A new trend in the local food movement is taking hold--grains. Kevin Cunningham runs Shakefork Community Farm in Humbolt County, CA where he sells specialty flours and whole grains through a Community Supported Agriculture system, or CSA. For $300 per year, subscribers receive 12 to 15 pounds of assorted grains, grain flours, hot cereal mixes and culinary seeds. The return to small farms growing grain veers wildly from our current model where staple crops are growing en masse and trucked not just nationwide, but globally. Cunningham touts the direct-to-customer method as a way to focus on quality rather than quantity. Read More about this story, and find out how to go against the grain yourself....
Friday, May 9
Local grains and flours new trend
From Rodale Institute:
Thursday, May 8
Davidson, Concord, Harrisburg Farmer's Markets - Information
Great news!! Davidson now has a farmer's market! The market is located next to Davidson Town Hall between Main and Jackson Streets and will run every Saturday 8am – Noon through October.
Upcoming events scheduled for the next few weeks at the Davidson Farmer’s Market include:
May 10 @ 10am: Chef Demonstration by Greg Guthrie of Green Cuisine of Charlotte & music by the Davidson Express
May 17: Music by Kate Minogue and friends
May 24: Music by the Lake Norman Jam
May 31 @ 8am: Qi Gong class taught by Cristin Gregory of Wellbeing Natural Health
Beginning in June, every last Saturday of the month, the Lake Norman Jam will be playing and welcomes musicians of all skills. People are encouraged to bring an acoustic instrument and pick up a song sheet at the market.
The Davidson Farmer’s Market, an initiative of Downtown Davidson Inc., is made possible by the support of the following sponsors: Market Properties, Inc., Davidson Lands Conservancy, DavidsonNews.net, Mayes Wilson & Associates, Baybridge Management, Knox Realty, Wellbeing Natural Health, Davidson Therapeutic Massage, Little Fish Marketing, Lake Norman Embroidery, Zimmerman Chiropractic, Lake Norman YMCA, Ginseng Junction Health Care, Réa Wright Counseling and Consulting, Summit Coffee, Pilates Studio at the Lake, Main Street Books, Davidson Family Medicine and Vital Foods, LLC.
Updated information about the market is available at www.davidsonfarmersmarket.org
And for those who live closer to Concord, the Piedmont Farmers' Market is also open! It will run on Saturdays May 3 through October 25 from 8:00 a.m. - noon at 518 Winecoff School Road and also on Tuesdays June 3 - Aug. 25 from 8:00 a.m.-12:00 p.m. at the same location.
For fresh produce closer to Harrisburg, you are in luck on Mondays May 19 - Sept. 29 from 4:00 - 7:00 p.m. on Robinson Church Road, Harrisburg (next to the restored Post Office).
Upcoming events scheduled for the next few weeks at the Davidson Farmer’s Market include:
May 10 @ 10am: Chef Demonstration by Greg Guthrie of Green Cuisine of Charlotte & music by the Davidson Express
May 17: Music by Kate Minogue and friends
May 24: Music by the Lake Norman Jam
May 31 @ 8am: Qi Gong class taught by Cristin Gregory of Wellbeing Natural Health
Beginning in June, every last Saturday of the month, the Lake Norman Jam will be playing and welcomes musicians of all skills. People are encouraged to bring an acoustic instrument and pick up a song sheet at the market.
The Davidson Farmer’s Market, an initiative of Downtown Davidson Inc., is made possible by the support of the following sponsors: Market Properties, Inc., Davidson Lands Conservancy, DavidsonNews.net, Mayes Wilson & Associates, Baybridge Management, Knox Realty, Wellbeing Natural Health, Davidson Therapeutic Massage, Little Fish Marketing, Lake Norman Embroidery, Zimmerman Chiropractic, Lake Norman YMCA, Ginseng Junction Health Care, Réa Wright Counseling and Consulting, Summit Coffee, Pilates Studio at the Lake, Main Street Books, Davidson Family Medicine and Vital Foods, LLC.
Updated information about the market is available at www.davidsonfarmersmarket.org
And for those who live closer to Concord, the Piedmont Farmers' Market is also open! It will run on Saturdays May 3 through October 25 from 8:00 a.m. - noon at 518 Winecoff School Road and also on Tuesdays June 3 - Aug. 25 from 8:00 a.m.-12:00 p.m. at the same location.
For fresh produce closer to Harrisburg, you are in luck on Mondays May 19 - Sept. 29 from 4:00 - 7:00 p.m. on Robinson Church Road, Harrisburg (next to the restored Post Office).
