North Texas Farm to Table Symposium | Lena Wilson, Texas Dept of Agriculture

We had an amazing speaker at our last Symposium! Lena Wilson brought very important and relevant topics to light for our local farmers and ranchers. Lena is the Assistant Commissioner of Food & Nutrition for the Texas Department of Agriculture. She oversees all activities related to compliance with regulations for the 12 federal nutrition programs administered by the agency. Topics she covered during the Symposium included:

·       Federal nutrition programs - offer business opportunities for farmers and ranchers.

·       The Farmers Market Nutrition Program (FMNP) - allows low-income women with children to buy fresh fruits and vegetables from participating farmers’ market associations using FMNP vouchers.

·       The Farm Fresh Network - helps schools and day care providers find agricultural producers ready to provide fresh foods.

·       The STAR Fund - helping Texas farmers and ranchers recover from disasters.

·       TDA - working to protect Texas from New World screwworm.

·       Texas Agriculture - Defending Land, Protecting Biosecurity, and Supporting Producers

Chef Andrea Shackelford of Harvest at the Masonic created a fabulous buffet including Tomato Pesto Salad, Mixed Greens Salad, Roasted Chicken, St. Louis Style Ribs, Parsley Marinated White Beans, Herbed Rice, Street Corn and Harvest Tiramisu.