Today we’d like to introduce you to Amber Ferguson.
Hi Amber, thanks for joining us today. We’d love for you to start by introducing yourself.
Rogue Food Unites (RFU) was formed in 2020 in response to the dual disasters of the Labor Day Fires and the impacts of COVID-19 on local communities in the Rogue Valley. Driven by the need to help our impacted neighbors, RFU responded by supplying hot meals, food boxes, and prepaid grocery/hot meal cards to displaced and impacted people in Deschutes, Douglas, Klamath, Josephine, and Jackson Counties.
As fire affected individuals’ needs changed, and they moved throughout Jackson County, RFU’s service model changed to meet the new circumstances they faced. This resulted in the creation of the Neighbors Unite: No Cost Farmers Market in October 2022. Through this innovation, RFU can provide high-quality, nutritious food to those facing food and nutrition insecurity while maintaining a relationship with our community that is critical to future disaster response efforts.
In June 2024, RFU completed the construction of a commercial kitchen to develop a line of Freeze-Dried Meals as an innovative approach to disaster preparedness that addresses a critical gap identified during the 2020 wildfires: the lack of nutritious, scalable, shelf-stable, tasty meals for emergency response. The goal of the Freeze-Dried Meals program is threefold: to be prepared to provide healthy, flavorful nourishment to disaster-affected people; to strengthen the local food system by prioritizing locally sourced ingredients in production; and to act as a sustainable source of income for RFU’s community-facing programming, including the Market.
RFU’s current programming exists at the crossroads where necessary changes to food security and disaster response work meet – creating sustainable and resilient local food systems while responding to food needs as they arise. RFU has served more than 2.2 million meals over the last six years.
I’m sure it wasn’t obstacle-free, but would you say the journey has been fairly smooth so far?
As a nonprofit organization, we’ve been able to support the community by addressing needs as they present themselves, without the constraints of a state/federally funded program that often has to work within parameters, like requiring identification/providing proof of need, etc.
We have a robust partnership with our local leaders and state officials which we are thankful for, and currently have a contract with the state if and when a state of emergency is ever declared, they are able to call on us to provide hot meals and emergency feeding within the 36 counties of Oregon.
Since our founding, food insecurity has only grown amidst federally cut programs the past few years, and RFU, along with other NGOs and government agencies, have been doing what we can to fill in those gaps. The need has grown, but the support provided has become more dire with certain programs shuttering due to federal funding being cut.
As you know, we’re big fans of Rogue Food Unites. For our readers who might not be as familiar what can you tell them about the brand?
Rogue Food Unites is comprised of 17 employees and more than 150 active volunteers. We believe in the fundamental human right to food and value diverse life experiences, identities, and heritages, striving to ensure all voices, especially those who have been historically marginalized, are heard and valued. Our warehouse and offices are filled daily with produce being delivered, volunteers preparing produce to go to markets, delicious freeze dried meals being researched and developed, and partner organizations and community members stopping by for meetings. Our 3 times a week, no-cost farmers markets within Jackson County are vibrant and joyful, with great music playing, smiling volunteers and employees, and community connection while waiting in line.
Are there any apps, books, podcasts, blogs or other resources you think our readers should check out?
Books:
Fuzz by Mary Roach
Educated by Tara Westover
Mink River by Brian Doyle
My Grandmother asked me to tell you She’s Sorry by Fredrik Backman
The Sioux Chef’s Indigenous Kitchen by Sean Sherman with Beth Dooley
The Herbfarm Cookbook by Jerry Traunfeld
Taste and Technique by Naomi Pomeroy
Apps:
Measure app (level feature when nailing something to the wall).
The NewYorker
NPR
AllTrails
Watchduty!
Pulsepoint
Libby
iNaturalist
NYtimes games
Podcasts:
Consider This
Radio Hour
Planet Money
ScienceFriday/WNYC.
Ologies
My Favorite Murder
Radio Lab
This American Life
Other:
Masala y Maiz episode of Chef’s Table
The Summer I turned Pretty
HI potential
Pricing:
- Rogue Food Unites is amidst developing freeze dried meals in our commercial kitchen. These meals are culturally relevant, nutritionally dense, sourced from local organic producers, and crafted with taste in mind. Sign up for our newsletter at our website to stay in the loop of when they become available.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://roguefoodunites.org
- Instagram: https://instagram.com/roguefoodunites
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/roguefoodunitesoregon
- LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/rogue-food-unites
- Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@roguefoodunites
Image Credits
Gabriel Ramirez (Group Photo & Farmers Market Photo)
