As the challenging year of 2020 draws toward a close, we wanted to get into the kitchen to offer a special meal highlighting Indigenous foods. The HaŠarak waruc (Healing Meal) is the Teejop (Madison or Four Lakes) Native Food Celebration prepared by Elena Terry (Wild Bearies), Yusuf Bin-Rella (TradeRoots and UW Housing), and Dan Cornelius (Intertribal Agriculture Council and Yowela?talih Farms).
We ask that you pre-order by Thursday evening, November 19th to better guarantee your order, but we will work to fill orders received on Friday. However, quantities of both dishes are limited. We are also offering a sponsor a meal program, so please contact us if you need help with a meal for you or your family.
Native people have lived in the Teejop area for over 10,000 years, yet few contemporary local residents are aware that wild rice surrounded the shores our our lakes and waterways when the territorial was established in the 1830s, nor are they aware of the countless ways to prepare our heritage Indigenous corn that continues to be a mainstay food in many Native households. Most local and Wisconsin residents are similarly unaware that herring and whitefish are probably the two most sustainable and healthy regional fish. This meal highlights these ingredients, most of which have been sourced by American Indian food producers. Check out the producer directory, and please consider submitting an application for the no-cost “Made by American Indians” trademark.
Who are those American Indian Producers?
The Red Cliff Fish Company opened its doors for operations on Monday, November 16th, 2020 after several years of planning, fundraising, and efforts to gain the support, partnership, and trust of the Tribe’s fishermen. This Tribal operation is working to support fishermen with higher prices while better connecting superior product to Native and non-Native customers.
Lake Superior herring season is in full swing. Historically prized for its roe (eggs), herring is particularly high in omega-3 fatty acids and extremely low in biotoxins found in most fish since the herring are not a predatory fish but rather eat zooplankton.
Check back for more food producer information over the next couple days. These producers include:
The Meskwaki Nation will be hosting 2018 Great Lakes Intertribal Food Summit in partnership with the Intertribal Agriculture Council and Native American Food Sovereignty Alliance in Tama, Iowa from May 9-13. Registration is now open at the Eventbrite site by clicking here. This year’s event will again feature a concurrent regional youth summit as well and information for that will be forthcoming soon.
Additional event information, including draft agenda and registration, will be available shortly. Lodging with a special summit rate is available at the Meskwaki Casino and Hotel. Check out event summaries from past Great Lakes Intertribal Food Summits at Gun Lake Pottawatomi’s Jijak Camp in 2016 and 2017 and Red Lake in 2016. Also search #foodsummit on social media to find more pictures and stories from past events.
Have ideas, suggestions, or questions?
Past Video of Great Lakes Intertribal Food Summit Events:
Maizie White announces Jijak Luncheon
Maizie White describes the Jijak Luncheon at the 2017 Great Lakes Intertribal Food Summit at Jijak Camp near Hopkins, Michigan.
Foraging for Food, Fuel and Medicines: Hyssop
The Red Lake Ojibwe Nation and Intertribal Agriculture Council (IAC) take you on a short walk along part of the Red Lake Ojibwe Nation’s, Red Lake and the woods that surround it foraging for food, fuel and medicines as part of the Great Lakes Intertribal Fall Food Summit held at Red Lake, Minnesota during September of 2016.
Foraging for Food, Fuel and Medicines: American Basswood
Here is Kevin Finny, former Director of the Jijak Foundation for the Gun Lake Pottawatomi in Michigan speaking about the use of American Basswood, one of several species of trees identified during the fall 2016 Intertribal Food Summit held on the Red Lake Ojibwe Nation during September.
Foraging for Food, Fuel and Medicines: Milkweed
With Kevin Finney, former executive director of the Jijak Foundation and Tashia Hart of the Sioux Chef Team in the woods and fields of Red Lake Ojibwe Reservation foraging for food, fuel and medicines as part of the Great Lakes Intertribal Fall Food Summit during September of 2016.
Food Festival Chefs Special at Jijak 2016
During the 2016 Intertribal Food Summit the Saturday’s most favorite presentation were the Chefs special Food Festival — where each chef or team had a chance to prepare and serve to participants their special main dish, salad or dessert.
Making Traditional Ricing Sticks with Roger LaBine
Roger LaBine works with participants making wild rice knocking sticks at the 2017 Great Lakes Intertribal Summit.
Foraging and Harvesting from the Forest
One of the featured workshop of the Intertribal Food Summit is the Foraging for Food workshops. At the Red Lake Intertribal Food Summit it was called “Harvesting from the Forest” and was be led by Tashia Hart of Red Lake, who works with the Sioux Chef, Sean Sherman. Many other participants assistde in identifying and harvesting for the feasts, plants and medicines that are commonly used by Indigenous people for health and nutrition.
Buddy Raphael and the family Bootagan
Buddy Raphael discusses the family Bootagan that they use to grind rice, corn, barley and other products. The Bootagan, or grinding (smashing) cylinder is made of birch and Buddy worked with several participant to help them build their own. The next video below is also about making a Bootagan.
Making Anishinabe Corn and Flour Mortars
Participants at the 2017 Great Lakes Intertribal Summit are shown how to make and use a traditional corn, rice, barley mortar for pounding into meal.
Making Haudenosaunee Planting Sticks
Clayton Bascoupe assists participants at the 2017 Great Lakes Intertribal Food Summit making traditional Haudenosaunee Planting sticks.
