Author Archives: CISA

Valley Bounty: Rise Above Bakery

“It was always my dream to own a bakery,” Brian Meunier says. A bakery with a café that evoked warmth and familiarity. Somewhere to enjoy handmade bread and pastries – somehow both simple and indulgent – made with ingredients from people you might know. That dream coalesced as Rise Above Bakery, which opened its doors at 282 Main Street in Greenfield in the spring of 2019.

Rise Above is best known for their scratch-made sourdough loaves and flakey croissants and breakfast pastries. Their repertoire also includes other breads like baguettes, ciabatta, bagels, and Khorasan loaves, as well as pretzels, tarts, and other desserts as holidays and seasonal local ingredients tempt their creativity. Everything is made in-house, most of it with flour milled locally by Ground Up Grain in Holyoke.

Seeking: TerraCorp Service Member – CISA

Join CISA as our 2022-23 TerraCorps Member! Community Involved in Sustaining Agriculture (CISA) is a non-profit organization that strengthens farms and engages the community to build the local food economy. Our programs include the Be a Local Hero, Buy Locally Grown® business membership and marketing campaign, educational activities for the public, technical assistance trainings and […]

2022 Local Hero Awardee: Healthy Hampshire

Each year (minus a pandemic year or two), CISA presents Local Hero Awards to farms, businesses, or individuals who exemplify our mission of strengthening farms and engaging the community to build the local food economy. We applaud their hard work, social responsibility, and many contributions to sustaining local agriculture. Healthy Hampshire is an initiative of […]

Local Hero Profile: Wheelhouse Farm

Local Hero Profile by Ellery Pool, TerraCorps Service Member Wheelhouse Farm connects their guests with seasonal food from the Valley through custom menus that will please foodies and casual diners alike. Starting as a food truck and farm in 2014, Wheelhouse has transformed into a catering and events company with a permanent kitchen in Amherst […]

Valley Bounty: Great Falls Aquaculture

Here’s a surprise: one of the biggest animal farms in western Massachusetts is in Turners Falls. Perhaps also a surprise – they raise fish.

“Our facility has been a fish farm since the 90’s,” says Spencer Gowan, general manager at Great Falls Aquaculture. “We’re an indoor aquaculture farm raising a species of southeast Asian sea bass called Barramundi.”

Hiring: Packer/Driver – Sunderland Farm Collaborative

Hiring Packer/Driver – Sunderland Farm Collaborative We are hiring a packer/driver for Sunderland Farm Collaborative, a local food hub offering home delivery of organic produce and local products from Kitchen Garden Farm and 50+ other local farms in the Valley and northeast (www.sunderlandfarmco.com). Part time positions available: Tues/Fri approximately 10am-4pm on the pack line, and […]