Center for Regional Food Systems Michigan Farm to Institution Network

Farm to Family is a first-of-its-kind program within the Michigan Department of Agriculture and Rural Development (MDARD). This program offers grants, networking opportunities, and marketing consultations to farmers, food businesses, and other local food supply chain stakeholders. Farm to Family was proposed and supported by the Governor's office in 2023, officially kicked-off in 2024, and is quickly growing in the effort to strengthen agri-food systems across the agriculturally diverse state of Michigan. Success of this program starts with intentional and robust community engagement efforts to develop annual funding priorities. The objectives and eligible applicants for these grant opportunities will change year-to-year, based on the needs and opportunities learned from stakeholders. In 2025, the program provided more than $730,000 of grant funding to eight food hubs and seven farm stops across the state.  

In August 2025, May Tsupros, Director of Farm to Institution Programs at the Michigan State University Center for Regional Food Systems, had a conversation with Cheyenne Liberti, the new Farm to Family Program Manager at MDARD, to learn more about this new initiative. Tsupros and Liberti have worked in collaboration on several projects and will continue to closely partner to uplift Michigan food systems work across the state.  

Cheyenne, tell us about yourself and your team. What should people across the food system know about you and your passion around this work? 

Liberti: I’m honored and excited to lead the new Farm to Family Program at MDARD. I came to this role in May 2025 after working on farm to school, child nutrition data, and grant management for four years at the Michigan Department of Education (MDE). My mom, a teacher, was my inspiration to pursue a career in public service, so working at MDE was a fantastic opportunity for me to braid together my roots with my passion for food systems. 

My interest in food systems grew out of a desire to work with communities to promote public health and sustain our shared natural resources. I moved to Michigan after finishing grad school in 2021 and was amazed by the shared identity that has developed around local food systems in this state. From the Michigan Good Food Charter to the 10 Cents a Meal Program to Double Up Food Bucks – Michiganders continue to find innovative ways to uplift farmers and food businesses along with their communities. I’m proud to follow in those footsteps. 

I’m also proud of the team we’ve built to achieve those goals. Our Program Coordinator Elena Aleman studied Public and Nonprofit Administration and Spanish at Grand Valley State University and brings two years of grant writing and program support experience in the non-profit sector. Lori Yelton, MDARD’s Food-Nutrition Management Consultant, brings a wealth of experience in nutrition education and food safety training. Lori will continue to be a key liaison to MDE’s Farm to Program team, the Michigan Farm to Institution Network, and administrators of food assistance programs at Michigan Department of Health and Human Services (MDHHS) and in local agencies. 

What makes the Farm to Family program unique amongst other MDARD and state agency programs?  

Liberti: The Farm to Family Program is the only program in the history of the department to dedicate funding to programming that promotes healthier farms, economies, and communities in Michigan. Our team is taking a systems-level approach to strengthening market opportunities for farms and food businesses across the state. That starts with consulting the experts – the farmers and food business owners themselves! We are committed to learning about their needs and opportunities during regional listening sessions that we will be hosting annually. 

MDARD uses the information that we gather during listening sessions and in other feedback channels to develop new grant opportunities each year. The ultimate aim of our grants is to fill gaps in local food systems and promote climate resilience, economic prosperity, diversity in agriculture, and innovation. In practical terms, this means creating more opportunities for Michigan farmers to sell locally grown produce and locally raised meat in their communities. It also means giving Michigan families more access to healthy, locally grown and prepared foods. 

In addition to providing grant funding annually, MDARD will also help to connect Michigan farmers and food businesses with buyers. We will implement tools such as one-on-one coaching, buyer-supplier networking, market education materials, and mentorship matchmaking. Our goal is to help local producers develop the marketing skills and network connections they need to establish sustainable market channels for their products, while growing a customer base that values, chooses, and affords healthy foods that were produced locally and sustainably. We will do this in partnership with other state agencies and resource providers such as MSU CRFS to extend our connections with buyers and other resources, to do a better job of identifying gaps in the market, and to avoid duplicating services. We’re all about community engagement and collaboration. 

The national food system climate is tough right now with so many rapid changes. Given some big shifts in federal funding and lots of unknowns, what potential do you feel this program can have in shaping the Michigan food system today?  

