Local Food News — World

Binghamton University pledges to improve campus nutrition with Partnership for a Healthier America

According to BU’s B-Healthy Initiative, the University has agreed to a total of 23 changes by joining the initiative. Changes include implementing a local food procurement program and offering at least five fruits and five vegetable choices in dining halls. In addition, every platform serving meat must also offer a plant-based alternative. Binghamton University Pipe Dream post.

AgCenter receives USDA grant for farm-to-school conference

A conference to address a statewide farm-to-school initiative has recently been funded by the U.S. Department of Agriculture Farm to School Grant Program. Through a $25,000 grant, the LSU AgCenter will host a statewide farm-to-school conference to bring together school administrators, teachers and parents, food service managers, farmers, food distributors and others involved with Louisiana agriculture, school gardens and healthy school meals, said Annrose Guarino, the AgCenter state specialist for urban health. The format will center on education, gardening and procurement and provide technical assistance in areas such as local food procurement, food and garden safety, culinary education and incorporating curricula into existing core classes. KTAL-TV story.

Buying local produce important to Irish consumers – Bord Bia

A preference for local food is a growing trend amongst consumers in the UK and Ireland, according to Bord Bia’s Periscope report. Outlining the results of the report Michal Slawski of Bord Bia says in Ireland, seven out of 10 adults consider buying local produce to be important when shopping for food – as a comparison; just over half of adults in the UK feel the same. When asked to define what local meant, most people in the UK and Ireland believe that local food refers to food that is produced in close proximity to where they live, he said. Agriland story.

Tucson’s Local Food Rave

When Heirloom’s owner Manish Shah found out that St. Philip’s was planning an art fair for the weekend of April 5, he looked at the market’s temporary displacement as an opportunity. “The idea was to throw a big food rave,” says Shah. “It was something that I had been contemplating for a long time.” So, Heirloom and company is packing everything up for a one day celebration at Rillito Downs called the Viva La Local Food Festival. The festival, says Shah, will feature the biggest farmers’ market in Southern Arizona, with more than eighty independent vendors as well as thirty-plus local restaurants serving up some local delicacies alongside a number of Southern Arizona wineries and breweries. But if it all sounds too lavish for your blood, not to worry. “We’re trying to really keep (Viva) accessible to everybody,” says Shah. Zocalo Magazine story.

Farmhouse Direct

Farmhouse Direct is a virtual marketplace developed to bring farmers and producers together with their buyers, allowing customers to buy direct from the person who grows or makes the product. To keep it real we don’t act as a warehouse or middleman we just connect you direct to your favourite producers who fulfill your order direct from their farm. Although we offer a single checkout, so that you don’t have to make multiple payments, we do not aggregate delivery so if you order from multiple Producers you will see shipping costs against each order. Most Producers use a range of flat rate shipping boxes so to optimise your basket with each Producer we suggest you refer to the “Order Considerations” to see whether you can add additional products in the Producers range for the same shipping cost. To maintain integrity of the direct relationship between the farmer/producer we offer direct fulfilment from the producer to the buyer. This ensures that we provide you with the freshest made products direct from the farm. Website.

Vinland restaurant taking local food movement to extremes

Levi said he decided to try to his food experiment in Portland because of the abundance of organic farms, fishermen and foragers. But it’s also a place where the ground is frozen solid for six months. “I really enjoy the challenge,” said Levi carefully slicing a roast beef. Local ingredients only means diners will not find any dishes prepared with typical staples like olive oil, black pepper, cane sugar. “It forces us to think how can we create dishes which are exciting? Without using the more obvious ingredients,” said Levi. No lemon? No problem. They use condensed yogurt whey. WCSH-TV story.

London restaurateur calls for local food forum

Angelus Restaurant and Bar became the first restaurant to sign the NFU’s Back British Farming charter in October last year, but owner Thierry Tomasin has been disappointed with the results. Mr Tomasin, who said he was ‘passionate about serving excellent French cuisine using locally-produced ingredients’, hoped the charter, which is prominently displayed on the restaurant’s website, would help open up new avenues to source fresh British ingredients. But the reality is he has continued to struggle to source consistent supplies and has spoken out to urge ‘more momentum from the NFU’ in driving local farmers to work more closely with restaurants around the UK. Farmers Guardian story.

Top 10 Lessons from the Farm to School Summit

Last month’s Farm to School Summit held in Aurora, Nebraska, was a smash hit. We learned a host of things to help us move Farm to School forward. I hope they inspire you to act for your schools and communities. Centre for Rural Affairs post.

USDA: Local food sales important to agriculture

“There really is a tremendous buzz all over the country on local foods. In fact, local food sales have continued to increase. Now they’re over $7 billion a year,” said Avalos. He says the No. 1 national trend with supermarkets and restaurants is local food. “This is important to a lot of components of agriculture. In reality, it’s an economic driver for our communities. Local foods creates jobs. It keeps many farmers, mostly small farmers, on the farm. It keeps farmland in farm production,” Avalos said. He added it in no way negatively impacts mainstream ag resources. RFD-TV story.

Healthy Corner Stores Network

The Healthy Corner Stores Network supports efforts to increase the availability and sales of healthy, affordable foods through small-scale stores in underserved communities. Because together, we can create better meal alternatives in our communities than just chips and soda. Anyone interested in food access can be a member. The network includes more than 600 members from all over North American. Website.

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Farmer Derek Klingenberg Plays “Jingle Bells” to the Cows

Derek Klingenberg has a Christmas present just for his cows. In this fun video Klingenberg plays “Jingle Bells” to the cows who come running towards him. Once they get close though, Derek has a surprise waiting just for them. Video.

Alternative Trade – Legacies for the Future

Gavin Fridell does us all a service in reminding us that—as the slogan has it—another world is possible. Indeed, existed. He begins by taking on the notion—or fantasy as he calls it— of ‘free trade’ as normal or an uncontested good or even a reality, rather than something usually of benefit only to the top dog. Fridell reviews three different alternative trade regimes—covering bananas, coffee and wheat—the latter through something familiar to most Canadian readers, the Canadian Wheat Board. He argues that three things define alternative trade—the use of state power to manage markets for broader social, economic and developmental ends; social regulation; and, a pro-poor agenda. Book review.

Local Food News — World

Locavore movement takes to deer hunting across USA

Decades-long national decline in the number of hunters has prompted states to tap into a new group of hunters — people who demand locally produced food, but don’t know the first thing about bagging a deer. Books and blogs on the topic are numerous, and state wildlife departments are offering introductory deer hunting classes in urban areas to recruit newbies who want to kill their own local, sustainable and wild meat in what some say is an ecologically friendly way. The Trentonian story.

 

200 Small Food Producers To Secure Listings With SuperValu Through Food Academy

The Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine Simon Coveney TD today welcomed the announcement that 200 small food producers will secure retail listings with SuperValu worth €10 million, through the Food Academy programme in 2015. In addition, 30 high performing small food companies will graduate to Food Academy Advance, the next stage of the programme. The Food Academy programme is a joint initiative between Bord Bia, the Local Enterprise Office Network and SuperValu to support local food companies in Ireland. The initiative will provide these companies with expertise in branding, market research, business development and distribution to allow scaling to secure national listings with the supermarket chain. Checkout Magazine story.

