More than 30 vendors from Iowa State and the Ames area showcased efforts around food, farming, sustainability and local produce at the ISU Local Food Festival on Wednesday.
The festival began in 2015 as a collaboration between the Farm, Food and Enterprise Development, ISU Dining, ISU’s Live Green Initiative, the ISU Sustainable Agriculture Student Association and other local partners, according to Farm, Food and Enterprise Development.
“One of the core motives of the local food festival was having it be a low barrier opportunity for both vendors and the Iowa State community to come together and meet each other, have a space on campus where there’s like a touch point, a starting point for how people can live more sustainable lives and engage in community,” Megan Kemp, the coordinator of this year’s festival, said. “A low barrier to us means there’s no cost for vendors to participate.”
Among those present at the festival were student vendors and booths showcasing student organizations, including C’est la Crêpe, a student-run crêpe business selling authentic, locally-sourced French cuisine.
Mia Nichols, a senior majoring in hospitality management, started C’est la Crêpe in 2023 through the CyStarters program at Iowa State. The program allowed Nichols to purchase a food truck and begin participating in markets and events. This semester marks Nichols’ first with the business in full operation.
Nichols said her mother, who immigrated to Iowa from France, taught her how to make crêpes from scratch when she was younger. Nichols said she feels it’s also important to share French culture through her business.
“I just kind of grew up eating these all the time,” Nichols said. “And I love sharing food, I’ve always wanted to open a restaurant.”
C’est la Crêpe offers crêpes made fully from scratch, including fillings and toppings. Nichols said the apples in her apple pie crêpe were grown in the backyard of her family home in Treynor, Iowa.
“I love sharing food with others, I love cooking for people,” Nichols said. “It’s one of the things I really enjoy doing at home. I would do it all the time, just help my mom with food, I just love seeing people enjoying it.”
Jenn Behnke, a senior majoring in culinary food science and president of the culinary science club, said members of Culinary Science Club always cook and share meals together during meetings, with a focus on educating students about the food provided.
Members of the Culinary Science Club offered those who attended the festival samples of apple pie salsa, homemade by the club and featuring local apples and pears.
“I’ve always been the one at home to be cooking,” Behnke said. “If I wasn’t cooking at home, nobody’s eating. So it was just a really nice thing to be able to share that with people, and everyone loves food. Being able to cook for other people is just so nice, especially when our club gets to cook together.”
Student vendors from the Horticulture Research Station at Iowa State sold apples and honey grown at the horticulture farm in Ames.
Grant Thilges, a senior majoring in horticulture, has worked at the Horticulture Research Station for two years and was one of the student representatives at the festival.
“If you’re a student, I would definitely take advantage of the fact that you can buy produce from the Iowa State Horticulture Research Station because it’s really good, it’s pretty well priced,” Thilges said. “So it’s affordable for students, I think more people should be taking advantage of this.”
