Jess Mrugala: Integrating Health and Agriculture in WNC

Part of the WNC Stories of Success in Food Systems Project

Jess Mrugala has been working in the food space in Western North Carolina since her Americorps position brought her to Cherokee, North Carolina. Since then, Jess has tackled all things food in the region. She now works as a Local Food Coordinator for the Empowering Mountain Food Systems Project at NC State University where she assists in grant writing and project management in projects empowering equitable food systems in Western NC. She also works closely with the Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians, focusing on ways to uplift tribal members’ ability to make choices about their food system.

Jess and I sat down at a picnic table outside of a restaurant in Asheville. Jess had just attended a farm tour. She tracked mud from her boots and peeked out from under her sunhat as we found a seat.  

I asked Jess about how she got to Western North Carolina, and how she began working in the food system. She recalled that after receiving her master's degree in public health from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, she began exploring the intersection between food and health. This curiosity led Jess to become a Foodcorps service member in 2017. She was soon matched with Cherokee County Schools, where she incorporated a food curriculum and a school garden into the education in Cherokee County. Being involved in this project solidified Jess’s passion for food systems, and she soon fell in love with Western North Carolina. This project also marked the beginning of a close relationship between Jess and the Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians.

Jess currently works on projects that integrate the importance of local food and health. Through this project, she has met with many nonprofits in the region that address issues within the food system. For example, Jess has recently partnered with food hubs in the area, which consolidate local food from small farms to be purchased by food bank customers or donated to local nonprofits. Jess has partnered with these food hubs to provide healthy local food box programming to those in need. While many people are eligible to receive these boxes, the content of the boxes changes each week and oftentimes includes ingredients that food box recipients are not familiar with. 

To address this issue, Jess created the Harvest Health Program. She partnered with both the Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians and Vecinos - a local nonprofit providing healthcare to uninsured farm workers - to provide cooking classes that are tailored specifically to the content of each week’s healthy food box. Jess also integrates culturally relevant recipes and ingredients in the lesson, depending on the recipients of the programming. This program has educated people on not only the importance of healthy, nutrient-dense local food but also how to prepare it. 

All of this programming would not be possible without the power of grants. Jess has leveraged $10,409,377 in grant funding for Western North Carolina food systems in just under a year. Her work has allowed for innovation within the local food spaces in the region and has supported the Harvest Health program. 

I asked Jess about the challenges she faced as someone addressing food issues in Western North Carolina and using grants to fund projects addressing these issues. She told me about how high the demand is in North Carolina for grant writers. She is constantly being sought out to help with projects, due to the lack of grant-writing resources. Small nonprofits often do not have staff dedicated to grant wrting or the time to fill out complicated applications or attend training. Resources across the state that assist in building grant applications are crucial to the success of programs across the state. 

I asked Jess to reflect on one of her favorite memories from the work that she does. She recalled when she loaded the final food box into a Cherokee elder’s car. She was sad that the program was ending and told Jess about the impact that the program had on her life. The elder told Jess about how previously, she passed by bok choy in the grocery store, not knowing what it was or how to prepare it. She then told Jess that she now incorporates bok choy into her diet, and even puts it in soup for her grandkids. Jess emphasized that stories like this are the goal of the program. Jess told me “our food system is a complex web, but if you eat, you too are an expert and you too have an impact. Even if that impact is learning how to put bok choy in soup.”  

To learn more about Jess or support the programs she runs, please contact her at jmrugal@ncsu.edu.