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August 1st, 2010
"DIG IN! A FARM FRESH DINING EXPERIENCE"
Proceeds to benefit Sol Food Festival.
Location: Shepard Farms
Cost: $75 per person includes 5 course meal, live music, farm tour.To RSVP email: info@solfoodfestival.com
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Monday, August 2nd, 2010
Sol Food Potluck and Farm Tour
Interested in supporting the Sol Food Festival? Join us at Orella Ranch on the Gaviota Coast for a night of local food, conversation and learning about the Sol Food Festival. We'll also learn more about Orella Ranch's sustainable agriculture programs. http://www.orellaranch.com
Location: Orella Ranch
Cost: FREE
RSVP: roots@loatree.com
Labels: Carpinteria, farmers, farming, Festivals, Gaviota, Sustainable
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It’s summertime and that means two things: 1) There are loads of delicious farm fresh produce available at our local Santa Barbara farmers market every week; and 2) American Farmland Trust’s America’s Favorite Farmers Markets™ contest has kicked into gear and we need your votes to win!
The process is simple. To vote for our market, all you have to do is:
1.) Go to www.farmland.org/vote
2.) Type in Santa Barbara ; and,
3.) Click “Vote”
That’s it. That’s all it takes to bring Santa Barbara Certified Farmer's Market one step closer to being America’s favorite farmers market!
According to American Farmland Trust (AFT), the purpose of this contest is to re-connect local consumers to local farms, with the ultimate goal of keeping our nation’s farm and ranch land productive and healthy! Buying at the farmers market keeps money in the local community and helps farms and ranches remain economically viable. By voting, you’re helping support farms and communities across the nation. As American Farmland Trust says, “No Farms No Food™!”
Labels: contests, Farmer's Markets, farmers, farming, voting
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California agricultural producers who are certified organic or transitioning to organic production, may qualify for technical and financial assistance through a special initiative administered by USDA's Natural Resources Conservation Service.Some $2 million in funding will be available to eligible producers in California as part of the agency's Environmental Quality Incentives Program. Organic producers must submit applications by March 12 for funding consideration during fiscal year 2010.
Noting that the EQIP deadline for most applicants was Jan. 15, District Conservationist Phil Hogan said the agency was allowing a bit more time for organic and transitioning producers to develop their conservation applications but stressed they should begin the process as soon as possible.
Hogan encourages organic producers and those transitioning to organic production to contact his office at 662-2037, ext. 111, and learn more about this opportunity before the March 12 sign-up deadline. - The Daily Democrat
Labels: California, California Agriculture, farmers, farming, Organic
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Start on this Tuesday. (November 3)
3:00 - 6:30 p.m.
Set your clocks!
Labels: Farmer's Markets, farming, Santa Barbara
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The Bay Area’s well-known, much-loved Soul Food Farm was devastated by a fire...Hope you can toss a little money...a little chicken scratch their way. It's rewarding to honor and support those who farm "the old fashioned" way...where lives are honored and valued instead of completely commodified.
...It would be a terrible shame if the future of Soul Food Farm went up in smoke along with the beautiful grassy pastures in which these birds have pecked and foraged for worms for several years. I say this not only as Alexis’s and Eric’s friend and supporter of several years, but because they are a truly vital part of the still-nascent food chain for local, sustainably raised meat in the Bay Area. Even here, where people get up at dawn for the chance to pay $6 per pound for pastured chicken at the Ferry Plaza Farmers Market before Marin Sun Farms sells out of them, getting a pastured chicken to your plate is a tricky business.
...To help get Soul Food Farm access to cash, whether for rebuilding the chicken houses and ordering enough replacement birds to meet their obligations to their existing customers or frankly whatever, with her reluctant permission I’ve set up a PayPal donation account in Alexis’s name, under the new email account firefund@soulfoodfarm.com. Please consider donating whatever you can spare via the PayPal button. You can also go to Paypal.com and send a donation directly via the preceding email address. [Update: Don't be alarmed if PayPal says the account is not yet verified; I need to get Alexis to fill in some details. Also, please note that those who dislike PayPal can also mail a check made out to Soul Food Farm to 6046 Pleasants Valley Rd., Vacaville, CA 95688.]
