Senator Stabenow Announces Dan Carmody, CEO of Eastern Market, as her State of the Union Guest

WASHINGTON D.C. — U.S. Senator Debbie Stabenow (D-MI) today announced that her guest for the 2024 State of the Union address will be Dan Carmody, CEO of Eastern Market Partnership. Carmody leads the nonprofit that has transformed Detroit’s Eastern Market, one of the nation’s oldest continuing farmers market, into a leading regional food hub and job creator while increasing access to affordable healthy food throughout Michigan and North America.

“It has been an honor and pleasure to partner with Dan throughout my career to reduce hunger in Michigan, create jobs, and revitalize the City of Detroit. He has been a tremendous champion for our small businesses, farmers, and families. It’s only fitting for him to be my final State of the Union guest,” said Senator Stabenow.

“I am honored to be Senator Stabenow’s guest for the 2024 State of the Union. Throughout the years, she has been a wonderful partner in advancing Eastern Market’s efforts and has brought millions of dollars of investments to the market. I know Michigan will miss her when she leaves the Senate,” said Dan Carmody, CEO of Eastern Market.

Senator Stabenow has spent her career fighting to end hunger and increase access to healthy food across Michigan. Over her career, she’s brought millions of dollars in funding to Eastern Market so they can continue their efforts to create jobs, grow the food economy, and reduce hunger in Detroit. These investments have helped Eastern Market improve communities by creating infrastructure projects, generating business development, and giving food processors a location to run their businesses. 

Senator Stabenow has also led the effort to end hunger nationwide, establishing a permanent nationwide Summer EBT program and flexible meal delivery options so families with kids can have access to healthy food over the summer when school is out. Senator Stabenow also led the charge to update how SNAP. benefits are calculated, to finally take into account the time constraints, nutritional needs, and budgets of working families in America today. This update resulted in a modest but meaningful increase to benefits that has been projected to lift one million children out of poverty. Senator Stabenow created the historic Gus Schumacher Nutrition Incentive Program (GusNIP) in the Farm Bill, which is a made-in-Michigan idea that helps low-income people purchase more fruits and vegetables. Senator Stabenow established the program nationwide in the 2014 Farm Bill and then later expanded it and made it a permanent program in the 2018 Farm Bill.

Dan Carmody has led small businesses and nonprofits during a career focused on revitalizing Midwest cities. For over 16 years, Carmody has served as CEO of Eastern Market Partnership, the nonprofit that manages and promotes one of Detroit’s most respected institutions. Under his outstanding leadership, Eastern Market Partnership works with many partners to make Detroit healthier, wealthier, and happier by increasing the access to healthy food, and by creating and expanding business ventures and employment throughout the Southeast Michigan food sector. Currently Eastern Market is building a new wholesale distribution center for Michigan farmers and is in early stages of building an advanced crop processing center to improve the financial sustainability of Michigan growers and building a new Shed 4 that will feature a major community nutrition education center that will help Metro Detroit residents increase their knowledge about healthy meal preparation. Carmody believes in Eastern Market Partnership’s role of bringing communities together – to celebrate good food and each other.

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