Seacoast Eat Local

From the market bulletin:

The Hollis Agricultural Commission is compiling a list of farmers who may be interested in leasing Town-owned land known as “Woodmont Orchard – West” (approximately 180 acres) in part or in entirety, for a term of up to 25 years, beginning no later than 2011. The lease(s) will be awarded through a bidding process, and considerable discression will be given to successful bidders, as long as the use complies with conditions of an existing agricultural easement. Contact doug@themixedborder.com

Fill out the survey to be included: http://www.surveymonkey.com/s/BPNZGP8

A message from  Gail McWIlliam Jellie, Director of the Division of Agricultural Development for NH:

This year the Department of Agriculture and NH Division of Travel and Tourism are partnering to create two consumer resource maps: New Hampshire Agriculture Resource Map and New Hampshire Garden Trails Map.

About these maps:
New Hampshire Agriculture Resource Map: goal is to consolidate a variety of published booklets (Farmers’ Market Directory, Pick Your Own, etc) into one comprehensive map/brochure that will include, but not limited to, resources such as Farms, Farmstands, Farmers’ Markets, Pick your Own, Orchards, Dairies, Wineries, etc.

New Hampshire Garden Trails Map: goal is to promote garden, floral and other horticultural activities such as educational workshops and classes, tours, demonstration gardens, etc., as well as sources of NH grown plant products and to create a “trail” of these opportunities that interested parties may follow throughout the state or regions of the state. All New Hampshire businesses or organizations that offer such activities are invited to sign up.

Each map will be created and printed separately – but both will consist of a comprehensive map, divided into New Hampshire regions, with listing all of the state’s agricultural and garden resources including contact and other relevant information for each business listing.

Maps will be distributed via NH Welcome Centers, Manchester-Boston Regional Airport, Agriculture Fairs, NH Made partnership, and other avenues TBD.
We are very excited to create this map on behalf of the agriculture industry and we need your help to get started. If you would like your business to be a part of New Hampshire’s Agriculture Resource Map and/or the Garden Trails Map, please join us by providing your information for your listings. This is a free listing! Our goal is to print the map by the end of March, so please send in your completed form by Monday February 15, 2010. Information received after that date may not be able to be included.

Sincerely,
Gail McWIlliam Jellie, Director
Division of Agricultural Development
NH Dept. of Agriculture, Markets & Food
603-271-3788
www.agriculture.nh.gov

Fill out the survey to be included: http://www.surveymonkey.com/s/BPNZGP8

 If you live in/near Newburyport and want to get more involved in the local food scene, Transition Newburyport is looking for you! From their website:

Seeking “Local Food” Visionaries

Are you troubled by what you learned about our nation’s food system from Food, Inc., King Corn, The Future of Food, or The Omnivore’s Dilemma, and wonder what you can do about it?  Concerned about the dependence of our industrialized agricultural system on fossil fuels for fertilizers, pesticides, farm machinery, food processing, storage and transport in the face of climate change and fossil fuel depletion?
New Eden Collaborative member, Transition Newburyport is seeking individuals interested in working together to create a vision and a pathway to the food system of the future for our community, to tackle the question of how we can move toward a more sustainable, equitable, and resilient food system that will not only make us more self-reliant but will also serve to strengthen our local economy.

Our local food system includes all the growers, producers, processors, distributors, retailers, restaurants, school food programs, food pantries and every food consumer — in other words, everyone. What is more basic and central to our everyday lives than food?
We’ll be exploring questions such as: Where does our food come from? Could Newburyport feed itself? If not, why not, and what can we do to stimulate local food production? Does everyone who wants to grow food in our community have access to the land to do it?

If you are interested, please email us at transition@transitionnewburyport.org. We’ll be scheduling a get together in February to begin discussing these questions. The meeting will, of course, involve good local food as well as good company.

The New Hampshire Farm and Forest Expo is next weekend in Manchester, and it is a very inexpensive ($7) chance to see and learn more about agriculture in the state.

The schedule includes a variety of workshops, exhibits, and discussions for farmers, homesteaders/diy’ers, and local food activists including:

NH Farmers Market Association: Find out about NHFMA’s partnership with NH Made. Get updates from the WIC FMNP. Learn about selling products from your own kitchen with the “Homestead License”. NH Dairy Sanitation will be discussed in the afternoon and how to use Wireless Credit Card and EBT Processing Systems at your market.

The NH Coalition for Sustaining Agriculture Workshop Series – “Resources for Farmers”

What’s the Buzz on Honey Bees?

Rural Energy for America & Value-Added Producer Grant Programs

The Backyard Poultry Flock

A panel discussion called, Meeting the Demand for Local: Expanding the Market to Restaurants, Supermarkets and Schools

Intermediate Winemaking: Making Better Wines 

Backyard Maple Sugaring

Check out their website for a full list of what is going on, directions, and more!