Turning your front yard into an edible garden
We have 32 million acres of lawns about to blossom all over America, but most folks still don’t know what to do with the front. What’s it for, anyway, since it provides no privacy, and most folks do their gardening, socializing and recreating in the patch of green behind the house?
Joan Baron, a sculptor, ceramicist, green building guru, and environmental artist has turned her front yard into an edible garden, neighborhood center, and feast for the eyes and the mouth.
Take her own front yard, a little bit of paradise in an unsuspecting spot: before a tract house in suburban Scottsdale, Arizona. There she’s planted a garden that slips from her property line onto her neighbors’. “Gardens are about sharing,” she explained, so in exchange for letting her grow spinach and fresh cilantro, among other goodies, on their land, she offers fresh food. She catches rainwater in a steel cistern that she hasn’t hidden behind the house, but displayed prominently in front of it. She crafted a “living wall” of stalks of ocotillo cactus that undulates through the yard, surrounded by brilliant yellow Arizona poppies. She chopped up the concrete driveway—“It traps the heat,” she said—and used the pieces to craft a walkway.
The project is a makeshift traffic-calming element, too, with passers-by slowing down to take it in. And that’s what she wants—nosy neighbors. The more who learn from her projects what’s possible, the more sustainable metro Phoenix will become. Already her neighbors have pulled the grass—not sustainable in the desert—from their yard and have slowly moved in Baron’s direction. “It’s one house, one street, one neighborhood, at a time,” she says. “And then the world."
Joan Baron, a sculptor, ceramicist, green building guru, and environmental artist has turned her front yard into an edible garden, neighborhood center, and feast for the eyes and the mouth.
Take her own front yard, a little bit of paradise in an unsuspecting spot: before a tract house in suburban Scottsdale, Arizona. There she’s planted a garden that slips from her property line onto her neighbors’. “Gardens are about sharing,” she explained, so in exchange for letting her grow spinach and fresh cilantro, among other goodies, on their land, she offers fresh food. She catches rainwater in a steel cistern that she hasn’t hidden behind the house, but displayed prominently in front of it. She crafted a “living wall” of stalks of ocotillo cactus that undulates through the yard, surrounded by brilliant yellow Arizona poppies. She chopped up the concrete driveway—“It traps the heat,” she said—and used the pieces to craft a walkway.
The project is a makeshift traffic-calming element, too, with passers-by slowing down to take it in. And that’s what she wants—nosy neighbors. The more who learn from her projects what’s possible, the more sustainable metro Phoenix will become. Already her neighbors have pulled the grass—not sustainable in the desert—from their yard and have slowly moved in Baron’s direction. “It’s one house, one street, one neighborhood, at a time,” she says. “And then the world."
May 20 social/educational event for the club
On Tuesday, May 20, at 7:00 p.m., three of our farmers have agreed to come and share with our food club who they are, what they do, and why they do it. We'll have two mushroom farmers and Art from Apple Orchard Farm who supplies our beef, some pork, and some eggs, and soon honey! This will be an informal time for us to visit with them and learn more about some of our local farmers. In addition, the social committee folks thought it would be fun for us to have a potluck sharing that night with all food club members bringing one of their favorite dishes made with products from our local farmers. If you can, bring the recipe too so we can share them with each other.
The event will take place in the Church Parlor of the Davidson College Presbyterian Church which is at the corner of Concord and Main Sts. in downtown Davidson. The Church Parlor is on the main level of the church in the southwest corner of the building. You will access the building by the handicap entrance which faces Concord Road. That door will be the only door unlocked. Once you enter the building, turn left down the hall and keep walking until you see signs for the Parlor.
We want to make the trip to Davidson worthwhile for our farmers so, like our last event, we will ask you to RSVP. Please do so to Kathy Beach-Verhey, kbeach-verhey@dcpc.org, by Sunday night, May 18.
Helping Farmers
No one works harder than our farmers and from time to time they could use a hand.
Would you like to volunteer to help work on a farm? No experience necessary.
Just email thom@slowfoodcharlotte.org and we will attempt help you give a gift back to the folks that help to feed you. You will appreciate the gift of good food even more. Thanks.
Would you like to volunteer to help work on a farm? No experience necessary.
Just email thom@slowfoodcharlotte.org and we will attempt help you give a gift back to the folks that help to feed you. You will appreciate the gift of good food even more. Thanks.
The Pocket Shoppers' Guide To Avoiding GE Foods Has Arrived!