Liberti: The Farm to Family Program was established as a bipartisan effort to address gaps in local food systems. The program is designed to be flexible and responsive, and by prioritizing community engagement, we will learn from and empower local changemakers and practitioners across the state. With continued bipartisan support from the state legislature, I’m confident we’ll succeed.  

Farm to Family can serve as a laboratory and accelerator for the policies, projects, and partnerships that have the potential to deliver transformational change when shared. I believe our role in shaping the Michigan food system is to embrace innovation, document success, identify opportunities for replication and adaptation of emerging models, and facilitate network connections to help new ideas spread. There is so much potential in the knowledge and experiences of food system stakeholders across the state. I hope that our program fosters and amplifies their ingenuity. 

Where do you see the most potential in our Michigan food system right now? What are some unexpected discoveries (or unsung food system heroes) that you have uncovered since you have started? 

Liberti: There are unsung food system heroes throughout the supply chain in every local food network across the state. These are folks that are generous in sharing their knowledge, reaching across counties and identity groups to create better opportunities in their community. It’s the apple farmer who goes out of his comfort zone to present at an academic conference about how and why every community college across the state should establish a food hub. It’s the school food service director who’s also the cheerleading coach who’s also the school bus driver, teaching her staff how to process brussels sprouts that arrived on the stalk from a local farm. It’s the food club director who finds a way, through relationship-building and determination, to scale up local food distribution from 300 to 3,000 families. There are people who love local food and love their communities all over Michigan. I feel lucky every day that I get to work with some of them, and I know that they are our superpower. 

The new Food Hub and Farm Stop grants are super exciting! What is the best way for food businesses to plug into this new program and its resources, specifically for those non-grantees? 

Liberti: We will be announcing new Farm to Family grant opportunities in 2026! Interested food businesses can sign up to receive email updates about MDARD grants, and I would also encourage them to check out our website. The Farm to Family Program will continue to update our Community Engagement web page with listening session dates and other opportunities to connect with our team. We would love to see you in person and hope you will join us at an event near you to share your ideas, needs, and success stories. Also, we are currently in the process of hiring a Market Development Specialist, so opportunities to request one-on-one technical assistance through the Market Development page will be coming soon. Lastly, you can always reach out to me or one of my team members if you have questions about or ideas for the program. 

Can you give us a glimpse of some exciting stuff on the horizon with the program in the near future?  

Liberti: Yes! We are sponsoring the Flint and Genesee Food Summit at the Flint Farmers Market on September 24 and the Northeast Michigan Regional Food Summit in Hale, Michigan on October 21. Our team is super excited to connect with local food system champions at each of those events. During the next fiscal year, we are looking forward to ramping up our work around values-aligned institutional procurement policies, last-mile delivery of Michigan food products, and market channels for foods produced using regenerative practices. Stay tuned!

Any final thoughts or words? 

Liberti: It’s my favorite time of year – tomato season! I’m looking forward to making my mother-in-law’s sauce recipe as many times as I can before the tomatoes are gone. 

About Michigan Department of Agriculture and Rural Development

The Michigan Department of Agriculture & Rural Development (MDARD) works to assure food safety, protect animal and plant health, sustain environmental stewardship, provide consumer protection, enable rural development and foster efficient administration operations through service, partnership and collaboration. Learn more: michigan.gov/mdard

Cheyenne Liberti, Program Manager, Farm to Family 
LibertiC@Michigan.gov 
517-290-9268 

Media inquiries may be sent to MDARD-Press@michigan.gov. 

About Michigan Farm to Institution Network  

The Michigan Farm to Institution Network (MFIN) helps people across the farm to institution supply chain learn, connect, and collaborate. Since 2014, we have provided a space for learning, sharing, and working together to help farm to institution programs grow in Michigan.  Learn more: http://mifarmtoinstitution.org/  

About Michigan State University Center for Regional Food Systems 

The Michigan State University Center for Regional Food Systems advances regionally-rooted food systems through applied research, education, and outreach. We do this by uniting the knowledge and experience of diverse stakeholders with that of MSU faculty and staff. Our work fosters a thriving economy, equity, and sustainability for Michigan, the nation, and the planet by advancing systems that produce food that is healthy, green, fair, and affordable. Learn more: foodsystems.msu.edu