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A contest sponsored by GOOD, The Architect’s Newspaper, The Urban & Environmental Policy Institute, and The Los Angeles Good Food Network.
the OBJECTIVE
We want designers, architects, farmers, chefs, vendors, and farmers’ market shoppers to think about how good design can improve upon the modern farmers’ market experience.
the ASSIGNMENT
Design a new venue, product, distribution method, or marketing mechanism that increases both financial returns to farmers and access to healthy foods for consumers of all scales—from the home cook to food service chefs. Innovations should help small family farmers bring good food to market and/or provide consumers access to good food.
the REQUIREMENTS
By September 1, 2009, send us an email at projects[at]goodinc[dot]com with the following:
—At least one image: sketches, drawings, three dimensional renderings, scaled technical drawings, photographs, altered photographs. Your images do not need to be high res to submit to GOOD, but you must have high res images ready for printing and/or publication should we want to publish and print yours.
—A brief narrative, up to 500 words, that explains how the design enables food production and/or delivery methods that support both the needs of small- to mid-sized family farmers and/or distribution to urban residents.
—Your name, city, and local farm or farmers’ markets.
More at GOOD.
Labels: contests, Farmer's Markets, farmers, farming
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Since its adoption 44 years ago, the California Land Conservation Act, popularly known as the Williamson Act, has grown into the state's most important farmland protection program. The Williamson Act has served California very well, but it is facing its most significant challenge due to the ongoing state budget crisis.
In addition to protecting one of our state's most valuable resources—our agricultural land—other significant benefits of the act must also be recognized and appreciated for their contribution to our quality of life: the protection of our precious watersheds; the availability of and access to a local, safe and affordable food supply; wildlife habitat; and the beautiful landscapes that are so important to all of our citizens.
...In addition to its significant impacts on the state and local economies, the Williamson Act is widely appreciated by those in the environmental, agricultural and business communities, as well as by state and local government officials, as one of the most important environmental laws ever adopted in California. It has encouraged good land use planning and prevented leapfrog developments that can be devastating to agricultural and natural resources.- California Farm Bureau Federation
Program benefiting farms and ranches gutted.
...Under the Williamson Act, landowners sign 10-year contracts with the county that allow ranchers and farmers to pay property taxes based on what they produce on their land, instead of charging them the same taxes residential landowners pay.
The state then reimburses the counties the difference.
As a result, county governments - not farmers - will initially see the effect from the funding cuts, said Assemblyman Jim Nielsen, R-Gerber.
..."That's discretionary dollars," Lees said, meaning the money can be used for just about anything.
Bundy said most ranches and farms under Williamson Act protection might be temporarily safe from drastic tax increases because of the 10-year contracts. But he was quick to add that he didn't know for sure.- Redding.com
...Farmland preserved by the Williamson Act takes more of the world’s primary greenhouse gas — carbon dioxide — out of the air than any other program now contemplated. More than the proposed tailpipe emission changes and carbon-trading programs proposed as ways to carry out the landmark 2006 AB32, the most aggressive anti-climate change bill ever passed anywhere. More than scrubbing every smokestack in California. More than all proposals to clean up ship- and truck-caused emissions from all California’s ports put together. - Ventura County Star
Now, more than ever, we need to support our farmers...our farmland...our open spaces our environment... because they are endangered more than ever.
Labels: Agriculture, budget, California Agriculture, farmers, farming, Farms, Governator
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The Canadian Food Inspection Agency has quietly approved a new genetically engineered corn with eight different insect- and weed-fighting traits, but farmer and environmental groups in Canada say the approval was rushed and environmental risks ignored.Developed through a research agreement between Monsanto and Dow AgroSciences, SmartStax corn is unique in that it “stacks” eight different genetically engineered traits that will allow corn to tolerate certain weed- and insect-killing products made by the two companies.