 

SPC Ardmona local food push gains momentum

Representatives from the Victorian food industry have increased their efforts to lobby the government to buy locally grown foods for government-run institutions. In the lead-up to the Victorian election, the Pro-Local Supply Working Group developed the Full Value for Victorian Food Procurement Policy, a proposal that urges members of parliament to put locally sourced food on the agenda to support the Victorian food industry. The Australian public is also backing the policy move, showing their support for locally sourced foods via the social media campaign #demandlocalsupply. Sparked by an initial post on Facebook by SPC Ardmona, a member of the Pro-Local Supply Working Group, thousands have now pledged their support for the campaign, sharing the post and signing the online petition at www.demandlocalsupply.com.au.

mmg.com.au story.

 

Heritage Radio Network grows in Bushwick

On a recent rainy afternoon in Bushwick, Erin Fairbanks was interviewing Will Harris of the Georgia farm White Oak Pastures for her radio show “The Farm Report.” Fairbanks is the executive director of Heritage Radio Network, a nonprofit, Web-based station that covers food and everything the subject touches. As she and Harris discussed the synergies of multispecies production systems, family farms and vertical integration, hungry people devoured Roberta’s pizza topped with speck, broccoli rabe and Calabrian chilies just beyond the glass that separates the restaurant from the station. AM New York story.

 

Sydney to feature Eyre Peninsula products

EYRE Peninsula products will be showcased at a group of high end Sydney restaurants early next year in an effort to keep building the Eyre Peninsula brand. The campaign is part of the Regional Development Australia Whyalla and Eyre Peninsula’s Food and Beverage Ambassador program, which recently received funding from Primary Industries and Regions SA to allow it to be rolled out over the next two years. The ambassador program includes in-market and in-region marketing and promotional activity for the Eyre Peninsula Brand program and participating businesses. Port Lincoln Times story.

 

Dublin Foodie Caroline Byrne is appointed new Secretary General of Euro-Toques Ireland

Euro-toques – the European Community of Chefs – was established in Brussels in 1986 by the top chefs in the region. Their purpose was to form a network of chefs committed to quality local food sourcing and to be a voice for the industry to protect Europe’s traditional foods and culinary heritage. Irish Food Guide Blog post.

 

Unilever commits to sourcing sustainable palm oil

From the first quarter of 2015, Unilever’s local food factories will begin using traceable and certified (RSPO segregated) palm oil, with the transition expected to be complete by the end of 2015. The announcement comes three years after Unilever ANZ confirmed all of its local palm oil use was covered through Green Palm certificates. Clive Stiff, chairman and CEO of Unilever ANZ, said “The move to RSPO segregated palm oil for our locally produced foods products is an important step on our journey towards achieving full traceability and sustainability across our supply chain. FOOD Magazine – Australia story.

 

From pumpkins to policies: engaging in sustainable food behaviour

Pumpkin Rescue was the first public campaign run by my charity Hubbub, using Halloween as a way of raising awareness and provoking a debate around food waste. The focal point for the campaign was a Pumpkin Festival in Oxford, England, where we worked with a coalition of local food groups lead by Good Food Oxford and Oxford City Council on activities to bring the campaign to life. The Guardian story.

 

Burleigh Court first to achieve Gold with Green Tourism’s new assessment criteria

imago’s four star hotel Burleigh Court has been recognised for its comprehensive monitoring of energy, water and wastage across all areas of the business to ensure annual  targets are achieved. The hotel also strives to support the community and encourage sustainability by sourcing local produce and supporting local producers and suppliers. It is the third time in a row Burleigh Court has achieved the Gold standard. The latest assessment was marked against the new Green Tourism Version 5 Criteria making Burleigh Court the first hotel in England to achieve the accolade. Travel Daily News International story.

 

Australia’s Food Processing Sector Committee Report

I rise tonight to speak on the report from the Senate Select Committee on Australia’s Food Processing Sector, for which the government’s response was handed down this week. It is 12 months since we have came into government, and of the 35 recommendations of this report the government has noted all 35 of them. Importantly, we are a government of action and we have actually started dealing with many of these recommendations. We are not only dealing with them but putting them into action. I want to speak about that a little bit tonight. Open Australia Senate debates, Bridget McKenzie, November 27, 2014.

 

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The Third Plate: Field Notes on the Future of Food

It is hard to avoid the question of the future of food these days. Filmmakers, scholars, activists and book authors are fretting over what is to be done. Joining the fray is Dan Barber, ‘chef activist’ at Blue Hill Restaurant at the Stone Barns Center for Food and Agriculture in Pocantico Hills, New York, and at Blue Hill New York City. His book, The Third Plate offers a culinary vision of the future where “the entirety of the landscape, and how it fits together” is served on a dinner plate (8). Barber has famously been a practitioner of the farm to table cooking, a cooking that is reliant on a host of farmers and chefs who work together to produce good food while also trying to make a living in two enterprises—farming and restaurants—that are famously money-losers. Book review.

Local Food News — World

The Nation’s Largest Food Hub is Coming to Louisville, Kentucky

A 24-acre site formerly occupied by the National Tobacco Company will soon become home to a local food hub in Louisville, Kentucky. While Louisville has emerged as a new foodie destination in the past few years, this project is aimed more at supporting small farmers—and building a local food economy—than serving artisan sandwiches. But there will likely be plenty of those too. Civil Eats post.

Prescribing Vegetables, Not Pills

Alaijah Borden was 10 years old and significantly overweight when Dr. Sundari Periasamy, a pediatrician at Harlem Hospital Center in New York, enrolled the middle-schooler in an innovative program to increase her consumption of fruits and vegetables — and, hopefully, to reduce her weight. After two years in the program, Alaijah is an unqualified success story: She lost five pounds the first year by snacking on fruits and vegetables, then eight pounds more the second year, when she cut down on greasy foods. The New York Times story.

A Salad Chain’s Surprise Ingredient: Tech Money

Why is a venture capital firm led by online pioneers backing a farm-to-table salad chain? That is the question some tech industry watchers asked themselves two weeks ago, after Sweetgreen, a fast-casual salad restaurant with outlets on the East Coast, announced that it had raised $18.5 million in financing. “It has surprised people because it was not a typical technology or venture investment,” Mr. Case told me recently. But he says he believes Sweetgreen is tapping into a large, underserved market: wellness-minded consumers who want to eat healthier food in casual settings with quick service. The New York Times story.

New Countryside Stewardship Scheme (UK)

The new CSS will encompass elements from Environmental Stewardship, the English Woodland Grant Scheme (EWGS) and capital grants from Catchment Sensitive Farming (CSF).  The main priority remains biodiversity whilst water quality moves up the agenda.  There will be a Higher Tier focusing on priority sites, and a Middle Tier focusing on wider areas.  This latter element is open to all, but competitive – so only the best schemes will be accepted.  There will also be a small scale capital grants scheme focusing on field boundaries. RuSource (An Arthur Rank Centre project) Briefing  2091.

