a bi-weekly zine investigating the sustainability of sustainable agriculture
Monday, August 18, 2008
gone fishin'
Sorry folks, am out enjoying the last few summer days of August. Will be back soon.
Monday, August 4, 2008
sowing seeds: news of inspiration
LETTER FROM LANGDON: Talking Seeds and Freedom at Mark Twain State Park
"We gave them a monopoly and they are making billions," said a retired ag professor from the University of Missouri. Richard Oswald from the Daily Yonder tells us how "farmers, seed companies and rural advocates gather to push back against monopolies and regain the right to plant their own seed."
[photo by Richard Oswald]
Vermont Foodbank buys local farm!!
By Mel Huff Times Argus Staff
WARREN – Nine months after a broad private and public coalition came together as a stopgap measure to buy and preserve the Kingsbury farm, the Vermont Foodbank has stepped up to buy the highly-visible 20-acre farm along scenic Route 100...more
Sophie from Locavores has discovered locally grown New York wheat:" Regular readers of this blog (if there are any) know that I have been complaining periodically (or maybe incessantly) about my inability to find local wheat. Well, have I got news for you--I found some! Lightning Tree Farm in Millbrook, NY grows several varieties and I saw it with my own eyes and tasted it in my own mouth. It's real." ...more
weeds
trouble patches
From Grist:Biofuel bombshell
World Bank finally releases 'secret' report on biofuels and the food crisis
Posted by Tom Philpott at 2:43 PM on 31 Jul 2008
From Politico:
How about President Bush's first-term Agriculture Secretary Ann Veneman as Obama's running mate??
the baddest seed: blunders in biotechnology
This week, it's HERSHEY's who deserves the honorary title of The Baddest Seed, the biggest blunderer in biotechnology:
Food writer Rebekah Denn, food writer for the Seattle P-I, asks Hershey's if there will soon be GMO sugar in their candy. Their response is covered in her blog Devouring sEATtle:
I do have an update on whether Hershey's is publicly objecting to the idea of using sugar from genetically modified sugar beets when the sugar reaches the market. The short answer is no. The medium answer is "no," but they won't say even that to your face.
Read more...
action alert:
Watch the new “Eat the View” video on their campaign to turn part of the White House lawn back into a productive landscape and don't forget to sign their online petition!
announcements
August 3-9, 2008 is National Farmers Market Week!....USDA gives public 45 days to comment on Strategic Plan for Climate Change Research...Education, and ExtensionFirst Forum for the North American Urban and Peri-Urban Agriculture Alliance on Saturday, Oct 4th...New Farm Bill includes The Rural Microentrepreneur Assistance Program, which will receive at least $15 million over the next four years to help rural entrepreneurs and small businesses get started and stay in business....The Politics of Food conference is being held on Sept 22-24 at North Carolina State. They are offering need-based scholarships - application deadline is August 8th.
more announcements...
herd the news?: livestock and sustainability
The Chicken and the Egg:
Jenny Brown, co-founder of the Woodstock Sanctuary in Woodstock, NY tells us why she gave up her beloved egg sandwich. And why you should too.
breaking ground: musings from a novice farmer
Over Harvesting - What to do with unused produce:
Sara Franklin writes this week: "How does a farmer avoid drastically underestimating, and thus running out of food, or over-harvesting and wasting money and time by letting extra produce go to the compost pile? It’s a tricky science, one that takes a lot of practice and experimentation to get right." ...more
a philosopher's garden: moral and ethical questions on how and why we grow our food
Why are farmers an endangered species? Read what Andy Sarjahani's says in his blog, Living the Intense Dream:
"Well, the people standing behind that booth at the Farmer’s Market aren’t exactly growing younger. The average age of farmers in the United States is 60 and only 1-1.5% (depending on the source) of the United States has chosen the agrarian livelihood." Read more...
[photo from Living the Intense Dream]
bumper crop: the next generation
Local Food Dude Tim Cipriano is now the new Executive Director of Food Service for New Haven Public Schools:
Tim says: "We are essentially taking baby steps to go back to our roots and do more scratch cooking. The days of the utility knife and can opener as our main cooking instruments in our kitchens are numbered. The food service staff has done a fantastic job of supporting the wellness initiatives thus far. Working with local chefs from prominent New Haven restaurants, our staff will receive hands-on training sessions. These sessions will have a positive benefit for the staff and increase excitement in the kitchens. Bringing in theses chefs will inspire our workers to create even more impressive food for the students to enjoy...." more
First Issue of Fertile Ground USA
april 2008
in this issue: the launch of Fertile Ground USA! & SARE's 20th Anniversary!
Photo taken by Heidi Rader, West-Grand Prize Winner [Communities and Markets] of SARE's 2008 Photo Competition.)
What better way to launch a zine about sustainable farming than to devote the first issue to the folks at SARE, the Sustainable Agriculture Reseach and Education non-profit in Washington DC that has been helping advance environmentally sound, community-oriented and profitable farming systems nationwide. I had the pleasure of attending their 20th anniversary New American Farm Conference in Kansas City, Missouri recently and was greatly inspired. This issue represents a small fraction of the stories that I would like to tell. Small in number perhaps, but big in heart. I hope they inspire you too. Enjoy.
melissa waldron
editor & publisher, fertile ground usa
muckraker
challenging the status quo
Meet the movers and shakers at this 20th anniversary SARE conference. "We must create sustainable envy," says Karl Kupers of Shepherd's Grain in Reardon, Washington. These guys are doing it.
immigrant nation
people from far away lands, here to do it for themselves
"I'm the laziest farmer you will ever meet," says Pov Huns of Huns Garden in Kansas City, Kansas. And I believe him.
a philosopher's garden
moral and ethical questions on how and why we grow our food
The Kansas City Center for Urban Agriculture: no cheating allowed.
herd the news?
sustainable livestock = profit
It's a sheer thing, say Jeanne and Dan Carver of Imperial Stock in Maupin, Oregon.
pioneer
Our inner cities are the new frontier
Troostwood Youth Garden, Kansas City, Missouri: the little engine that could, did and is.
MOO-ney
hitting the jackpot in sustainable ag
You just can’t bring a good Haemonchus contortus worm down. Unless you have really good weed.