The volunteer organized HomeGrown Festival showcases a vibrant and sustainable local food system and seeks to strengthen community food security in Southeast Michigan. Thousands attended in 2011.

Chefs committed to cooking with seasonal, local food will offer small-plate portions ($1-$7) of creative dishes sourced from area farms. For adults over age 21, tasting portions of dozens of Michigan's small producer beer, wine, mead, and hard-ciders will be available for purchase.

In addition, the Festival hosts a line-up of popular bands (with dancing), special activities for kids, a silent auction, an artisan market, tastings and chef demonstrations, and many opportunities for learning about the people and places that make up this region's diverse and productive foodshed.

Music: Three local bands will be playing at the HomeGrown Festival’s Main Stage starting at 6pm.

Heirloom/Tastings: Project Grow Community Gardens will be celebrating their 40th anniversary, and bringing more than 50 varieties of heirloom tomatoes to taste - from Snow White to Aunt Ruby's German Green to Black Zebra. In addition, the Dyer Family Organic Farm will showcase a tasting selection of up to a dozen different garlic varieties. The Slow Food Huron Valley Great Lakes Heirloom Project will showcase over 30 heirloom vegetables that have been grown in this region for more than 60 years.

Sustainability: The HomeGrown Festival puts into action principles of zero waste – all tableware will be compostable this year. We choose re-usable materials and recycle as much of the Festival infrastructure as possible. In addition, organizers have asked the Washtenaw Biking and Walking Coalition to offer their "bike valet" parking and security service to make it easy to arrive by non-motorized transport.

Art: HomeGrown Festival logos and artwork were designed by local artist Melanie Boyle, whose medium is traditional Chinese paper cuts. All logos feature traditional foods of Michigan.

Local Food Summit: The HomeGrown Local Food Summit, an annual local food conference, grew out of the need identified at the HomeGrown Festival for networking and strategic planning among food system stakeholders. Over 300 attended the 4th annual Local Food Summit in April 2012.

History: The HomeGrown Festival, first held in 2008, is a grassroots phenomenon, completely organized and staffed by volunteers. In 2011, the HomeGrown Festival drew thousands of people to the Ann Arbor Farmers’ Market.

Although Washtenaw County spends over $1 billion dollars per year on its food, less than 1% of that food is grown within the county. Keeping food dollars circulating in Washtenaw County would not only help to create more farms and stimulate the local economy, it would also support health and community food security. Community food security is defined in part as the ability of our region to be self-sufficient in producing enough to feed our population, and also as the ability to ensure that everyone has sufficient nutritious food.

FESTIVAL SUMMARY
- 12 area chefs who prioritize local food in their restaurants and businesses have been matched with local farms to prepare affordable ($1-$7) small-plate tasting portions.
- 12 Michigan beer and wine vendors will each bring multiple labels to taste, in addition to Michigan-made mead, kombucha and traditional hard cider.
- Three popular local bands will provide live Main Stage music and smaller acoustic sets throughout the Festival, from folk to Latin jazz to blues to funk and soul.
- Chef Demos scheduled at the Festival may include mozzarella making and cake decorating.
- 40 Silent Auction donors.
- 20 Food System (and related) Non-profits.
- 35 Local food and artisan vendors (with tastings!)
- 50 Heirloom Tomato varieties in the Project Grow Tomato Tasting.
- Hands-on kid and educational activities including the "Farm Stand" educational display highlighting area farms and the Great Lakes Heirloom Seed