HOLYOKE, Mass. (WWLP) – Three 2023 local hero recipients were recognized for their agricultural efforts Tuesday night.

Every year the Community Involved in Sustaining Agriculture (CISA) looks for important qualifications, businesses that have taken some risk, that have been here for a while, are central to the local food system, and continue to engage more of the community. At the Gateway City Arts in Holyoke, CISA awarded Clarkdale Fruit Farm, Massachusetts Food System Collaborative, and Springfield Fresh Mobile Market this year.

“They’re going against the odds every day when they grow food, process food, harvest it, and distribute it all to our community. We live in a special place we call home, and maybe two or three other places in the nation, can have the claim that we have about this local food system,” expressed Philip Korman, Executive Director of Community Involved in Sustaining Agriculture.