Truss urges food producers to seek special status

Food producers in the North are missing out on the economic pay-off of Protected Name status for their products, Environment Secretary Elizabeth Truss said today. Speaking at the Northern Farming Conference in Hexham, the Secretary of State said she wanted her department to receive more applications to legally protect the region’s unique homegrown food and drink. More than 60 foods are protected in the UK, including Yorkshire’s Forced Rhubarb and Wensleydale cheese but there are very few other examples in the North of the country. Yorkshire Post story.

Land, Co-ops, Compost: A Local Food Economy Emerges in Boston’s Poorest Neighborhoods

Today, City Growers is part of an emerging network of urban food enterprises in Roxbury and neighboring Dorchester. From a community land trust that preserves land for growing, to kitchens and retailers who buy and sell locally grown food, to a new waste management co-op that will return compost to the land, a crop of new businesses and nonprofits are building an integrated food economy. It’s about local people keeping the wealth of their land and labor in the community. Truth-Out post.

Urban Food Awards

The Urban Food Awards are here to celebrate small, good food enterprises. As such, the judges will be particularly interested in those that do great stuff in their local communities and work hard for the benefit of people and planet more generally. As well as turning out tasty tucker and having a sound business model, enterprises were encouraged to highlight on their ‘why vote for us’ forms any ways in which they: produce or use more sustainable food, offer social benefits, contribute to the local economy or enhance the health of people and our environment. The Jellied Eel post.

Local Matters – Grill’d Resturants

Local Matters is a community donation program operated by Grill’d Restaurant chain in Australia. Every local Grill’d outlet provides $500 a month to a local community project, and invites their customers via a token system to nominate which of three local groups should receive the money. We love to give back to the local communities we call home. We get lots of requests to support groups from all walks of life. The weird & the wonderful… but all of them worthy. Until now it’s been pretty difficult for us to fulfill all of these requests. So we’ve created Local Matters. It’s our community donation program. Every month your local Grill’d will donate $500 to the local community. Over the course of a year, we’d like to think we could touch well over 1,000 local groups. Our aim is to find and support the unsung heroes rather than the big groups who always get the limelight. We hope you’ll see some groups you never knew existed and develop a new-found appreciation for what goes on in your neck of the woods. Website.

Improvements to USDA Beginning Farmer Loans

USDA recently announced several changes to Farm Service Agency (FSA) loan programs, changes designed to help more beginning farmers and ranchers. The new “interim final rule” will increase the Microloan limit from $35,000 to $50,000. This program provides a simplified application process and a seven year payback. Microloans can be used for approved operating expenses, such as seed, fertilizer, utilities, land rents, marketing, distribution, living expenses, livestock, equipment, hoop houses, tools, irrigation and delivery vehicles. Center for Rural Affairs post

Marketing Hometown America

Four University Extension staff from Nebraska, South Dakota and North Dakota have produced a wonderful interactive resource called ‘Marketing Hometown America” to assist small US rural communities market their community and attract new residents. The resource is a way to bring local people together to build a plan and then act on it. It focuses on: what brings new residents to a community; the local assets that should be promoted; and how a community can reach potential new residents. https://edmedia.wufoo.com/forms/marketing-hometown-america/?mc_cid=0627633ca0

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Fair Food: The Documentary

Fair Food is Australia’s first feature-length documentary that tells the story of our farmers, social entrepreneurs and communities pioneering new approaches to food production, marketing and distribution. Our current food system is broken – two supermarkets control 75-80 per cent of the grocery market, cheap imports undercut local producers markets and farmers are walking off the land in droves. But Fair Food reveals a countercurrent to these trends – a fair food movement that’s gathering momentum, led by biodiverse family farmers, independent food enterprises, and communities and individual food buyers around the country. The Field Institute post. Trailer.

Local Food News — World

South Australian Government Buy Local Policy

That all South Australian Government Departments and Minister’s offices use and promote local food, wine and beverages, where reasonable and feasible to do so, at any Government organised or sponsored function or events. This is an important part of the Premium Food and Wine from our Clean Environment strategic priority. South Australian Buy Local Policy.

 

First Graders Don’t Care about Michelin Stars

On a recent visit to New York, I was reminded that chefs bring more than a high-profile name to this fight. At the James Beard Foundation Food Conference, I met Michael Anthony, a Chefs Boot Camp graduate and the Executive Chef and Partner at Gramercy Tavern in New York City. Upon hearing that I work for the National Farm to School Network, he excitedly shared how he and his team at Gramercy Tavern and its sister restaurants volunteer at P.S. 41 in Manhattan, teaching cooking and nutrition to first grade students. National Farm to School Network post.

Want to double world food production? Return the land to small farmers!

All over the world, small farmers are being forced off their land to make way for corporate agriculture, writes GRAIN – and it’s justified by the need to ‘feed the world’. But it’s the small farmers that are the most productive, and the more their land is grabbed, the more global hunger increases. We must give them their land back! Ecologist blog.

Stephanie Alexander Kitchen Garden Foundation

Stephanie Alexander has a vision that pleasurable food education is accessible to every Australian school with a primary curriculum. The not-for-profit Stephanie Alexander Kitchen Garden Foundation takes a revolutionary approach to food education focusing on pleasure, flavour and fun via the Stephanie Alexander Kitchen Garden Program. Website.

 

Organic Farms Become a Winner in Putin’s Feud With the West

Boris Akimov’s cellphone, which quacks like a duck, started to sound like a whole flock soon After President Vladimir V. Putin imposed sweeping food sanctions barring many Western imports last August. Major Russian grocery chains, desperate to find new suppliers, tracked down Mr. Akimov, the founder of Russia’s fledgling farm-to-table movement, to ask urgent supply questions. How many chickens and eggs could he provide, they wanted to know, and could he deliver 100 tons of cheese, say, immediately. The New York Times story.

The Common Unity Project Aotearoa

The challenges of food quality, poverty and its relationship with education and health are all global ones. Sadly, New Zealand is faced with these issues too. But, by using our unique advantages as a nation, there is great possibility of change. it is our aim to create a pilot scheme at a very special little school in Lower Hutt so that we can provide a model of community sharing and resilience which in turn can be shared with other communities in NZ. Facebook post.

Missouri Veterans Learn (and Teach) about Farming

More than 50 military veterans recently attended educational sessions on resources that can help them start farming. Workshops in central Missouri near Fort Leonard Wood and at the Lincoln University campus brought those in the know together with active duty veterans and military retirees. They shared information on farm loans, assistance with disabilities, and markets for alternative crops. Centre for Rural Affairs post.

New Lives for Ancient and Extinct Crops

New Lives for Ancient and Extinct Crops profiles nine plant species that were important contributors to human diets and had medicinal uses in antiquity: maygrass, chenopod, marshelder, agave, little barley, chia, arrowroot, little millet, and bitter vetch. Each chapter is written by a well-known scholar, who illustrates the global value of the ancient crop record to inform the present. From eastern and western North America, Mesoamerica, South America, western Asia, and south-central Asia, the contributors provide examples of the unexpected wealth of information available in the archaeological record about ancient and extinct crops. Book announcement.

