How We Work

We follow a values-based food procurement process that works to center and respect the needs of local farmers, community members, and institutions along every step of the way.

Rows of leafy greens and lettuce growing in a greenhouse, with a tunnel-like plastic covering overhead.

Smiling elderly woman talking to a vendor at an outdoor market stall with tents.

Three people are talking in a conference room with tables and chairs. The woman in the middle is wearing a dark shirt and the women on the right is wearing a white polka dot blouse.

Several chickens, including a black one in the foreground, roaming on wood chip ground inside a farm enclosure with people in the background.

Handwritten poster on a wall asking about the purpose of a coalition, listing improving health, establishing sustainability efforts, changing practice of medicine, human-centered policy advocacy, and standardized data collection, with colorful marker

Indoor greenhouse with rows of green vegetables, including kale, lettuce, and other leafy greens, growing in soil.

An elderly woman with gray hair smiling and wearing a striped shirt at an outdoor market, shaking hands with another woman. There are tents and blurred trees in the background.

Three people engaged in conversation at a conference or workshop, with tables and chairs in the background.

Our Focus Areas

Food is Medicine

We want communities across West Virginia to thrive, and we know that starts by ensuring that community members can access healthy and whole foods.

Illustration of a farmer wearing a cap, holding a small plant.

Farm to Institution

We help to build a bridge between the food local farmers grow and the meals local institutions serve.

Illustration of two green hands shaking, symbolizing agreement or cooperation.

Community Food Systems

We are working to support and strengthen an integrated model that keeps the food grown in West Virginia close to home and supports local communities in return.

From an aerial view, a green tractor with a cultivator attachment works on a field, dividing a green, partially growing crop area from a brown, freshly tilled soil area.

Three people are pointing to a map of West Virginia.

Four Pillars of Support

Together, Good Ground’s steering committee and workgroups are focused on:

Facilitating partnerships among community partners, anchor institutions and key stakeholders.
Mobilizing projects through predevelopment, administrative and financial support.
Creating co-learning opportunities for all its members and partners.
Scaling the model by documenting evidence and expanding regional participation.

Our Collaborative Vision

We believe in integrating agriculture and health in West Virginia. The graphic shown below is a compass for our work.

FUNDERS

Investing in West Virginia’s Good Ground

Funded in large part by the United States Department of Agriculture Increasing Land, Capital, Market Access (ILA) Program through an $8.5 million award, this regional cooperative project is rooted in community collaboration, designed to address long-standing systemic barriers that prevent equitable participation in agriculture across the region.

PARTNERS AND PROJECTS

Laying the groundwork together.

Learn More About Our Partners

“There is much good work to be done by every one of us and we must begin to do it.”

—Wendell Berry
“To grow your own food gives you power and dignity.”

—Karen Washington
“To tend the Earth is always then to tend our destiny, our freedom and our hope.”

—Leah Penniman
“I want people to start looking at our state with a sense of possibility.”

—Crystal Good
“I have no fear here, in this world of trees, weeds, and growing things.”

—Bell Hooks
“When we control our food, we control our destiny—economically and socially.”

—Jason Tartt

How We Work

Our Focus Areas

Food is Medicine

Farm to Institution

Community Food Systems

Four Pillars of Support

Our Collaborative Vision

FUNDERS

Investing in West Virginia’s Good Ground

PARTNERS AND PROJECTS

Laying the groundwork together.

“There is much good work to be done by every one of us and we must begin to do it.”

“To grow your own food gives you power and dignity.”

“To tend the Earth is always then to tend our destiny, our freedom and our hope.”

“I want people to start looking at our state with a sense of possibility.”

“I have no fear here, in this world of trees, weeds, and growing things.”

“When we control our food, we control our destiny—economically and socially.”