Meet Our New Food Hub Warehouse Specialist—Raymond Johnston

Food Connects is excited to welcome Raymond Johnston to the Food Hub team as Food Connects’ Warehouse Specialist. Though not on the road often, Raymond will play a key role in distribution for our Food Hub. In this new position, Raymond will work to increase efficiencies in our Food Hub’s warehouse, maintain and oversee systems and regulatory compliance, and take on the daunting tasks of inventory management.

Raymond joined the Food Connects team in late July and has spent years in the food industry, primarily in warehouse distribution.

Meet Raymond today!

What interested you most about Food Connects and why are you excited to start working here?

What interested me most about Food Connects is its strong and growing presence as a key player in the supply chain of New England’s local food system. I am excited to start working at Food Connects to leverage my corporate sales experience and passion for philanthropy and community service to drive sustained growth and distribution of the Food Hub.

What sparked your interest in Food Connects and why are you excited to be here?

My partner let me know there was an opening and I was eager to apply. I had been aware of Food Connects having utilized the Food Hub myself in the past and was excited to be part of an organization making a positive change.

Why is the local food movement important to you?

I think it's important for people, in general, to know where their food comes from, and to at least think about how it gets to them. The less stuff in general, but perhaps food especially, we ship long distances across the country or around the planet the better we'll all be.

What do you see for the future of Food Connects and what you will do here? What are your hopes and dreams for this position?

I would love for organizations like Food Connects to become more and more about how food gets distributed, instead of long-distance distribution across the continent. My hope is to make the Food Hub as efficient and streamlined as possible so we can serve larger orders and customers seamlessly in order to make that a reality in our local market

How will your previous food systems work impact your work at Food Connects?

I'm hoping my knowledge of how larger operations work will help me realize the steps we need to take to scale up the Food Hub without impacting the great service we provide. I'll also be keeping in mind the frustrations and inefficiencies of the larger distributors I've worked for in order to make sure we don't fall into those same pitfalls.

How do you spend your time outside of work?

I like to spend my time outdoors, usually relaxing but oftentimes doing some of the never-ending upkeep on our small chicken coop. I always enjoy hiking in whatever woods I can find which previous positions I've held didn't really allow the time or energy for so that's something else positive which may come from this position! Most of my free time is definitely spent around the home though with my family.

What is your favorite or least favorite food?

My favorite food is lasagna, and I'll eat almost anything, so it's kind of hard to think of a least favorite.

If you could trade places with anyone for a day, who would you choose?

Joe Biden—but only to try and executive order some decent policies into place given the chance, not really a position I'd get gratification from experiencing. For that I'd probably pick someone from a different culture entirely, as different from me as possible, but probably no-one famous or known. Guess I'd spin a wheel!

What is an experience you've always wanted to try?

Spinning that "trade places" wheel sounds pretty appealing right now

Meet Our New Food Hub Local Food Institutional Sales Associate—Tom Brewton

Food Connects is excited to welcome Tom Brewton to the Food Hub team as Food Connects’ first Local Food Institutional Sales Associate. In this new position, Tom will work to help Food Connects better serve institutions in our area—including K-12 schools, colleges, universities, and healthcare facilities—in their goals to increase purchasing of local and regional foods.

Tom joined the Food Connects team in mid-January and previously worked at the largest grocery wholesaler in the U.S, C&S Wholesale Grocers. Tom is excited to make the shift to focus on New England’s regional food system.

What interested you most about Food Connects and why are you excited to start working here?

What interested me most about Food Connects is its strong and growing presence as a key player in the supply chain of New England’s local food system. I am excited to start working at Food Connects to leverage my corporate sales experience and passion for philanthropy and community service to drive sustained growth and distribution of the Food Hub.

Why is the local food movement important to you?

In my role as the Local Food Institutional Sales Associate, I will have the opportunity to directly impact the health and wellbeing of our youth by increasing the distribution of New England’s local produce into our schools. I grew up in inner-city Pittsburgh, PA, and attended an underfunded public high school. While I was fortunate to come from a stable household, I understood that some of my peers didn’t have the means to access healthy foods. My background is what will fuel me to work hard in contributing to a more just food system.

What do you see for the future of Food Connects and what you will do here?

I am eager to first access the wealth of knowledge from my colleagues in regards to our existing customer relationships and then work with them to sell the mission and services of the Food Hub to new customers. It’s exciting to join Food Connects during a season of significant growth. I’m looking forward to doing my part in enabling Food Connects to achieve its sales targets! As Food Connects continues to expand its customer base, I am looking forward to strategizing with my colleagues on ways to sustain its growth while living with our values as an organization.

How will your other food industry experience impact your work at Food Connects?

Previous to Food Connects, I worked for the largest wholesale grocery company in the United States, C&S Wholesale Grocers, where I managed relationships with more than 100 manufacturers. I look forward to using my technical and interpersonal skills I learned in my previous role to promote the Food Hub.

How do you spend your time outside of work?

I enjoy making pottery and hope to be selling my work in the near future! I also enjoy all things outdoors including cliff jumping, hiking, camping, and skiing. Once a vaccine is publicly distributed, I look forward to participating in local theatre again!