Youth Food Movement

YFM aims to be a nation-wide movement that brings young people together around food.   We strive to make our generation aware of their power as conscious consumers by building understanding and value for the food we eat. We also aspire to be a collective voice for young Australians so that together we can have our say in the decisions that impact our food future. Website.

Shop Local Campaigns for Small Towns

You know that keeping more dollars in town is the best thing for making your town prosper. The local movement has been a big help, making more people stop and think about ways to spend money locally. But it isn’t enough. You tell people to Buy Local, and then they get bad service in a local business, and there goes all the good work of your campaign. This downloadable eBook walks you through that problem and many more to get your small town shop local project up and running. Small Biz Survival Store post.

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Top 7 books on feeding the world

From eco-friendly farming techniques to the history of food activism, we asked our community for books which highlight methods that are creating a better, more sustainable food system for the world. Recommended by you, here are a selection of the best: ….. 2. The No-nonsense Guide to Food by Wayne Roberts. The Guardian story.

Local Food News — World

Women’s Institute is waving the flag for homegrown food

The Women’s Institute may be nearly 100 years old, but it is alive and growing all over the country. Even in the capital, groups such as the Borough Belles, the Shoreditch Sisters and the Dalston Darlings are meeting, gardening and enjoying themselves. Set up in 1915 to produce and preserve food during the First World War, the WI’s rallying cry was: ‘Though the boys and men are gone, the furrows shan’t be fallow, while the women carry on’. Telegraph.co.uk story.

Growers key to food bowl plan

A new logo and branding strategy aimed at positioning and showcasing the Macleay Valley as a source of high quality food produce was launched this week. The launch was at the Mid North Coast Food Forum, held at Bonville Golf Course on Monday. The ‘Macleay Valley Food Bowl’ logo is a registered trademark and was commissioned by Kempsey Shire Council as part of its Agribusiness Project. It is one of 10 strategies aimed at strengthening high-value agriculture in the Macleay. The Macleay Argus story.

From farm to school at Springfield Public School District

Out with the canned food, and in with fresh garden produce. That’s one change the Springfield Public School District is trying to make in its cafeterias. This month Springfield Public Schools is bringing fresh, local produce into three of its schools. The goal is to see what kids like, and what they don’t. So far kids have been fed corn, peaches, cucumber salad and fresh cantaloupe, all grown right here in the Ozarks. The trial run is paid for by a USDA grant that gives the district a chance to test the food. KSPR News story.

Temple University student study: Norristown needs a food policy council, community gardens

An urban planning class presented the results of a study of food availability in Norristown to council July 1 that included targeted recommendations. A resident group helped the students shape the food study during a task force meeting in January, Krouchick said. A community workshop was held in April allowing residents to explain what food issues were important to them. The group suggested community gardens on vacant Norristown lots, a “backpack” program that would allow children in the free and reduced price lunch program to bring canned foods home and a more vigorous emergency food access program. “There is a great potential for edible fruit trees in the community,” said David Swedkoski, a member of the class. “The Norristown Farm Park and Bartash Park are very underused for gardening but there is potential for improvement.” Montgomery Newspapers story. Norristown Food System Assessment.

Mendocino County Food Action Plan: local food system goals, actions

The Mendocino County Food Action Plan, a comprehensive document authored by Ukiah resident Carole Brodsky, is the output of the Food Policy Council, an organization created and endorsed in 2011 by the Board of Supervisors at the behest of the county health department. County supervisor Dan Hamburg, a member of the policy council, in referencing the plan, says that 98 percent of our food comes from outside the county, and if consumers purchased only 15 percent of the food they need for home use directly from local farmers, this would produce $20 million of new farm income in Mendocino County. Ukiah Daily Journal story. Mendocino County Food Action Plan.

A winter’s garden tale

It may be mid-November, but Dublin-based gardener Nicky Kyle’s produce-filled polytunnel is remarkable proof that with a bit of forward planning, it’s possible to continue to enjoy an impressive variety of freshly-harvested homegrown food throughout the autumn and winter months. Handfuls of marble-sized, golden Cape gooseberries, for example, their sharp, sweet flavour reminiscent of fizzy sherbet fountains. Or dark scarlet Albion strawberries, each fragrant fruit the size of a walnut, as well as succulent-fleshed, sooty skinned figs. Irish Times story.

A Conservatory in the Kitchen

I, for one, have daydreamed about owning a conservatory: a bright, climate-controlled growing space with windows, supplemental lights and a handy watering source. And here was Ms. Millard to tell me that I already possessed such a space, and it was called my condo. You don’t have to be a plant whisperer to enjoy success in this endeavor. Although, occasionally, you do have to be the bee. In a quest for bug-less indoor pollination, Ms. Millard stimulated the tomato’s reproductive parts with her electric toothbrush. The New York Times story.

A ‘Big Bite’ of a giant sisig and more: The Northern Food Festival

A sizzling pan 11 feet in diameter and filled with sisig prepared by Kapampangan chef Sau Del Rosario launched Big Bite! The Northern Festival last Friday at the MarQuee Mall in Angeles City, Pampanga. An event highlighting the cultural traditions of Northern Luzon, Big Bite! was held by the private sector in cooperation with government bodies such as the Department of Tourism and the Department of Trade and Industry. GMA (Phillipines) News story.

Slice of Haven: A champion of food

RDA has just launched a new publication called “Our Champions of Food” that showcases stories from some of the most innovative food producers and agribusinesses across the Mid North Coast – and the Camden Haven’s own Slice of Haven food and wine festival was chosen as one of these stories! The purpose of Our Champions of Food is to promote our regional food industry. It’s also to inspire local food producers with stories of what can be achieved and to promote the benefits of choosing local produce among our regional community. Camden Haven Courier story.

Love Local Irish Food – Become an Urban Community Keeper

A Keeper is someone who sets up a local food community where they live. They support local producers, boost local economies and earn an income doing something they believe in. By becoming a Keeper you’re helping local producers to get the best deal possible for their produce, providing fresh food for your local community and making good money for yourself at the same time. It is possible depending on your ambition to take on north of 500 customers, each receiving deliveries from us twice a week, for which you will receive a portion of the total weekly spend. Sales Jobs Ireland post.

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Here’s how much each country spends on food

When droughts or crop failures cause food prices to spike, many Americans barely notice. The average American, after all, spends just 6.6 percent of his or her household budget on food consumed at home. (If you include eating out, that rises to around 11 percent.) The US Department of Agriculture’s Economic Research Service keeps tabs on household expenditures for food, alcohol, and tobacco around the world. USDA Economic Research Service map.

Local Food News — World

Calculating the dough brought into city’s tills by Norfolk’s food web

The “local food web” which brings Norfolk’s bounty of farm produce into Norwich’s shops is worth £10.6m a year in sales to independent retailers in the city. That is the conclusion of a new survey by the Campaign to Protect Rural England (CPRE) which aims to quantify the value of the county’s network of growers, producers and retailers, and the benefits it brings to livelihoods in the city and its surrounding rural hinterland. The report, named From Field to Fork: Norwich, says “local food” supports around 1,400 jobs, directly and indirectly, at outlets in Norwich and suppliers across the county. Norfolk Eastern Daily Press story. Graphic.

