home Road and Sheridan, down from Pet Supplies Plus.
The halal restaurant offers biryanis, shawarma, curries, rice boxes, and more. Its banquet hall can seat 225.
Hours: 9 a.m.-11 p.m. daily. Phone: 716-322-0277.
Reza Pizza brings Afghani bread and pizza to 1803 Kenmore Ave., between Military and Elmwood.
Opened this spring, Reza Hamidi offers the usual chicken wings and pepperoni pizza.
Plus a bunch of other dough-based specialties. Chicken nihari pizza, Indian-Pakistani spiced poultry on pizza, is among its offerings. Plus bolani, the potato-stuffed Afghan snack, barbari bread, and more.
Check out the menu here.
Hours: 11 a.m.-11 p.m. Thursday-Tuesday. 11 a.m.-7 p.m. Sunday. Phone: 716-303-8881.
CLOSINGS
Just Pizza’s University Heights location, one of the longest-serving pizzerias near University at Buffalo’s South Campus, announced its closing Aug. 18.
EVENTS
Black Restaurant Week 716, organized by the Buffalo Urban League Young Professionals, runs from Monday to to Sunday, Sept. 1.
Click here for the list of restaurants with $20.24 specials, including LaVerdad Cafe Deli Smok’n Soul Food Restaurant, PhatKatz, Sweet Assassin, and Crenshaw’s Chicken & Waffles.
Lockport Empanadas: A lineup of WNY Empanadas will be on tap from 5 p.m.-8 p.m. Aug. 30 at Lock Tender Tap Room, 4 Lock St., Lockport.
If you’ve never tried one, this is your chance.
The Lock Tender Bottle Shop & Tap Room opened in July, facing the Erie Canal. It boasts an array of craft beer, wine, and more. Plus a light eats menu from Jessica Dittly’s Terroir General Store.
Hours: 3 p.m.-9 p.m. Wednesday-Friday, noon-9 p.m. Saturday, noon-8 p.m. Sunday.
ASK THE CRITIC
Q: What do you think of K-BBQ & Hot Pot, the all-you-can-eat Korean barbecue and hotpot place?
A: When three people ask me the same question, I figure it’s worth answering here.
The short answer is: if you are a hotpot fan, you might dig the spread. There’s no shortage of about 50 hotpot fillings, including crab legs and three kinds of tripe.
But I was there for Korean barbecue. My goal was to eat my weight in bulgogi, but the proffered griddle, turned to max, wouldn’t get hot enough to sizzle. A cooking surface with the raging power of a tealight plus the 90-minute time made anything but the thinnest meat unfeasible for mass consumption.
People with normal consumption patterns might leave the place happy as a clam, but I wouldn’t know.
More reading from Michael Chelus:
Mr. Galarneau told us about the stellar noodle bowls and dumplings to be found at OG Dumpling House in Tonawanda [Four Bites]
Amira's Kitchen will open in its new location in Cheektowaga on 9/5 [Four Bites]
Alix and Scott put together a list of their favorite patios in Medina including Leonard Oakes Estate Winery, Mariachi de Oro and more [In a DC Minute]
While its future is uncertain, please support LynOaken Farms this fall season [Buffalo News]
Check out Crenshaw's Chicken and Waffles during Black Restaurant Week which starts tomorrow [Buffalo Spree]
Francesca told us where to find the deals during Black Restaurant Week at places like Bratts Hill, Sunshine Vegan Eats and more [Buffalo News]
Brett took us to The Dog and Pony Saloon in South Buffalo [Step Out Buffalo]
Brian's Buffalo Beer Briefs told us of the return of the Beer Mile to Bottle Rocket Beer Reserve, the first anniversary of Shalooby Loofer Brewing and more [Step Out Buffalo]
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