A few months back Jillian and I got to participate in a webinar put on by Mark Izeman of the Natural Resources Defense Council and Laurie David, author of The Family Dinner, Great Ways to Connect to Your Kids, One Meal at a Time. The webinar focused a lot on food and the environment and…
Tag: Farming
{local event} Meet the Meat Farmers
I can’t stress enough how important farm tours are to customer education & enlightenment, customer-to-farmer relations and community ties. To actually see & hear, in detail, up-close, how your food is grown or raised is an empowering experience. You walk away with a better understanding of the farmer & crew’s grueling-never-ending-job in rain, in snow,…
{kickstarter campaign} Building Soil w/ Pedal Power!
Food Cycle is a Kickstarter campaign that is close to my home and near to my heart. Troy Bike Rescue and Collard City Growers are two great projects happening around the corner from where I first lived. I learned to ride a bike in the driveway of my house on Second Avenue. The first self-portrait…
{Northeast Grains System} Vermont Grain Growers Conference
The 8th Annual Vermont Grain Growers Conference was held in Essex, Vermont on March 15th. I traveled north with my friend Howard, who’s been planting grains for years – rye, oats and barley, and last year, wheat – all for home use. About half the 130 people at the conference were also some version of…
{FSC PODCAST} episode 03: food entrepreneurs
This month’s podcast highlights a few of the creative, hardworking people who have made food not only their personal passion, but the basis for their professinal lives as well. We’re calling them food entrepreneurs. We spoke with two such food entrepreneurs to learn how they turned their passions for local foods into thriving businesses. A few…
{Northeast Grains System} a kickstarter campaign
The Somerset Grist Mill has a week left in its Kickstarter campaign , Flour with the flavor of home, so I have to tell you again how much I love this project. Visiting Skowhegan, home to New Balance shoes and under 9,000 people, I felt like I was stepping onto a movie set. A slightly…
{field trip} The Women Farming Conference
Just over a week ago I was able to attend the Beginning Women Farming Conference presented by Holistic Management International (HMI) at UMASS Amherst. I actually heard about the conference just days after the NOFA-NY Winter Conference. For weeks I toyed with the idea of going, but it wasn’t until I found out that the…
{FSC PODCAST} episode 2: all about csa programs
{Christine’s 2011 22-week CSA Share from Kilpatrick Family Farm} This month’s episode is all about CSAs– community supported agriculture! We tell you what CSA is and why it’s awesome for both farmers and consumers. If you’re interested in supporting local farmers and the local food system, this show is for you. Are you still on…
{Scaling Up the Northeast Grains System} Maine Grains
Editor’s Note: Our first ‘Community Voices’ contributor Amy Halloran is back with her 2nd installment of ‘Scaling Up the Northeast Grains System’, her investigation into local grain production past and present. This month she brings us her exciting trip to Skowhegan, Maine. You can read Amy’s first post here. -Christina +++++ I went to Maine…
{ROAD TO THE 2012 FARM BILL} DC Part 1
Editor’s Note: So I’m back from my quick trip to DC for 2012 Farm Policy lobbying. There is so much to report on that there will be multiple posts on the trip, including MANY interviews with farmers & food advocates that were apart of NSAC’s Farmer Fly-In. I will also have an entire post dedicated…
{KNOW YOUR FARMER} why are you a CSA member?
Editor’s Note: I’m having some internet connection problem, so I apologize for the late posting time. If you are local PLEASE come out to talk to your local farmers today at NOFA-NY’s 2nd Annual CSA Fair. Its a great place to have a casual chat with your local farmer since there isn’t any retail produce…
{FSC PODCAST} episode 01: new beginnings
UPDATE/Editor’s Note: As of 4pm today (LEAP DAY), we’ve been accepted into the iTUNES universe. Subscribe here or search for us in your iTUNES program by “From Scratch Club”. You can listen to the episode right on this very post too! Just look for the ‘listen’ link below. Thanks for listening! -Christina Happy Leap Day!…
{interview} When Roller Derby & Farming Collide
Recently I was able to interview two friends of mine, Ejay Carter and Kim Eisen, who are gearing up for the inaugural CSA season at R’Eisen Shine Farm. I am excited to share their story because although they are south of Albany, their CSA program will service people in the Albany area. Plus their CSA…
{NOFA-NY Winter Conference} farming, family style
Recently, I had the privilege of attending the NOFA-NY conference with Erika. From NOFA: “The theme of this year’s conference, The Cooperative Economy, gives us an opportunity to explore the current of cooperation that runs deep in our organization and movement and the hopes that we have for a more sustainable future“. The 3+ day…
{NOFA-NY Winter Conference} pieces of the food puzzle
*I find it interesting that in the same week as I’m writing this post, our biggest local paper, The Times Union, ran a story on a local farm, Dharma Lea farm in Sharon Springs run by the Van Amburgh family, on the cover of their Sunday edition Business Section. Granted, we do have some great farmland…