 

Forget Vertical Farms, This Is a Vertical Rice Paddy/Fish Nursery/Transit Center/Nuclear Plant

In the surreal future envisioned by Studio Cachoua Torres Camilletti, your rice and fish will not come from the land and sea, but from the sky. They’ve whipped up plans for a monstrous skyscraper that would grow both these staple foods, as well as harvest wind energy, provide mass transit, filter gray water, and about 100 other things. The Mexico City-based firm’s extremely mixed-used building—now on the shortlist at the 2014 World Architecture Festival—is composed of a pair of twisted towers that seem to want to attack each other. CityLab post.

Promoting Urban Agriculture is Policy in San Francisco

The local policy change takes advantage of a relatively new state law, the Urban Agriculture Incentive Zones Act, which permits city governments to designate agricultural zones that will benefit from tax breaks.  Any municipality in California that is considered by the United States census to be an urban area with 250,000 or more people is eligible to offer the incentive, but San Francisco is the first to adopt it. The tax reduction comes in the form of a lower assessed property value, since a farmed parcel’s worth is based not on its market value, but on the average price of irrigated farmland in the state. Food Tank post.

Sourcery Raises $2.5M To Connect Kitchens And Local Food Suppliers

Sourcery, an online wholesale food supplier director and payments processor, is announcing that it is exiting stealth and has raised $2.5 million in seed funding to expand its platform into new markets from its early operations in San Francisco. While many kitchen managers are stuck with ordering from catalogues and paying by check, over the phone, or by fax, Sourcery makes the process closer to what the end user gets when ordering from an online delivery startup: an easy-to-search directory of what’s available in the area and their prices. When you get to the ordering part of the process, their web app handles payments with full-on analytics about your order history showing what you bought, when you ordered it, and how much you paid, all of which can be exported to QuickBooks. Sourcery also accommodates businesses that aren’t ready to digitize all of their accounting, letting customers export data as a traditional invoice. TechCrunch post.

3 Charlotte-area cheesemakers bring local food close to home

A few weeks ago, we were sitting at the Wooden Vine in uptown Charlotte when we pressed our fork into a tender ball of fresh cheese that was made just a couple of days before in a kitchen four blocks up the street. “The local movement was like a fad for a while,” says Steve Lanthrop, the marketing specialist for the N.C. Department of Agriculture who helps the state’s cheesemakers get started and get into stores. “It’s not a fad anymore. Now it’s established. We’re maturing and we’re seeing more of a variety and a quality.” There are a lot of ways to gauge the health of a foodshed, the geographic area that produces food for a population, from the number of crops to year-round business at farmers markets. But one way is to look at the variety of food. Cheese, which takes an investment of time, knowledge and equipment, is a part of that variety. Insurance News Net story.

Slow Food USA Partners With Chipotle to Fund School Garden Initiatives Nationwide

Earlier this week, a seemingly improbable partnership between Slow Food USA and Chipotle was announced at the New York Chipotle Test Kitchen amidst seared scallops in cold-pressed apple juice, beef tartare and margaritas. But if you look closely at Chipotle’s recent track record, the announcement is less and less surprising. You might remember the brilliant yet gut-wrenching factory farm animation set to a Willie Nelson cover of Coldplay’s “Back to the Start” that managed to simultaneously make you hurt for the pastoral ideal, rediscover your nostalgic love of Coldplay and crave a burrito bowl. Chipotle has also surprised fast food naysayers by warning customers when their meat is conventionally grown with clear, visible signage. The partnership will help fund school garden initiatives in 10 cities over the next 15 months with a donation of almost $500,000 from Chipotle. Some of the money will go towards hiring full-time coordinators to oversee Slow Food’s National School Garden Program, which will help integrate and connect Slow Food USA’s massive pre-existing network of volunteers working on school gardens across the nation. Edible Manhattan story.

East of England Co-operative wins national award for local food initiative

East of England Co-operative has won a national award for its commitment to local food sourcing. The society, the largest independent retailer in East Anglia, was named the winner of the Supply Chain Sourcing Initiative of the Year Award. The national Hermes and Retail Supply Chain awards were designed to recognise excellence in all areas of the retail supply chain industry. East of England received the accolade for its Sourced Locally initiative, which provides shoppers with fresh, local products from local producers in Norfolk, Suffolk and Essex. Co-Operative News story.

“True Food” and True Fun in Minneapolis

What a day! The Minneapolis Public Schools’ (MPS) third annual Farm to School Community BBQ took place under bright blue skies on a crisp early autumn day. Over 750 families and community members gathered with over 50 different organizational partners to celebrate MPS’ great work in getting local food into school cafeterias. I had the pleasure of competing against the Commissioner of the Minnesota Department of Agriculture in a corn shucking contest.  We were neck and neck – or maybe ear to ear – but I ultimately lost the race.  Luckily, children in Minneapolis are winning big! Minneapolis provides a fantastic example of a school district embracing the changes recently called for in the Healthy, Hunger-Free Kids Act. USDA blog.

Jacksonville eateries, food trucks gaining plenty of praise

And a USA Today article last week proclaimed “Jacksonville Rises in Popularity as a Culinary Giant” and listed a local expert’s take on the 10 best restaurants in town. While the mostly top-dollar locations mentioned are considered by many as the best of the best, the article may have missed the real culinary giants in the room, or, in this case, the garage. Several local publications “best of” readers’ polls have rolled off the presses recently and the people have spoken. Jax Truckies and Food Trucks emerged as Best/Top Local Trend in both Void magazine and Folio Weekly polls. Not just top food trend, but top trend, period. Florida Times-Union story.

UK government to pay farmers to protect bees and pollinators

Farmers and landowners will be given funding to improve conditions for bees and other pollinators as part of a new government strategy to be unveiled today by Environment Secretary Liz Truss. In a speech outlining how “a healthy environment is integral to a healthy economy”, Truss is set to detail proposals for a system of payments for maintaining pollinator habitats, alongside plans to extend business-led schemes to protect and create habitats and step up investment in research to boost the number and spread of pollinators as part of a new Pollinator Strategy. BusinesGreen post.

Industry partnership to tackle England’s food skills shortage

A new partnership between the government and industry has been launched to tackle the lack of food manufacturing skills…. The Grocer story.

AND IF YOU HAVE TIME

Statement of Principles that came out of @TEDxManhattan 2014 — Sign On

We, the undersigned, come together in a spirit of collaboration and commitment to help build a sustainable, healthy food system that is fair and accessible to all. We believe that focusing on our core strengths, while also finding ways to support and collaborate with each other, will successfully shift our food system to one that is fair, equitable and healthy for all. Our guiding principles are: Principles. Video announcing the principles.

Local Food News — World

Food tenders: Aussie farmers want first bite

The powerful Australian Food and Grocery Council, the National Farmers Federation and the Australian Manufacturing Workers Union want more support for local industry and farmers and a change in public procurement policies. They want locally grown and made foods to win any government or public-sector supply tender as long as the Australian product costs no more than 25 per cent more than any overseas bid. About two-thirds of all food and drinks bought for government-run institutions were sourced from overseas, according to federal Finance Department figures published in 2012. The Australian story.

