Pomona Community Farmer Alliance (PCFA)
The Pomona Community Farmer Alliance (PCFA) is a farmers market based cooperative initiative that helps sustainable and regenerative farmers bring high-quality, organic produce to underserved community members in Pomona.
Through establishing a safe, welcoming, engaging weekly gathering space grounded in principles of food and environmental justice, the PCFA empowers community members to share knowledge, build relationships, and make meaningful contributions to the health of our local community.
In recent years, as surrounding communities of privilege established new markets, our local market--which serves many food insecure & low income residents--dwindled down to just 5 conventional farmstands.
In recognition that market mechanisms simply don’t work to bring high quality foods to communities like ours, the PCFA set out to revitalize our market and establish a farmers market model which does serve low-income communities.
Our market initiative currently provides access to the following resources:
Fresh locally grown, chemical free fruits and vegetables (Pomona Food Access Booth)
Packaged food exchange (Free table)
Heirloom, regenerative organic beans, grains, and seeds (Kandarian Farms)
Organic Fruits & Avocados (Limelight Groves)
Pasture Raised Organic Meat (Autonomy Farms)
Cold Pressed Olive Oil, whole olives, and traditionally aged vinegars (Nuvo)
Seeds (Pomona Seed Lending Library)
Community food scrap drop off (Food Cycle Collective)
Free and low cost clothing and household items (Thrifty Goodies)
Traditionally made medicines (Pachamama’s Remedies)
PCFA Goals:
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Make high-quality, nutrient-dense, toxin-free food regularly accessible and affordable in our local community
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Support regenerative land management practices, and farmers who are growing produce with attention to environmental and human health outcomes
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Create a space for knowledge sharing that emphasizes health, well-being, nutrition, and food preparation, and uplifts the value of tradition and culture
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Develop a farmers market culture that welcomes diversity, holds space for marginalized individuals and communities, and actively dismantles systemic oppression
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Cultivate awareness of intersecting social, food, and environmental justice issues to minimize and mitigate negative impacts of wasteful, destructive and oppressive systems, and to empower community transformation
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Provide local opportunities for positive engagement with the community through service and volunteering
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Build community around healthy interaction in a reliable, safe community space
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Practice and demonstrate prosocial and humanistic values that promote connection and allow our community to thrive
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Promote an organizational culture of collaborative decision-making rooted in active listening, empathy, and inclusion