Brown Issues, the City of Woodland, and Woodland’s food and agriculture partners invite our community to celebrate its farmworkers, line workers, growers, and ranchers – the faces of Woodland’s The Food Front – at the Yolo Farmworkers Festival. With over 190 food and ag businesses in Woodland, local farmworkers and growers not only feed the community but also play a key role in the regional, national, and global supply chain. Woodland is proud to host the second edition of this family-friendly event to boost awareness of and appreciation for our food and ag industry’s workforce.
On October 6 from 5 – 9:30 PM, Downtown Woodland will feature festive live entertainment, including a performance from Jimena Izquierdo, a local singer and daughter to longtime Durst Organic Growers supervisor Jose Izquierdo. In addition, the Festival area will include a “park and shine” lowrider display, craft vendors, a kid zone, and over twenty local organizations with resources catered to our farmworking community. Additionally, a delegation of visitors from Woodland’s Sister City of La Piedad, Michoacán, Mexico will attend the Festival. Woodland and La Piedad share a rich agricultural history and a commitment to honoring our food and ag communities.
The City of Woodland moved this year’s Festival and its Sister City Delegation visit to October to coincide with Hispanic, Latino, and Chicano Heritage Month. This Heritage Month started on September 15, aligning with the national independence day of Guatemala, Honduras, El Salvador, Nicaragua and Costa Rica. National independence days for Mexico on September 16, Chile on September 18, and Belize on September 21 are also included in this celebratory month, which concludes on October 15. For the past two years, Brown Issues has held a celebration on October’s First Friday to celebrate the contributions of local Chicanos and Latinos to our city and county. This year's Festival merges their celebration and the original Festival to jointly celebrate the efforts of our farmworking community, many of whom are Chicano and / or Latino.
Thanks to generous sponsors, the Festival team carried out two parallel initiatives as part of the event's mission to provide direct support to farmworkers and their families. Through these sponsor funds, roughly 500 burritos will be distributed to Yolo County farmworkers during their lunch break, at which time they will be personally invited by event coordinators to attend the Festival. September 27 marked the first burrito delivery by the Brown Issues team and Woodland Mayor Vicky Fernandez to Durst Organic Growers and Fully Belly Farms. The second round of burrito deliveries and face-to-face invitations to farmworkers will be carried out a few days before the Festival. The burritos were provided at a discounted rate by Super Burrito and Antojitos Jaimito to help amplify outreach to farmworkers with a lower price point. Lastly, a scholarship fund will help support local farmworkers's children and their studies.
In addition, Downtown Woodland's Blue Note Brewing partnered with Festival coordinators to create a special release Mexican-style lager with artwork designed by Brown Issues to help promote and support the YFF. The beer, titled “Campesina” (Farmworker), was recently canned and is available for purchase locally, including on tap at Blue Note Brewing. Blue Note Brewing offered to donate 10% of total proceeds through October 6 to the Festival’s scholarship program for children of local farmworkers.
This Festival is made possible thanks to an anonymous primary financial sponsor and key local business and government support: District 5 Yolo County Supervisor Angel Barajas, Yolo Eats, Pacific Coast Producers, City of Woodland, District 1 Yolo County Supervisor Oscar Villegas, La Tourangelle Artisan Oils, Raley’s, Woodland Community College, District 2 Yolo County Supervisor Lucas Frerichs, Cobram Estate, Osaka Sushi, Mojo’s Lounge, Blue Note Brewing, Garton Tractor, and additional anonymous supporters.
The City of Woodland looks forward to welcoming our region to the heart of Downtown Woodland for a unique Festival experience amongst its local restaurants and shops.
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