Food Systems Academy: an Open Education Resource for Transforming Our Food Systems

This site aims to help you increase your understanding of our food systems – where they came from, how they change, what the challenges are and how to meet them. The talks can provide a guest speaker in a class at college or university and an addition to set reading. Sometimes, follow-up question and answer sessions can be arranged with the speakers. Website.

Urban farming in Brooklyn: a return to the land

Farming in Brooklyn has come full circle. Obviously, the first people here more than 350 years ago worked the land, and now a new generation of dwellers are doing it, too. Only this time, they are growing food in land wedged between concrete and buildings, infrastructure and roads and even on top of buildings. It’s a return to the land, but not to land that’s uncharted. In urban areas, back to the land means claiming what is left. And that action, finding and utilizing open space, has defined urban agriculture in Brooklyn and across New York City. AM New York story.

Local Food Brand Gets The Green Light

Last Wednesday more than 60 members of the regional food community attended the second Australian Capital Region Food Hub event and agreed that building a stronger regional food sector with a Southern Harvest brand would be a useful way of identifying local produce. “The first Food Hub event in June showed us that there is a lot of confusion in the market place about knowing where and how local food can be sourced by consumers and restaurateurs,” said Mr McLean, “so we have developed interactive maps of where local food can be sourced and what support consumers, producers and retailers need to strengthen the local food economy”. Regional Development Australia post.

Carrboro becomes third Bee City USA community

Carrboro will soon be abuzz. The Carrboro Board of Aldermen passed a resolution Tuesday to support the designation of Carrboro as a Bee City USA community, which means the town will take a series of measures to promote healthy habitats for bees and other pollinators in the area. Bee City USA is a national program that aims to promote sustainable habitats for pollinators because honeybee populations have decreased in the U.S. in recent years. Carrboro is the third Bee City USA community, following in the footsteps of Asheville and Talent, Ore. Marty Hanks said Bee City USA will educate Carrboro residents so they can have a positive impact on pollinator communities. The Daily Tar Heel story.

Beauty is only skin deep but good taste is deep within

The Coffs Coast Growers Market and local food store Mother Nature’s are asking locals and schools to show that it’s the taste of their vegies – not their looks – that they love. “Food waste is a big issue in this country,” Growers Market co-ordinatorJan Rooney said. “According to Horticulture Australia, at least 25% of the major fruit and vegetable lines produced every year in Australia are wasted because they look a little unusual, quirky or simply don’t fit the mould of the perfect vegetable specimens we tend to see on supermarket shelves. Coffs Coast Advocate story.

Community Supported Agriculture — Nuffield Farming Scholarships Trust Report

Community Supported Agriculture is viable for a small percentage of consumers and can allow a producer to earn a living from a small area of land. But CSA is disproportionately vulnerable to downturns in the economy. CSA can be the way into the business for new entrants. Other models using online shopping, although deviating from the true meaning of a CSA, can give producers a better return on their sales and can also offer an alternative to a higher percentage of consumers. Mainstream supermarkets are struggling with their existing structures as consumers are shopping more frequently and want a better experience from food shopping. Modern technology is making alternatives more viable and will continue to do so. RuSource Briefing 2063

Fair Food Farmers United

FFFU, the Farmers’ Chapter of the Australian Food Sovereignty Alliance, brought together a small group of producers and food activists in Seymour, Victoria. Seymour is home of the Alternative Farming Expo and the wonderful Food eXchange – a group working to connect eaters and growers, while raising awareness of issues of sustainability and ethics in the food system. Website.

Volunteers build urban farm for Make a Difference Day

Most people wouldn’t view Asbury Park as a place where one might find a farm. But a group of volunteers on Saturday set out to change that. The volunteers, many of them employees of the Asbury Park Press, labored under a sunny autumn sky, constructing raised garden beds and planting fruit trees in a lot off of Springwood Avenue for what will become an urban farm. About 60 people grabbed shovels and lumber and screwdrivers to kick off the construction of Kula Farm as part of Make a Difference Day, an annual event started more than 20 years ago by USA WEEKEND magazine to promote community service. Asbury Park Press story.

Greenhouse gas mitigation on English farms

The proportion of farmers with a nutrient management plan for fertilisers and manures increased from 46% in 2006 to 60% in 2014. Fewer than 2% of holdings process their slurries by anaerobic digestion. 45% of farmers consider GHGs when taking decisions about their businesses. 22% of drained farmland requires some repair. 64% of farmers never calibrate fertiliser spreaders. 74% of livestock holdings have a farm health plan. 78% of livestock holdings had sown some or all of their temporary grassland with a clover mix and 58% have sown their temporary grassland with high sugar grasses. 53% of livestock farmers use a ration formulation programme or expert nutritional advice. 69% of beef cattle and 64% of lambs are bred from sires with a high estimated breeding value. RuSource Briefing 2017.

AND IF YOU HAVE TIME

With Style And Silo, ‘Modern Farmer’ Melds Agrarian With Urban Hip

If you cover food and farming, as we do, you end up looking at farm magazines and agricultural web sites. This means you see lots of articles about corn prices and ads for farm equipment. Then, a couple of years ago, Modern Farmer appeared. It’s a farm magazine like no other. It flaunts a look and attitude that sometimes make us laugh out loud. What self-respecting farm magazine would come up with headlines like “Inside the Mind of a Turkey,” or “Farmer Claims Someone Drove a Combine Into His Field and Stole $18,000 Worth of Soybeans.” National Public Radio blog.

Local Food News — World

Connecting communities and stakeholders with the knowledge needed to strengthen food systems

The Growing Food Connections Policy Database is a searchable collection of local public policies that explicitly support community food systems. This database provides policymakers, government staff, and others interested in food policy with concrete examples of local public policies that have been adopted to address a range of food systems issues: rural and urban food production, farmland protection, transfer of development rights, food aggregation and distribution infrastructure, local food purchasing and procurement, healthy food access, food policy councils, food policy coordination, food system metrics, tax reductions and exemptions for food infrastructure, and much more. Database website.

 

Local food has starring role on TV3

Dublin-born chef Simon Lamont travels all over Ireland cooking exquisite meals that are quick and easy to rustle up, but his first stop is Cork. Unlike most cookery shows which use elaborate and often lengthy methods, and extravagant recipes, The Lazy Chef cuts every corner to make effortless food, all the while showcasing some of the best produce on offer across the country. Simon’s first port of call is Toonsbridge Dairy, where Toby Simmons of the Real Olive Company and Johnny Lynch have joined forces to bring Italian Water Buffalo to Cork. Southern Star Newspaper story.

 

Advancing Eco Agriculture

As a farmer who grew up in and remains a part of the Amish community, John Kempf has a very special understanding of plants’ functional immunity. He sought out alternative approaches to prevent damage to his crops once they stopped responding to conventional pesticide treatments. To enhance plants’ natural immunity, thereby making them less susceptible to pests and disease, he developed a comprehensive, systems-based methodology founded on plant physiology, mineral nutrition and soil microbiology. With results proven on his own farm, John went on to found AEA to share his success and insight that healthy crops do not require chemical treatments or genetic modifications. Website.

