Originally published in the Fall 2020 issue of SPOKE+BLOSSOM

As the coronavirus continues to ravage the United States, unemployment and poverty surges as well. For Eagle County, food insecurity has been a perpetual issue. The Community Market is the county’s food bank solution and hunger relief program rolled into one. This third year of operation has proven to be their most challenging, but also their most rewarding.

“There is such a high need in Eagle County due to our dependence on the service industry,” explains market manager and chef Kelly Liken. “Seasonal food service employees are food insecure.”

To combat the community’s shared hardship, Liken built the market on three key pillars: healthy people, strong communities and sustainability.

“Access to healthful food is a right, not a privilege,” she says, sharing how marginalized communities in the country are at a significantly higher risk for health issues. Liken and her team believe that a lot of that stems from the food they can access.

“It’s more than just how much money you have; it extends throughout the community,” Liken explains. “We are trying to create more equity in our food system and be a leader in our community with our practices.”

The Community Market aims to improve access to their healthful foods from a place of dignity and respect. They run two brick-and-mortar markets and five mobile markets in order to reach as much of the county as possible. Customers can pick and choose which foods they want to bring home, just like a normal grocery store. Liken believes that people shouldn’t be told what food or how much of it their family needs, so they don’t hand out pre-packed produce. She hopes the sense of normalcy they try to create helps pay respect to the community.

In February of 2020, the market served about 1,000 people per week. By March that number had grown to 4,000 people per week. Even now, it has only dropped to 3,200.

“It was all hands on deck, but this community really stepped up,” says Liken.

The biggest concern was how this can be done safely. The team implemented new rules and regulations on how both customers and volunteers could stay safe. They also raised a lot of money, support and volunteers, emphasizing the importance of their strong community pillar.

Even further, Liken and her team continuously support their community by obtaining their food from local grocery stores. They have created strong partnerships with stores in order to bring the best foods possible to their customers.

“40 percent of all food ends up in the landfill,” Liken says. “We wanted to address food waste while feeding people.”

They are partnered with every grocery store in Eagle County, over a dozen in total, with whom they schedule pick-ups and collect from the different departments. Their goal is to get to the store before the garbage collector does, so they can save food that has past its best-by date, but is still completely edible. The team sorts through and composts what they need to, which typically ends up being less than 10 percent of their haul. Over the years, Liken estimates they have rescued 10 to 12 thousand pounds from the landfill weekly, which equates to over a million pounds in total.

To continue their sustainable, community focus, the market also works with local farmers. “Our most successful and robust partnership in the North Fork Valley — the one I’m proudest of — is with Austin Family Farm,” Liken shares. They drop off their goods, as well as those from nearby farms on their way to a farmer’s market. The Community Market distributes both perfect and “ugly” produce at their various locations.

“We want it to be a win-win for everyone,” Liken adds. It’s evident her efforts have led to positive change, as The Community Market in the Eagle River Valley continues to thrive even during hard times. Their foundational pillars have clearly all come together to create a wonderfully united community.

Visit their website to learn more about the market and how to volunteer or donate at eaglevalleycf.org/the-community-market/.

The Community Market: Improving Access to Healthy Food in the Eagle River Valley