The Fair Table Program

Fair Table (formerly Veggie Rx) is a collaborative program between Women’s Environmental Institute, North Circle farmers, the Statewide Health Improvement Partnership, and M Health Fairview East. The program delivers weekly produce boxes to numerous local health clinics in Chisago and Isanti Counties.

In 2024, we continued our Fair Table partnership with M Health Fairview in a 6-month program to deliver 100 weekly boxes of farm-fresh organically grown produce to our local medical clinics. Fair Table boxes were destined for those patients the clinic had identified as needing “a food prescription” for their health and well-being. This program also gave local vegetable and fruit farmers a financial boost as the food was grown here by local small-scale North Circle farms committed to organic and sustainable farming practices. As a double vision, the Fair Table program is designed not only to improve the health of Minnesotans, but also the health and sustainability of our local food farming system.

As “Veggie Rx” the program was piloted in the winter of 2019-2020, delivering a half-bushel box of vegetables grown by North Circle farmers to Fairview clinics in North Branch, Rush City, and Pine City for distribution to patients and clients in need.

We find it remarkable and laudable that M Health Fairview clinics, especially those with full spectrum of routine and specialized care, are taking the lead on this innovative project in preventative and healing health care. The project is specially aimed at reducing food insecurity and supporting Minnesotans managing chronic diseases like hypertension and diabetes or auto-immune disorders.

This program and partnership fits WEI’s mission perfectly. We deliver to clinics and hospitals in North Branch, Center City, Chisago City, Princeton, and Elk River along with home deliveries to selected residents in Rush City. The latter was initiated when Rush City — 3,000 residents and no grocery store — lost its clinic.