 

TY Food Education Unit Formally Recognised by NCCA

Following the success of the pilot programme that was run last year, the transition year food education unit – The Future is Food – which was developed by the Taste Council of Ireland in association with Bord Bia, has been formally recognised by the National Council of Curriculum Assessment. The mission of the bodies behind this module is to educate the next generation about food in Ireland. The unit is tasked with broadening students’ knowledge and understanding of the local, artisan and speciality foods sector. Chefs and food producers visit local schools as part of the programme, where they work with the students on a voluntary basis. Careers Portal post.

 

One of America’s Most Famous Slow-Food Chefs Says Farm-to-Table ‘Doesn’t Really Work’

Barber has a few suggestions for how chefs and diners can support the whole system, the primary one being: Eat everything. If we redefine our diet to include more rotational crops, he said, we help ecology produce healthier and better-tasting foods. And stop puffing about how often you purchase dinner fixings from a small grower at the farmer’s market—it’s really the mid-level growers in America that need a boost. CityLab post.

 

Sustainable agriculture: What’s it mean to you?

“Consumers define sustainability in agriculture with a relatively narrow view, describing it as ‘environmentally friendly’ (22%) or the ‘ability to produce sufficient food to feed the population’ (18%). Globally, consumers listed one or two points when questioned about the meaning of sustainable agriculture,” says BASF Farm Perspectives researchers. On the flip side, farmers dug a little deeper into the meaning with 40% relating it to “soil protection,” 27% on “land use,” another 27% on “water use,” 25% on “biodiversity protection,” and 25% even going as far to relating it to “fair farm wages.” Drovers Cattle Network post.

 

Would you invest in a Beetcoin?

Slow Money Alliance, a collection of regional networks that invest in small food enterprises, introduced the Beetcoin concept on its website a week ago. Slow Money Alliance is about “taking some of your money out of Wall Street and doing something with it that you understand,” said Woody Tasch, founder of Slow Money Alliance. Beetcoins, which are investments in small enterprises, cost $25 to start off, though people can donate more. The goal is to raise $50,000 which will help fund two small business projects. One business will receive a $40,000, three-year, zero-interest loan, while the other will get a $10,000 loan. Louisville Business First story.

 

Building A Local Food System In A Rural State

It’s not just in big cities that people are buying up kale and bison jerky. Rural Wyomingites are trolling farmer’s markets for purple tomatoes and emu oil, too. The state now has 49 farmer’s markets that have done over two million dollars in revenue just this year. But some farmers and food advocates who want to expand the availability of artisan foods say Wyoming is struggling with some deep challenges. Wyoming Public Media post.

 

The First Step to Sustainable Agriculture

The Resilient Farm and Homestead (Chelsea Green Publishing, 2013) is a comprehensive how-to manual that will help the reader select, design, develop and manage land for self-reliance and sustainable agriculture, and presents a thriving model for productive, durable homesteads and farms in cold climates and beyond. In this excerpt, taken from Chapter 1, author and permaculture expert Ben Falk explains how the resilient homesteader is more concerned with fitting in and adapting to changing conditions. Mother Earth News book review.

 

Farm-to-table is heading for concourses across the country.

That’s right, airports—where not too long ago the range of food choices was pretty much between Burger King or Panda Express—are starting to dip their toes into the local food market, launching a handful of farm-to-table restaurants and upscale marketplaces selling regional products. One of the latest such marketplaces, Berkshire Farms, opened at Boston’s Logan International Airport earlier this year, offering travelers jams and syrups bottled in Massachusetts, locally baked breads and pastries, and nuts roasted in nearby Williamstown. It’s all the brainchild of Michael Levine, CEO of Tastes on the Fly, which curates culinary options at airports across America. Take Part story. Tastes on the Fly Website. O’Hare aeroponic garden.

 

AND IF YOU HAVE TIME

 

Let’s Talk About Soil!

The animated film Let’s Talk about Soil emphasizes human dependence on soils and describes how sustainable development is threatened by certain soil use trends; the film offers options to make the way we manage our soils more sustainable. Let’s Talk about Soil was produced by the designer and animator Uli Henrik Streckenbach for the First Global Soil Week 2012. Resilience post.

Local Food News — World

Urban Agriculture — Defined

Over 80% of Americans live in urban areas. Urban agriculture is a story of growing food on windy rooftops, in once vacant lots and empty warehouses. As Eli Zigas of San Francisco’s SPUR explains it: “Urban agriculture’s real contribution is…in the number of people it touches who can then understand and learn about food, how we grow it and how it feeds us.” The Lexicon of Sustainability post

The Potential for Urban Agriculture in New York City

With the generous support of the Doris Duke Charitable Foundation, the Urban Design Lab at the Earth Institute, Columbia University has conducted this comprehensive assessment of the potential for urban agriculture in New York City (NYC). This project is the first large-scale analysis of its kind for NYC, and while it is not definitive, we hope that the information and research will provide a baseline for understanding the critical issues related to urban agriculture in our city. The aim of this project is to outline and address a broad scope of issues that should be considered as public interest in urban agriculture continues to grow. Urban Design Lab at Columbia University report.

Eagle Street Rooftop Farm

On the shoreline of the East River and with a sweeping view of the Manhattan skyline, Eagle Street Rooftop Farm is a 6,000 square foot green roof organic vegetable farm located atop a warehouse rooftop owned by Broadway Stages in Greenpoint, Brooklyn.  During New York City’s growing season, the farmers at Eagle Street Rooftop Farm supply an onsite farm market, and bicycle fresh produce to area restaurants. With our Farm-Based Education team and training from food education organization Growing Chefs, the rooftop farm hosts a range of farm-based educational and volunteer programs. During the growing season,  are open to the public on Sundays (44 Eagle Street, Greenpoint, Brooklyn) between 1pm-4pm. Website.

Brooklyn Grange Farm

Brooklyn Grange is the leading rooftop farming and intensive green roofing business in the US. We operate the world’s largest rooftop soil farms, located on two roofs in New York City, and grow over 50,000 lbs of organically-cultivated produce per year. In addition to growing and distributing fresh local vegetables and herbs, Brooklyn Grange also provides urban farming and green roof consulting and installation services to clients worldwide, and we partner with numerous non-profit organizations throughout New York to promote healthy and strong local communities. Website.

Youth Farm at the High School for Public Service

The Youth Farm is an educational production farm in central Brooklyn that offers New Yorkers opportunities to increase their knowledge of the food system and build high level organic growing skills to share with their communities. The Youth Farm grows organic food and flowers on one acre for the community and beyond, and offers advanced farm training and leadership opportunities for youth and adults. Website.

East New York Farms

The mission of the East New York Farms Project is to organize youth and adults to address food justice in our community by promoting local sustainable agriculture and community-led economic development.  East New York Farms! is a project of the United Community Centers in partnership with local residents. Website.