Today’s Menu by Brian Yazzie – Jijak 2017
Touching base with just one of several Indigenous chefs in attendance at the 2017 Great Lakes Intertribal Food Summit at Gun Lake’s Camp Jijak.
Foraging at Jijak for Food and Salads – 2016
Participants of the 2016 Intertribal Food Summit at the Gun Lake Pottawatomi Tribe’s Camp Jijak forage for food and medicine for the event’s meals, while learning about plants and medicines from the woods.
The Food Sovereignty Symposium and Festival March 10-12, 2017 event at the University of Wisconsin campus and surrounding sites in Madison, Wisconsin was a wonderful event. The symposium component of the event was focusing on Indigenous and broader topics of food sovereignty that impact how communities and individuals control and manage their food systems, and the festival component was a celebration of Indigenous, local, and regional foods hosted by several very famous and mouth watering Indigenous chefs — preparing our daily meals.
LIVE BROADCASTING WAS BY IndianCountryTV.com where you can find 14 videos file of the event of March 10th and 11th, 2017 that are at the ICTV video library other Youtube files originating from the IAC Youtube site are contained further below to give you an idea of some of the activities of the Great Lakes Summit and food related events that are held in different locations and times of the year.
Past VideoS of Great Lakes Intertribal Food Summit Events:
Maizie White announces Jijak Luncheon
Maizie White describes the Jijak Luncheon at the 2017 Great Lakes Intertribal Food Summit at Jijak Camp near Hopkins, Michigan.
Foraging for Food, Fuel and Medicines: Hyssop
The Red Lake Ojibwe Nation and Intertribal Agriculture Council (IAC) take you on a short walk along part of the Red Lake Ojibwe Nation’s, Red Lake and the woods that surround it foraging for food, fuel and medicines as part of the Great Lakes Intertribal Fall Food Summit held at Red Lake, Minnesota during September of 2016.
Foraging for Food, Fuel and Medicines: American Basswood
Here is Kevin Finny, former Director of the Jijak Foundation for the Gun Lake Pottawatomi in Michigan speaking about the use of American Basswood, one of several species of trees identified during the fall 2016 Intertribal Food Summit held on the Red Lake Ojibwe Nation during September.
Foraging for Food, Fuel and Medicines: Milkweed
With Kevin Finney, former executive director of the Jijak Foundation and Tashia Hart of the Sioux Chef Team in the woods and fields of Red Lake Ojibwe Reservation foraging for food, fuel and medicines as part of the Great Lakes Intertribal Fall Food Summit during September of 2016.
Food Festival Chefs Special at Jijak 2016
During the 2016 Intertribal Food Summit the Saturday’s most favorite presentation were the Chefs special Food Festival — where each chef or team had a chance to prepare and serve to participants their special main dish, salad or dessert.
Making Traditional Ricing Sticks with Roger LaBine
Roger LaBine works with participants making wild rice knocking sticks at the 2017 Great Lakes Intertribal Summit.
Foraging and Harvesting from the Forest
One of the featured workshop of the Intertribal Food Summit is the Foraging for Food workshops. At the Red Lake Intertribal Food Summit it was called “Harvesting from the Forest” and was be led by Tashia Hart of Red Lake, who works with the Sioux Chef, Sean Sherman. Many other participants assistde in identifying and harvesting for the feasts, plants and medicines that are commonly used by Indigenous people for health and nutrition.
Buddy Raphael and the family Bootagan
Buddy Raphael discusses the family Bootagan that they use to grind rice, corn, barley and other products. The Bootagan, or grinding (smashing) cylinder is made of birch and Buddy worked with several participant to help them build their own. The next video below is also about making a Bootagan.
Making Anishinabe Corn and Flour Mortars
Participants at the 2017 Great Lakes Intertribal Summit are shown how to make and use a traditional corn, rice, barley mortar for pounding into meal.
Making Haudenosaunee Planting Sticks
Clayton Bascoupe assists participants at the 2017 Great Lakes Intertribal Food Summit making traditional Haudenosaunee Planting sticks.
Today’s Menu by Brian Yazzie – Jijak 2017
Touching base with just one of several Indigenous chefs in attendance at the 2017 Great Lakes Intertribal Food Summit at Gun Lake’s Camp Jijak.
Foraging at Jijak for Food and Salads – 2016
Participants of the 2016 Intertribal Food Summit at the Gun Lake Pottawatomi Tribe’s Camp Jijak forage for food and medicine for the event’s meals, while learning about plants and medicines from the woods.
The Intertribal Agriculture Council received a Farmers Market Promotion Program (FMPP) in Fall 2012 to start this Mobile Farmers Market project. This pilot project is seeking to develop a regional food distribution network to 1) expand Tribal food producers’ market access both locally and regionally, and 2) increase the native communities’ availability of fresh, health, and traditional foods. Many of these native communities are in food deserts where access to quality foods is severely limited, so this project will help address food needs by both encouraging expanded local production and bringing in food from other areas.
The project is called the Mobile “Farmers Market” because it is working establish farmers markets in Tribal communities, which will help develop local food economies by creating market outlets within the respective communities. However, the project is also working to develop a range of market opportunities. Additionally, it is building connections outside the region to connect Tribal producers in other parts of the country where feasible and appropriate. Eventually, the goal is to develop a stronger national Tribal food economy and distribution network with regional operations across the entire country.
Native Food Network 