February 1, 2011 by Sara Zoe.

Just a reminder that you can subscribe to this blog by email. You’ll receive no more than one email a day and if we don’t post that particular day, no email at all!

Posted in author: Sara Zoe | Print | No Comments »

December 31, 2010 by Sara Zoe.

As we round out 2010, my email inbox is inundated with requests from great organizations for end of the year tax deductible donations. I’m sure yours is, too. At Seacoast Eat Local, we haven’t always been the most bold at asking for donations.

As we’ve grown as an organization (hosting 11 Winter Farmers’ Market events each season, a growing email/facebook/web network, the annual publication of Seacoast Harvest, up to 8,000 copies this year, co-hosting workshops, events, festivals and serving as an information hub for locally grown food on the seacoast as well as an important resource for farmers) and looking forward to our additional ambitious goals in the next few years (most notably, bringing the ability for farmers’ markets to accept SNAP/food stamps to our area), we’ve been able to accomplish a lot on a pretty bare bones budget.

We’ve had organizationally significant and timely support from two organizations that we’d like to thank again here. The New England Grassroots Environment Fund, out of Vermont, gives small grants to grassroots groups. They funded our second year of Seacoast Harvest, allowing us to expand from a small, 4 page brochure to the comprehensive resource it is today. They also currently serve as our fiscal agent, accepting donations and grants on our behalf and making themselves generally available as an incredible resource. The New Hampshire Charitable Foundation Piscataqua Region provided us with a grant that is now allowing us to undergo a strategic planning process as we grow into a more sustainable organization. They have also provided an initial grant for the SNAP project bringing food stamps to farmers’ markets. They have pledged partial funding (50% of the first year) for the next three years.

Which brings me to the ask. While we still believe you can get a lot done with not a lot of money and our current budgets reflect an 85% volunteer run organization, the scope of what we are trying to accomplish has grown significantly. If you can give a financial donation, we will put your money to good use. You can donate online or email info@seacoasteatlocal.org to mail a donation.

Donate to Seacoast Eat Local

Specify Seacoast Eat Local as your donation destination. New England Grassroots Environment Fund (NEGEF) is Seacoast Eat Local’s 501(c)3 tax deductible fiscal agent

This community is incredible, and there are a lot of ways to contribute to positive change in the area of local food and agriculture, from shopping for locally grown foods and forwarding our email newsletters to growing your own garden and sharing some of the harvest with a food pantry. The growth of Seacoast Eat Local is a direct reflection of the growth of interest and actions of all of you - we want to thank you for however you participate in supporting the health of our environment, community, culture and economy through local food and agriculture.

Happy New Year from Seacoast Eat Local!

Posted in food security, author: Sara Zoe | Print | No Comments »

November 26, 2010 by Sara Zoe.

From Nada Haddad, Extension Agent, comes this announcement of a safety improvement opportunity:

Join us at a special event to launch the New Hampshire Rollover Protection System Rebate Program

Tuesday, Nov. 30, 10:30 a.m. to noon

Farmers are eight times more likely to be killed on the job than other American workers, and tractor rollover is the number one cause of farming fatalities. But a rollover protection system (ROPS) and seatbelt are 99% effective in preventing these deaths. Yet many older tractors in use on New Hampshire farms are not equipped with ROPS, also known as rollbars.

In partnership with the New York Center for Agricultural Medicine and Health (NYCAMH), UNH Cooperative Extension, and N.H. Farm and Rural Education Foundation, the N.H. Department of Agriculture, Markets & Food is bringing a ROPS Retrofit Rebate Program to New Hampshire.

With this program, farmers will receive a 70% rebate for the cost of their ROPS, up to $765. Farmers will also get help finding the appropriate ROPS and assistance ordering the equipment.

As a lead program sponsor, John Deere and three New Hampshire John Deere dealers are hosting special launch events. Farmers and others interested in this program may attend any one of three locations Tuesday, Nov. 30, 10:30 a.m. until noon. A presentation about the program takes place at 11:30 a.m.

Learn more about the N.H. ROPS Rebate Program, register to have your tractor fitted with a ROPS and hear from farmers why this equipment is important. Enjoy refreshments and John Deere door prizes as well.

Please attend at any one of the following locations:

1. James Rosencrantz & Sons, 184 South Road, Kensington (South on Route 107, off Route 125, go about six miles and it is on the right), 603-772-4414.
2. R.N. Johnson, 269 Main Street, off Route 12 in Walpole (North entrance to town by the Malnati Dairy
Farm), 603-756-3321
3. Blackmount Equipment, 2924 Dartmouth College Highway, Route 10, North Haverhill, 603-787-6311

Call Dick Uncles, NH Department of Agriculture, Markets & Food, if you have questions about ROPS or the launch event, at 603-271-3551 or runcles@agr.state.nh.us.

Thanks to the following N.H. ROPS Rebate Program sponsors and supporters: NH Dept. of Agriculture,
Markets & Foods; John Deere; Co-operative Insurance Companies; Farm Credit East; Yankee Farm Credit; NH Farm Service Agency, Chappell Tractor, Townline Equipment, and Farm Family Life and Casualty Insurance Companies. For more information about ROPS or to register for the program, call toll-free 1-877-ROPS-R4U or visit www.ropsr4u.com.