What is your favorite or least favorite food?

It’s hard to pick, but one of my favorite foods is tacos from Three Stones.

If you were stuck on a desert island, what book would you bring with you?

The entire Harry Potter series.

What’s the best single day on the calendar?

The day I got married to my beautiful, talented wife, Carissa, July 21st.

Meet Our New Food Hub Local Food Procurement Coordinator—David Paysnick

Food Connects is excited to welcome David Paysnick to our team as the Food Hub Local Food Procurement Coordinator. This new position will serve farms and food producers in our region, working to increase community access to their products through our food distribution networks.

David joined the team at Food Connects with 25 years of experience in a variety of food-related occupations. Most recently, David operated Rainbow Harvest Farm in Greenfield, MA, producing organically grown vegetables, herbs, nursery plants, fig-trees, and specialty food products for sale at Western Massachusetts farmers’ markets. David also managed the produce departments at the two Franklin Community Co-op markets in Greenfield and Shelburne Falls, where he then served on the Board of Directors, including 2 years as President.

What interested you most about Food Connects and why are you excited to start working here?

So many reasons!  I’ve been feeding people my whole life, starting with volunteering at a Soup Kitchen in Springfield, MA to working in restaurants, food co-ops, and 20 years of organic farming. Improving food access and creating equity in food systems have been some of the passions that have driven my work over the past many years. When I learned about the goals and programs at Food Connects, it seemed like a perfect fit. I’m thrilled to see the successes of the Farm to School program and excited to be working with so many highly motivated people working to create positive change in the world.

Why is the local food movement important to you?

At the most basic level, the local food movement is important to me because I like to know where my food comes from. I also want it to be fresh and minimally processed. I believe that access to fresh food should be a right and not a privilege. If we outsource our food production, that goal becomes significantly harder to achieve. Local farms are far more likely to donate to our local food banks than those 3000 miles away. 

Beyond that, the local food movement provides economic, environmental, and social benefits for those that embrace it. Supporting the local food movement leads to more local jobs, more food dollars recirculating within the region, increased food security, and fresher, safer, more nutritious food. It also helps to preserve farmland and genetic biodiversity while reducing emissions as compared to transporting food across great distances. Farmers who direct market and sell their food locally are more likely to use more environmentally sound production practices, which benefits our soil, waterways, neighbors, and those who consume their goods. The local food movement supports the many interwoven relationships between our farms, families, institutions, and natural resources and aims to strengthen those relationships for the benefit of all.

What do you see for the future of FC and what you will do here? What are your hopes/dreams for this position?

While what we do is a bit more complex, from a practical standpoint the role of the food hub is to support our regional farmers by providing a sales outlet for their products and support the people of our tri-state region in providing fresh, nutritious local food to local markets and institutions. As the Local Food Procurement Coordinator, my goals are to be able to support any and all producers who wish to get involved with the food hub. Whether they are a small farm or business with no wholesale experience, or a veteran farmer looking to expand their markets, I hope to be able to provide the logistical support needed to make partnering with Food Connects a mutually beneficial relationship. My ultimate goal would be that Food Connects is able to help all of our producers ensure that no food goes to waste and all farm products find a good home!

 How will your farming and other food industry experience impact your work at Food Connects?

My food industry experience provides a background that enables me to have a greater understanding of the needs and perspectives of both our producers and our customers. Understanding their needs enables me to work towards serving our partners with greater efficiency and compassion.

I’ve been growing organic vegetables for farmers’ markets and local wholesale for nearly 20 years, and have also spent 7 years working in retail food co-op produce departments. As the produce manager for Franklin Community Cooperative, I found my farming experience to be invaluable in working with our growers and understanding their needs and how to best serve them. I have also spent time working as a wholesale bread baker and restaurant cook, as well as numerous other production and retail food positions from grocery stocker to ice cream maker to running a community farm. 

How do you spend your time outside of work?

Growing food, cooking, eating, and outdoor activity tend to be my top priorities. I love to take daily walks with my fiancé, Melinda, as well as kayak, hike, and travel to the beach. I love to cook with my teenage daughter, Aliza, and visit our favorite spot, the family lake house on Newfound Lake in New Hampshire. When I’m home, I can often be found under my cat, who is clearly the Alpha of the household.

What is your favorite or least favorite food?

I can’t say I have a favorite food, it’s too hard to choose, can I list 20 or 30? Least favorite? That’s easier, probably carob, anything that pretends to be chocolate is just plain evil. It should probably come with a big red warning to keep people from utter disappointment when they have an expectation for the magical flavor of chocolate.

If you wrote a book, what would you title it and why?

Ha! I’ll spend too much time writing and rewriting every paragraph trying to perfect each sentence that I’ll never get to the final step of titling it.

Do you have a hidden talent? What is it?

Observation. For better or worse, I notice things all around me on a daily basis that the people I’m with never seem to notice.  

Meet Our New Food Hub Operations Coordinator—Deborah Sadler

Food Connects is excited to welcome Deborah Sadler to their team as their new Food Hub Operations Coordinator. Deborah is the first in a series of new hires that will help Food Connects operations continue to grow. Deborah splits her time between coordinating pickup and delivery of Food Hub products and driving delivery routes. 