Gotham Greens

Gotham Greens designs, builds and operates commercial scale greenhouse facilities in urban areas for fresh vegetable production. Since commencing production in early 2011, Gotham Greens has quickly become a worldwide pioneer in the field of urban agriculture and one of New York State’s leading producers of premium-quality, greenhouse-grown vegetables and herbs. Website.

Bright Farms

BrightFarms finances, designs, builds and operates greenhouse farms at or near supermarkets, cutting time, distance, and cost from the produce supply chain. The inspiration for BrightFarms grew out of our desire to grow food in the same communities where it’s consumed—a desire to grow food that’s fresher, tastier, and better for the environment. The team at BrightFarms has been working in urban agriculture since 2006. Since 2011, we’ve been on a quest to bring commercial scale urban agriculture to the market, take our farms and the industry to the next level, and change the way we eat as a society. Website.

City Farms Program

The City Farms Program trains, connects, and empowers New York City community gardeners to spread knowledge about growing, selling, and giving more food in their neighborhoods. Our goal is to grow and distribute more food in New York City neighborhoods. Just Food website.

Supermarket turns ugly fruit and veg into own-brand soups and juices

The supermarket has created a new line of soups and juices called Les Fruits & Légumes Moches that aims to teach customers about food waste. As well as dedicating a section of its stores to ugly fruit and veg that consumers can buy at a 30 percent reduction from its standard groceries, the company also developed carrot soups, orange juice, mashed potatoes and aubergine purées from the cosmetically-challenged foods. Working with the Marcel agency, Intermarché created a special branding for the new range that actually celebrates the fact that its ingredients aren’t pretty, but perfectly fine to eat. Free samples were offered to customers in order to demonstrate that ugly fruit and veg can be just as tasty as pleasant-looking ones. Springwise story.

AND IF YOU HAVE TIME

The CDC Guide to Strategies to Increase the Consumption of Fruits and Vegetables

This document provides guidance for program managers, policy makers, and others on how to select strategies to increase the consumption of fruits and vegetables. It offers the most relevant information on each type of strategy. The discussion of each strategy follows the outline defined here. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services publication.

Local Food News — World

Saoirse’s latest role – promoting eco-friendly homegrown food

SHE’S the darling of Hollywood but Saoirse Ronan’s latest film role was all about supporting homegrown talent of a different variety. The actor has been filming at the historic Newgrange site this week, to promote the green credentials of top-quality Irish food. The Oscar-nominated star features in a new video aimed at promoting the Origin Green programme which has already signed up more than 60,000 Irish farms and 350 food businesses committed to more eco-friendly food production. Irish Independent story.

Woolworths Future of Fresh report reveals the supermarket of 2034

Australian supermarket giant Woolworths has released a report which it said gives a “unique insight into the future of supermarket shopping. Woolworths said its Future of Fresh report has built a picture of how Australia will be shopping in 20 years time, revealing a continuing shift towards fresh, hyper-local produce and the convergence of new technologies to make grocery shopping a more innovative and immersive experience. Australian Food News story.

North Alabama schools announce collaboration with area’s first local food hub

Students at schools throughout Madison County are enjoying more locally-grown food through a new partnership with North Alabama farmers. The Farm Food Collaborative, a project of the Food Bank of North Alabama, officially kicked off its partnership with the three local school districts on Thursday. The collaborative is North Alabama’s first local food hub designed to help family farms sell their produce to schools, workplace cafeterias, distributors, restaurants and grocery stores. Al.com story.

The “Future is Food” secures its place on National Curriculum

‘The Future is Food’ introduces Transition Year students to the Irish food and drinks industry, with the aim of broadening the knowledge and understanding of the local, artisanal and speciality foods sector amongst future generations. Through this interactive education programme, students are provided with an opportunity to actively engage with aspects of the food sector, giving them practical insight and real-life experience. This unit is ground-breaking in that it is bringing chefs and food producers from local communities into the schools to work with the students on a voluntary basis. Limerick Post story.

How Australia’s food lobby works

But although it is highly globalised, the food industry is far from homogeneous. Big Food in Australia is not the same as the industry in the United States, where much of the popular media has come from. Still, that doesn’t mean Australian food and beverage lobbying is benign. Responding to the threat posed by the food industry to public health locally requires a clear understanding of food industry tactics in the context of Australia’s political and lobbying culture. Adelaide Independent News commentary.

10 Great Urban Agriculture Projects in San Antonio

The local sustainable food movement is alive and thriving in San Antonio, Texas. Food Tank presents ten urban agriculture projects in San Antonio that are leading the charge for a better food system. Food Tank Post.

The ‘Magnificent Seven’ – local food producers begin new chapter as Irish Food Co-Op is launched

The newly formed Irish Co-Op will boldly take local food products where they have struggled to go before – new markets, new processes and ultimately new profits for the growing local food industry in the south east. The premise of the Irish Food Co-op is simple. Leave local food producers do what they are good at – namely making great food – and look after the other crucial ingredients of a successful business – marketing, distribution, invoicing and cashflow. Kilkenny People story.

Obama Administration Launches Global Alliance for Climate Smart Agriculture

That’s why today we’re announcing the launch of the Global Alliance for Climate Smart Agriculture. The idea was born eight months ago, when an international delegation of leaders—including many from the USDA, the State Department, and USAID—met in South Africa for the Global Conference on Climate Change, Food Security, and Agriculture. There, we charted a more sustainable path to food security—one that preserves the environment while driving broad-based economic growth. United States Department of Agriculture post.

What is Community Underwriting?

A few years back, when I worked in Retail Banking, small businesses were among the customers my group focused on. Through many conversations with lenders and underwriters, I came to realize why most banks don’t like to lend to small businesses in food and agriculture: from the perspective of a bank office, these businesses appear damn hard to understand and underwrite. Community members, on the other hand, are not only closer to a business’ Market (they are part of it!), they are also revenue-generating participants, not just its observing actuaries. Credibles post.

Taking account of shared and cultural values of ecosystem services

Ecosystem services are important to us in both practical and emotional terms, and how different individuals and communities recognise and relate to them depends on personal, shared, and cultural values. These values are not always explicitly expressed through conventional surveys or reflected in economic valuation. They often become clear only after people have talked with others about what matters most to them. If natural assets are to be managed for the benefit and wellbeing of all, however, we need to understand the values that individuals and communities attach to them in different circumstances. RuSource Briefing 2053.

AND IF YOU HAVE TIME

Just how averse are consumers to GMOs?

With advocacy groups decrying the use of GMO crops and trying to label products that contain them, it’s worth assessing whether the rhetoric goes beyond activists to everyday consumers. The Hartman Group’s new special report, “GMO Perceptions, Knowledge and Labeling,” finds the population that’s averse to GMOs looks much like America, demographically. They’re passionate about the subject, but ill-equipped to act on their intent. Many do not use the most dominant GMO-free seal and do not trust organic as a proxy for non-GMO. More broadly, consumers are confused about GMOs – what they are, what foods they’re in, how they affect health and the environment. Despite not understanding many of these issues, most consumers instinctively feel concern is warranted. In fact, four out of ten consumers say they are avoiding or reducing GMOs in their daily diet. Hartman Group post (promo for a very expensive report).