Posted in author: Sara Zoe | Print | No Comments »

August 17, 2010 by Sara Zoe.

The folks at Protein U want to help us all learn more about butchering, a critical skill in a local food system. To that end, they held a video contest, and now have announced the top 20 for voting. There are pig videos and beef videos, and for those of us looking to learn something for our home kitchens, there are also helpful rabbit and duck videos.

One of the finalists is Amy Winans, part of the UNH ecogastronomy and hospitality programs, showcasing the start of making a prosciutto like ham. Go vote, then spread the word! 

Posted in author: Sara Zoe | Print | 1 Comment »

February 28, 2010 by Sara Zoe.

We have a major website redesign underway (hurrah!) but in the meantime, if you’d like to get blog posts emailed to you, you can use this! You’ll get the posts emailed to you once a day on days there are posts (so days with no posts, no emails, days with 3 posts, 1 email). You can unsubscribe anytime, and just like our email newsletter, we’ll never share your info with anybody.

Posted in author: Sara Zoe | Print | No Comments »

February 23, 2010 by Sara Zoe.

Sustainable/Organic Agriculture Position

The New Hampshire Farm Museum in Milton, New Hampshire seeks a full time farmer/grower committed to sustainable/organic agriculture.  We are looking for someone with experience and education in the principles of sustainable, organic agriculture to establish this first year, a start-up market garden, care for our heritage breed farm animals and assist with our farm based educational programs.  The right person will be enthusiastic, a hard worker and have completed a minimum of one full season internship on an organic farm. This position in 2010 begins in April and runs through December and has the potential to be a one year renewable position if successful. We seek someone who can bring two acres under cultivation with volunteer support.  BA or Associates Degree required and relevant experience.  The NH Farm Museum offers free housing: a three room apartment in an historic farmhouse, including heat and electric for one person or a couple, no dogs permitted~Kitchen and bathroom are shared with resident intern.  This first year we can offer a base salary of $1000. per month, a farm share, and a share of the net profits from sales of farm products.  Please send: resume with cover letter and names of three references to:  Kathleen Shea, NH Farm Museum PO Box 644, Milton, NH 03851 or email the same to: info@farmmuseum.org

Posted in author: Sara Zoe | Print | No Comments »

February 15, 2010 by Sara Zoe.

Found via an email from the National Farmers’ Union comes a new tool from the USDA, putting all their statistical data goodness in one map. It’ll take me a bit of playing to become adept at using it, but there is so much to be fascinated by and pour over and delve into. For example, we can look at the number of vegetable acres harvested by county, and the sales of such directly to the public per county, and the at-home consumption of fruits and vegetables per county, and the number of farmers’ markets per capita, and and and! Health, exercise, SNAP program participation, access to food stores .. it doesn’t end! I’ll be excited to see how we can all make use of this data to address some of the concerns it raises -

Food Environment Atlas

Posted in author: Sara Zoe | Print | 1 Comment »

February 14, 2010 by Sara Zoe.

Local is still best because you can ask the farmer what their practices are, but for those times that buying milk/eggs/meat from the store happens, many of us reach for the certified organic option to have some sense of the practices of the growers. Until now, the certified organic label in regards to animals being outside on pasture only meant that the animals needed to have access to pasture, and didn’t quantify or qualify what that might mean. So updated rules in this arena are welcome:

• Animals must graze pasture during the grazing season, which must be at least 120 days per year;
• Animals must obtain a minimum of 30 percent dry matter intake from grazing pasture during the grazing season;
• Producers must have a pasture management plan and manage pasture as a crop to meet the feed requirements for the grazing animals and to protect soil and water quality; and,
• Livestock are exempt from the 30 percent dry matter intake requirements during the finish feeding period, not to exceed 120 days. Livestock must have access to pasture during the finishing phase.

More details from the USDA >

Posted in author: Sara Zoe | Print | No Comments »

February 6, 2010 by Sara Zoe.

From the good folks at ATTRA:

Take Action on Food Safety Legislation
While we all cheer this Administration’s emerging emphasis on local and regional food production, let s not forget that the Food Safety Modernization Act (S 510) now on its way to the Senate floor could erect a formidable barrier to those markets for many small and moderate sized farms. The Act would considerably ramp up FDA regulation on farms that even minimally process their crops and sell them to restaurants, food coops, groceries, schools or to wholesale markets. One of the best ideas for improving this legislation has been introduced by Senator Debbie Stabenow (D-MI). The Stabenow Amendment is called the Growing Safe Food Act (S. 2758) and it would create a national food safety training and technical assistance program. If you value safe, local, and healthy food, please call your Senators and encourage them to co-sponsor the Growing Safe Food Act.
Related ATTRA Publication:   Food Safety Act Background and Resources

Posted in policy and legislation, author: Sara Zoe | Print | No Comments »

January 30, 2010 by Sara Zoe.

 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.

Posted in author: Sara Zoe | Print | No Comments »