Each of the eight traits has been individually approved by the CFIA, but opponents are concerned there might be unintended consequences when the traits are combined.
“You’d think that a combination of eight GE traits would trigger an environmental assessment, but the CFIA has (provided) no public record of their evaluation,” said Lucy Sharratt, co-ordinator of the Canadian Biotechnology Action Network.
The CFIA has also conditionally authorized for SmartStax a reduction in the size of the buffer zone, or “refuge,” normally required around genetically engineered corn.- CanWest News Service
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Singer/songwriter Jason Mraz has produced a bounty of melodic pop-rock songs since hitting it big with his sophomore album, Mr. A-Z, in 2005. (His 2008 follow-up, We Sing. We Dance. We Steal Things., has sold 2.5 million copies.) But reggae- and folk-inflected ditties aren't the only sweet crops Mraz harvests — the Virginia native is also an enthusiastic avocado farmer. After buying five acres in an agricultural area of San Diego, he settled in and began farming the pear-shaped, green-skinned fruits. He also installed a solar-power system on his farm to let the sun fuel more than just his plants. - Mother Nature NetworkToo cool!
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A fifth-generation Santa Barbaran, Shepherd has been farming organically since 1973. The owner of Shepherd Farms started his first garden, which he intended for use as a community garden for members of All Saints by the Sea, on a plot of land near the church. Unfortunately, no one from the church community expressed interest, so Shepherd developed the space into his own personal garden. Over the next few years, he continued establish small farms all over Santa Barbara.
Shepherd is passionate about promoting the idea of protecting Santa Barbara’s precious farmland. “What are we going to do when we have no farms left and all we have is houses and malls covering the most fertile land in our country, maybe even world?” he demanded.
Shepherd has always been very conscious about health issues, and started farming on his own out of concern over the abundance of chemicals on the majority of mass-produced foods. He swears by the high nutritional value of local produce, which retains more of its content when eaten fresh.
“The food loses vitality when it sits around for a few days,” Shepherd said. “And when it comes from Mexico or Argentina, it’s just dead. It’s filler. It’s like chips.”
It's Saturday morning...and it's Farmer's Market day. I'm off to get some of Tom Shepard's mix of greeny goodness. How 'bout you?
Labels: Carpinteria, Farmer's Markets, farmers, farming, salad, Santa Barbara
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Is it fair that large dairy companies are undercutting U.S. producers by importing cheap milk protein concentrates from other countries and using them instead of U.S.-produced milk? (And is it fair that the FDA does nothing to stop the practice, even though MPCs aren’t approved as a food ingredient?) Is it fair that the dairy industry is so consolidated that a few large companies can manipulate the price of milk to their own benefit, pocketing profits while dairy farmers are left holding the bag? Is it fair that farmers have shelled out more and more for feed and hay in the last few years, but the prices they receive for milk have fallen? Is it fair that consumers are still paying for milk what they were earlier this year, while farmers’ prices dropped 30% in January alone?
H**l no!
Labels: Agriculture, farmers, farming, Milk
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American Farmland Trust is sending a message to food shoppers everywhere that food decisions are important, and as consumers we have the opportunity to support local farmers and communities-just by shopping at farmers markets.Our three-month outreach campaign will ask Americans across the country to show support ofr their local market by voting in our America's Favorite Farmers Markets contest. The top three vote-getting farmers markets - one small, one medium and one large - will win a free No Farms No Food tote bag giveaway for their market customers.
Go to www.farmland.org/vote
Labels: Farmer's Markets, farmers, farming, voting
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...But while food industry giants that have long opposed new regulations are beginning to change their tune, small-scale producers are growing increasingly vocal about their own concerns.
The problem, they say, is that small farmers, who are most accountable for their food's freshness and health, may suffer the heaviest burden under proposed new food rules.
