August 30, 2007 by Sara Zoe.

from the Portsmouth Herald:

UNH harvest dinner celebrates bounty of local food*

Since 2005, the University of New Hampshire has celebrated the region’s rich agricultural heritage with its annual Local Harvest Dinner, gaining fans and patrons for its gourmet preparations of local produce, seafood, meats and cheeses. Building on its popularity, this year’s dinner, on Thursday, Sept. 20, has moved to Holloway Commons, UNH’s largest dining hall. The Local Harvest Dinner runs from 4:30 to 9 p.m. and is offered to all students on the UNH meal plan, as well as to the general public (adults, $12.50 plus tax; children under 10, $6.25).

The meal showcases the diversity of foods from the region, with a menu that includes organic vegetables from UNH’s Organic Garden Club and Tuckaway Farm in Lee; beef and chicken from Lasting Legacy Farm in Barrington; buffalo from Yankee Farmer’s Market Natural Meats in Warner; tea from Portsmouth Tea Company; and cheeses from Full Moon Farm in Rochester, Boggy Meadow Farm in Walpole, and Silvery Moon Creamery in Westbrook, Maine. Honey from Bee Rich Apiary in Hudson, apples and squash from UNH’s Woodman Farm, and cider from Carter Hill Orchard in Concord provide a more traditional taste of autumn in New Hampshire.

Beneath a tent outside Holloway, local producers and food-related organizations such as NH Made and Seacoast Slow Food will educate diners about the impact of eating locally. In addition, Barrington photographer Charter Weeks will display photographs documenting a barn-raising at Lasting Legacy Farm. The photos, shot earlier this summer, include interesting portrayals of several Amish volunteers who requested that their faces not appear in the photos.

This year, UNH Dining hosts several other Local Harvest events during the week of the Local Harvest Dinner. Vegan chef Norma Koski, of Susty’s Café in Northwood, is guest chef in Elements at Philbrook dining hall Wednesday, Sept. 19. Koski has partnered with the UNH Organic Garden Club to bring “radical vegan foods” to student diners and guests that evening. And for the entire week (Sept. 17-21), Panache, the bakery-style sandwich shop at Holloway Commons, will feature local foods, including Portsmouth Tea Company teas and Fogarty’s cheesecake.

For more information, visit www.unh.edu/dining/localharvest.htm or www.sustainableunh.unh.edu.

* this is a great event for folks taking the September Eat Local Challenge - a fairly inexpensive night of someone else cooking!

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August 30, 2007 by Sara Zoe.

from the Union Leader:

Web menu includes NH produce, meat

By PAULA TRACY
New Hampshire Union Leader Staff

Concord – New Hampshire’s farmers are getting a new way to reach more customers.

The state Department of Agriculture, Markets & Food has entered into an agreement to develop a Web site where chefs, food buyers and consumers can buy fresh produce, meat and other products directly from farmers.

According to the request for approval of a $10,500 contract, Commissioner Stephen H. Taylor said his agency is one partner in this project, “which will create a venue for easy purchasing of local goods and expand market opportunities for New Hampshire agriculture.” Other partners include the University of New Hampshire Office of Sustainability Programs, United Parcels Service and the Farm Credit Service.

The contract, which was approved by the Executive Council at its meeting Aug. 22 in Charlestown, is with the NH Farm to Restaurant Connection/NH Stories Inc. of Andover, for six months.

NH Farm to Restaurant Connection/NH Stories will develop a central theme and Web site where direct connections can be made with farmers.

Funding for the state portion of the contract is being made available by a marketing line item that exists in the Agriculture, Markets and Food budget.

The contractor is Laurie Ferguson, executive director of NH Made.

New Hampshire Stories and New Hampshire Made is a nonprofit corporation formed in 1997 to promote locally made products. It has its own Web site: www.nhmade.com, where there is an online store.

The Web site also notes that a number of “Growers Dinners” are being offered across the state to raise awareness about New Hampshire foods and how they can be used in a restaurant setting.

It lists a number of dinners being organized, including Sept. 21 aboard the MV Mount Washington at Weirs Beach in Laconia (366-2628); at New Hampshire Farm Museum, Milton, on Oct. 20 (625-7840); and in November on a date to be determined at Orchard Street Chophouse in Dover (749-0006.)

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