Farmers in the Square

After a recent frustrating attempt to buy "local" food (the word "local," like "natural," has no regulation. At a nearby farm stand, "local" means from within a day's drive), I started digging for a real local farmer's market to shop. 10 miles down the road is "Farmers on the Square". The Sentinel, a local newspaper, wrote a great story about this rejuvenated marketplace that requires farmer-vendors to come from within a 50-mile radius.

"Stephanie Williams, the greenway and open space coordinator for Cumberland County, said county officials talk a lot about farmland preservation and maintaining working farms. Supporting local farmers through farmers markets and retail shops is a big part of that, she said. “It’s one way to support local agriculture,” she said, noting that she, too, has seen an increased interest in buying local food and other goods.
Over the last year, the Carlisle area has seen the re-emergence of a downtown seasonal farmers market in Farmers on the Square, a new country market in Mountain Lakes Market and the rebirth of the Holly Pike market, Williams noted.

"The vendors who manage the market, open three days a week, year-round, put their own money into paying the lease on the property and maintaining it. Supporting the markets pumps money into the economy, she said, adding, “It’s also nice to know where your food comes from.”

See you next Wednesday at Farmers in the Square!

Kids Grow Their Own Food

I lifted this story from my friends at Epi-log. For a cooking website, they are consistently aware of ethical and sustainable food issues, as well as education. Well done Epi-log, once again.

by Joanne Camas - on 06/14/10 at 11:59 AM
"Two great stories about youngsters growing food caught my attention this weekend. In Chicago, the Green Youth Farm at the city's Botanic Garden held a farmers' market to share the fruits (and vegetables) of their labors. The Farm hires 60 local teens each summer and teaches them skills such as organic planting and beekeeping. "By the end of the season, participants have learned how to work together as a team, gained valuable job skills, discovered a whole new way to look at the food they eat," say the organizers.

"And starting to green their thumbs even younger are two five-year-old girls in Washington, DC, who've just written a book - or at least told it to their mother - called We Grew It, Let's Eat It! reports NPR. Annie and Veda enjoy growing veggies, but confess that their favorite crop would be "ice cream plants!"
We've reported on the "Chefs Move to Schools" initiative and Alice Waters' Edible Schoolyard, and surely creating young and educated consumers is the best way to speed up movement toward healthier school lunches. Seeing these youngsters enjoying getting their hands dirty is a sign that we're moving in the right direction.
Are there youth farms or gardens where you live? Do your children like to garden and grow food?

"P.S. Check out the Design a School Garden contest at Good.com. They are looking for creative designs for a 20-foot-square space focusing on one or more of these themes: edible/kitchen, sustainable/habitat, science/learning, literacy/reading, and rooftop/vertical."

Oil in the Gulf

Now, for a rather depressing count-up clock:

Oil in the Gulf

Niche volunteering: FoodCorps

Inspired by Americorps and other service-year programs, sustainable food leaders have inaugurated the planning process of FoodCorps

FoodCorps is a project of the National Farm to School Network, a joint program of the Center for Food and Justice at Occidental College and the Community Food Security Coalition. This collaborative planning process, which has already tapped into the knowledge of over 60 leaders in nutrition, education, and local food systems, is being led a power team of Curt Ellis (filmmaker, King Corn), Cecily Upton (formerly Slow Food USA), Crissie McMullan (National Center for Appropriate Technology), Jerusha Klemperer (Slow Food USA), and Debra Eschmeyer (National Farm to School Network).

The program addresses the multi-faceted obesity epidemic "with a mechanism that, as philosopher Wendell Berry says, “solves for pattern.” The simple tool of a schoolyard garden positively addresses six of the eight contributing factors to obesity identified by the CDC. Gardens that engage children provide better food choices, encourage physical activity, reduce sedentary behavior, and lead to healthier environments at home, at school, and in the community."

FoodCorps leaders are dreaming of planting young adults in communities for a yearlong term of public service - focusing on school food systems. "FoodCorps members will build Farm to School supply chains, expand food system and nutrition education programs, and build and tend school food gardens."

I'm happy to throw my weight behind a program that focuses on "increasing the health and prosperity of vulnerable children while investing in the next generation of farmers." Young people, particularly passionate ones who see connections between poverty, health, and food systems, will love this program, particularly since this generation faces the conundrum of few jobs

And my generation sure loves to volunteer.

F. Scott Fitzgerald once wrote...

"The test of a first-rate intelligence is the ability to hold two opposed ideas in the mind at the same time, and still retain the ability to function"

Think interdisciplinary. Think hard thoughts and remain hopeful: seemingly disparate spheres of life, thought, and action can coexist. The sum of interdisciplinary ideas are often greater than their independent parts.

Mapping your fresh produce

I'm working part-time at an urban garden that is a Community Supported Agriculture (CSA) and also provides farm stand produce to the neighborhood. I love Epilog's excellent seasonal produce map

I grew convinced, after being forced to eat local from the market in France (seriously, we we're allowed to buy out-of-season... we ate a lot of onions and potatoes in the winter) that eating locally is one of the simplest ways to 'go green.' Take a few steps closer to the producer in your consumer cycle.

Conserve Pennsylvania's land... and excellent blog

Some days, I find blogs that make my home state a little sweeter. The Pennsylvania Land Trust Association compiles a rich blog in addition to its excellent policy and education supports. I love the essays by land owners about their preserved land, as well. A beautiful, interactive testament to land and people preservation.