Deborah joined the Food Connects team in August after managing a goat dairy and creamery. In graduate school, she researched the effects of government policies on farmers’ ability to adapt to drought. Her passion for building local food systems and supporting farmworkers is a huge asset to the growing Food Hub team. Take some more time to learn more about Deborah today!

What interested you most about Food Connects and why are you excited to start working here?

I know how difficult it can be as a small producer to reach customers. Food Hubs offer an important connection for producers to access larger markets. I'm excited to be a part of strengthening our local food system!

Why is the local food movement important to you?

Community has always been based around food, our most essential need. Local food systems are the ultimate way to build community, especially in an increasingly disconnected world! With non-local foods, mistreatment of the land, ecosystem, and farmworkers is often out of sight, out of mind. Local farmers and producers are personally invested in the effects their businesses have on their neighbors. Local farmers who live in the communities they feed want to preserve and improve their soil and water resources. Local producers can see and address inequities in the food system that is overlooked by national brands and chains. When individuals, restaurants, and institutions buy local food, they are voting with their dollar to keep their money locally and to support their neighbors. And of course, fresh local food just plain tastes better!

What do you see for the future of Food Connects and what you will do here? What are your hopes/dreams for this position?

The Food Connects Food Hub is in a period of growth and is well-positioned to take on a leadership role in building a network of local food hubs throughout New England. As the new Food Hub General Operations Coordinator, I hope to help alleviate some of those growing pains with new, efficient systems that allow us to do our work more effectively!

How will your farming experience impact your work at Food Connects?

As a farmer, I understand many of the difficulties faced by local producers, and look forward to supporting them! Most recently, I have worked as a small dairy farm manager and cheesemaker, so I am used to wearing lots of hats and jumping in to do whatever is needed. I also believe farmers can serve as educators, to help teach consumers about the foods we provide.

Now for the fun ones!

What are your hobbies?

I enjoy hiking and backpacking, having hiked most of the Appalachian Trail. I am also a long-time runner and yogi. I enjoy the well-being of running, but will never win races. Creatively, I play piano, but not in public, and I write fiction that I hope to one day publish.

If you had to be shipwrecked on a deserted island, but all your human needs—such as food and water—were taken care of, what two items would you want to have with you?

If it's not included in food, I would bring a pair of goats and raise goats for milk, cheese, meat, fiber. And a deserted island that I could populate with goats would be a lot more fun and interesting! Otherwise, could I bring a Kindle and a solar charger?

What is your favorite or least favorite food?

As a former dairy farmer and cheesemaker, I love cheese and ice cream! Brussel sprouts are a hard pass, on the other hand.

When you were little, what did you want to be when you grew up?

When I was maybe five to ten years old, I wanted to be a Paleontologist, and get to dig up dinosaur bones, or else be a Tiger Trainer, like Siegfried and Roy. Of course, this was well before Roy was attacked by a tiger onstage.

Meet Our New Sales Associate—Beth Lewand!

Food Connects is excited to welcome Beth Lewand to their team as their Food Hub Sales Associate.

Beth joins the team with over 10 years of experience in the food industry. Most recently she was the Operations Manager at Cricket Creek Farm, a grass-based dairy and artisanal cheese producer in Williamstown, MA. Previously, she and her husband Chris founded, owned, and operated Eastern District, a food shop specializing in craft beer and artisanal cheese, in the Greenpoint neighborhood of Brooklyn, NY. 

“I think my experience as both a producer and a buyer will give me a greater understanding of our partners' needs, and hopefully help me to help them succeed,” says Beth. “I love the fact that this is a nonprofit food hub, rather than a traditional distributor, and that education and other community efforts are prioritized.”

Food Connects focuses on local food, so we asked Beth why the local food movement was important to her. “I care about it for so many reasons: because of its impact on environmental and economic sustainability; for its potential to deliver fresh, healthy food throughout the community; and because of the simple joy it brings us to connect with the land and the people who feed us.”

Beth’s passion for local food and drive to increase its impact will help propel Food Connects into the future. As a rapidly growing organization, it is important to continue to diversify products and increase the number of local producers and customers they work with. Beth’s experience will help bring on new customers and partners, offer more local products, and expand the network that Food Connects is a part of.

When Beth isn’t working with Food Connects she spends time gardening, cooking, listening to music, sewing and other textile arts, hanging out with her husband and cats, and spending time outdoors. And her favorite food, by far, is cheese! She’ll fit right in with the rest of the Food Connects crew!

And now some of the fun stuff:

If Beth was shipwrecked on a deserted island, but all her needs—such as food and water—were taken care of, she would bring along a universal jukebox and a gigantic set of Legos. And when she was little she wanted to be everything when she grew up—from a doctor to a ballerina, to a window display designer. “Oddly I never daydreamed about the food business as a kid, but now I know it's the best!”

“I'm grateful to the Food Connects crew for a warm welcome, and I'm really looking forward to meeting all of our customers, producers, and partners!” And we are excited to have you on our team, Beth!