From Center for Food Safety:
We are pleased to announce the arrival of our updated, portable pocket shoppers' guide to help you find and avoid GE ingredients wherever you shop. Our guide gives you valuable information on common GE ingredients, brands to look for, and look out for, and common sense tips to keep you in the know.
The Cool Foods Campaign - Take A Bite Out Of The Cool Foods Campaign - Take A Bite Out Of Global Warming!Global Warming!
From Center for Food Safety:
Just in time for Earth Day, CFS has launched the new Cool Foods Campaign! The Cool Foods Campaign aims to educate the public about the impact of food choices and agricultural practices on global warming, and empower people with resources needed to change that impact and reduce their “Foodprint.” Among other recommendations, the Campaign promotes organic, local and whole foods which require far less fossil fuels for their production and transportation.
Keep Antibiotics Working!
Did you know that an estimated 70 percent of all antibiotics used in the United States are regularly added to the feed of livestock and poultry that are not sick—a practice with serious consequences for our health? Bacteria that are constantly exposed to antibiotics develop antibiotic resistance. This means that when humans get sick from resistant bacteria, the antibiotics prescribed by doctors don’t work.
Right now, there are bills in both the House and Senate to address this risky practice - but your representatives need to hear from you in order to get them passed!
Here's an easy way to let your representatives know what you think.
Right now, there are bills in both the House and Senate to address this risky practice - but your representatives need to hear from you in order to get them passed!
Here's an easy way to let your representatives know what you think.
An Unlikely Way to Save a Species: Serve It for Dinner
From Kim Severson at the NY Times:
Mr. Nabhan’s list, 1,080 items and growing, forms the basis of his new book, an engaging journey through the nooks and crannies of American culinary history titled “Renewing America’s Food Traditions: Saving and Savoring the Continent’s Most Endangered Foods” (Chelsea Green Publishing, $35). Read more...
Question Your Candidates
From the Center for Rural Affairs:
The next six months may be your best chance to get your future senator or representative to make a commitment to vote right. It's an election year. Aspiring elected official are never more responsive to constituents than in their first campaign. It works. Read questions to ask.
Let's Get the Next President to Grow His/Her Own Food
Roger Doiron's idea:
You can help make this happen by giving the idea a 5 star rating.
Announce plans for a food garden on the White House lawn, making one of the White House's eight gardeners responsible for it, with part of produce going to the White House kitchen and the rest to a local food pantry. The White House is "America's House" and should set an example. The new President would not be breaking with tradition, but returning to it (the White House has had vegetable gardens before) and showing how we can meet global challenges such as climate change and food security.
You can help make this happen by giving the idea a 5 star rating.
Pew Commission Confirms Industrial Farm Animal Production Bad News
From Rodale Institute:
Pew Commission confirms industrial farm animal production bad news
The Pew Commission on Industrial Farm Animal Production (PCIFAP) released their report two and a half years in the making that finds Industrial Farm Animal Production (IFAP) poses an "unacceptable risk" to the environment and to human health. The report reviews the impact of IFAPs in four main areas--public health, environment, animal welfare and rural America--finding serious problems and grave concerns in each. Some practical recommendations include bans on non-theraputic use of antibiotics, disease-monitoring programs for traceability, treating IFAPs as industrial operations and improving the broken waste-management systems. Read the overview or the full report.
Hey Chicken Clubbers!
For those of you who signed up for Grateful Growers' chicken club, here's what you need to know.
You get your May chickens at the LFC pickups on May 17 and May 31. If you are not able to pickup on these dates, you can let Christy know and she will hold your chicken for you.
Pickups after May will happen at the location you indicated on your chicken club membership form. If you don't recall what that was, you can contact Natalie or Cassie at info@ggfarm.com.
For those of you who are interested in learning how to cut up a whole chicken, check out this tutorial from Gourmet Sleuth: http://www.gourmetsleuth.com/cutupchicken.htm. If there's interest, we may also have a tutorial on this during a social event this summer.
May 16/17 Farm Run Order Form
Orders due by Sunday, May 11 at 3:00 PM.
Milk will arrive at the Bradford Store Wednesday, May 14. You can pick it up during store hours anytime between Wednesday and Saturday.
Pick up all other items at the Bradford Store on Saturday, May 17 at 9:30 AM.
You may also pick up all non-milk items in Davidson on Friday, May 16 after 6:00 PM. However, you must leave a message for Christy at 704-892-9501 by 6:00 PM Friday, May 16 to let her know you plan to do this so she holds your orders out from the Bradford Store pick-ups.
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