"A lot of people worry that what's on the books right now is very much geared toward the biggest agricultural players," said Patty Lavera, assistant director of the nonprofit consumer group Food and Water Watch. "It's sort of a one-size-fits-all approach, and when its one size fits all, it's usually written by the big guy." - NYTimes
Labels: farmers, farming, food safety
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This class is all about appreciating our local seasonal food and the people who grow it. Each week we will visit a farm and walk for about 30 to 60 minutes with a farmer to learn about fruits and vegetables: how they are grown and harvested, how to cook and enjoy them as well as learn their nutritional value from a cook who is a registered dietitian. Participants will receive weekly recipes and experience tasting an assortment of fresh fruits and vegetables. First class will meet at the Center for Urban Agriculture at Fairview Gardens (598 N Fairview, Goleta). Limit 50.
Labels: Education, farmers, farming, Santa Barbara, SBCC
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Since the late 1970s, Henry's Turkey Service has been shipping mentally retarded men from Texas to Iowa to work in the West Liberty plant. Henry's has acted as the workers' employer, landlord and caregiver — paying the men a reduced wage for their work at the plant and then
deducting from their pay the cost of room, board and care. Payroll records indicate the men are left with as little as $65 per month in salary. - DesMoinesRegister
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Purchasing managers for Kraft Foods and Frito-Lay have admitted taking a total of $318,000 in bribes from a broker at a major Central California tomato processor while arranging to buy the company's products at inflated prices, federal prosecutors said Tuesday.The Ethicurean has a great (kinda scary) blog post about the consolidation of the tomato industry.
A third defendant pleaded guilty Tuesday to defrauding his former employer, a tomato products manufacturer and marketer, out of $975,000 before leaving in 2005 to join the tomato processor, SK Foods of Lemoore (Kings County). The charges, filed in U.S. District Court in Sacramento, are part of a federal price-fixing investigation involving SK Foods.
...Prosecutors have said the corruption alleged in the case has raised consumer prices for tomato sauces, soups and salsas. The charges announced Tuesday provided the first few details. - SFGate
Before World War II, there were commercial growers and canners in many states — including Delaware, Virginia, Utah, New Jersey and New York — and California produced only 20% of the nation’s tomatoes. Thanks to the development of both mechanical harvesting equipment and tomato varieties that can be picked by machine, the number rose to 50% in 1953, and reached 95% in 2007.
...Concentration in the tomato industry goes beyond the farm, into the seed business, where just three companies — Heinz, Bayer CropScience and Monsanto — control 90% of the market.
Labels: California Agriculture, farming, Frito-Lay, Illegal, Kraft Foods, Tomatoes
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Michael Ableman farms on an island in British Columbia but said Alaska is more of an island than where he lives."Your food insecurity is as bad as I've ever seen," he said to no one in particular Saturday as he toured the Arctic Organics farm. "What happens when the planes and trucks stop moving?"and what a place Fairview Gardens is!Not an insignificant question as the cost of fuel continues to go up with little hope for relief in the near term.
"That whole concept of a global food supply is based on cheap fossil fuel. It's no longer a left-wing, radical theory" to understand that shipping food all over the world is no longer a viable way to feed people, he said.
"We're augmenting a totally unsustainable diet."
And the worst of it is, Ableman said, the most vulnerable people - elderly and poor - will be the first to suffer when food supplies go wanting.
....A farmer and author of three books on his favorite subject, sustainable agriculture, Ableman came to international note several years ago when he fought to save his small farm just north of Santa Barbara, Calif., from development.
Amidst some of the most expensive real estate in the nation, Ableman's 12.5 acres are now the Center for Urban Agriculture at Fairview Gardens.
The Goleta, Calif., center describes itself as "a model for small-scale urban food production, agricultural preservation and farm-based education. - Anchorage Daily News
On our twelve and a half acres, we produce a hundred different fruits and vegetables, feed approximately five hundred families, and employ over twenty people. We also nourish the community in less tangible ways, through cooking and gardening classes, workshops, farm festivals, tours, lectures, apprenticeships, and outreach and consultation to schools and communities nationwide.Michael raises a good question. Start asking yourself and your community leaders "how sustainable is your community's food supply? Your town's or city's?"
Labels: Fairview Gardens, farming, Organic
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My blog is worth $12,984.42.
How much is your blog worth?
