tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12635450110668481552024-03-05T13:32:35.829-08:00Farm Food LocalWhere Southwest Washington farmers can promote their farms and consumers can find the locally produced food they want.DTMcIntoshhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13803402453560399582noreply@blogger.comBlogger13125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1263545011066848155.post-28176793635133800862012-04-25T04:45:00.000-07:002012-04-27T20:50:47.457-07:00The man where the road ends<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<a href="http://vimeo.com/40875429" target="_blank">
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><img alt="" border="0" height="293" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEimjDr_DxjjPoMKth8zRQDkhhSQOCkWo3LpRoNbfXCDWPW0hxc5c6eAk21_UvHrJU-emJ_uM7O45zkR4fZrd8b3q-4h8L5aXUDJGDqPUlyU80VaJ0v_99CwR9JrjH-isFwoLbOpveDuXb8/s400/78+st+farm.jpg" title="78th St Heritage Farm" width="400" /></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">A portion of the historic 78th St Heritage Farm, housing WSU Extension offices</td></tr>
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On his previous jobsite “out beyond
where the road ends,” they spoke only Hausa, Igbo or Yoruba, three of more than
150 dialects spoken in sub-Saharan West Africa.
Before coming to Vancouver, local WSU Extension Director, Doug
Stienbarger, helped reforest Togo and Cameroon. Stienbarger was there as an
agro forestry field manager. Swahili, which
he had learned in Tanzania as a Peace Corps volunteer, was useless in
West Africa, so he employed native-speaking students and children to explain
land saving measures to landowners. In Washington, we have different obstacles.
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In Washington, “Water,” Stienbarger
explains, “is at the bottom of almost any farm issue. When Africans buy a piece
of land, they get what they call ‘customary ‘tenure’. They can farm, but the
state owns the resources, and someone planting trees can claim that land.” But
in Washington, water rights present an almost similar challenge. For one thing, he explains, water rights in
Washington were doled out in the state’s early days. Those who were landowners
then, got them. But if a property was parceled out, the water rights stayed
with the piece where the well was originally located. Owners of other parcels
can drill domestic wells, but they are allowed only 5,000 gallons per day; and
that’s not enough to water crops. So people use domestic wells for their farms
and hope nobody complains. Stienbarger serves on the board for the <a href="http://www.clarkcd.org/">Conservation District</a>, and “they help
influence water decisions. But,” he says, “The issue is far from resolved.”</div>
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Stienbarger’s
passion with water issues is only indirectly linked to his WSU Extension job. A ruddy-complected man, prone to head thrown
back laughter, Stienbarger can tell you volumes about farming and resource
stewardship in one breath, and an equal amount about green biomass in the next.
But you’ll have a hard time finding him in the spotlight. Instead, coordinators
Jen Naas, Watershed Stewardship Program, and Eric Lambert, Small Acreage
Program, present WSU Extension workshops and answer day-to-day concerns. They are
the face and Facebook of the Extension on their<a href="http://www.facebook.com/ClarkCoWatershedStewards"> Watershed Stewards</a>
and <a href="http://www.facebook.com/smallacreageprogram">Small Acreage</a>
pages and on the <a href="http://county.wsu.edu/clark/Pages/default.aspx">Extension
website</a>. These county funded
programs offer the public farm-related education. Stienbarger is the axle
behind their hubs, and he is the can-do guy, helping farm start-ups learn to
manage their natural resources efficiently and profitably. But when I asked to
video him, doing what he does, he guffawed, “Only if I have a bag over my
head!” </div>
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Some of
Stienbarger’s reluctance to stand in the limelight might be well founded. According
to Rob Guttridge, Waste Reduction Specialist at <a href="http://www.clark.wa.gov/environment/index.asp">Clark County Environmental
Services</a>, “Some people steer clear of anything they think is related to
government. They think we’re looking for infractions, and of course, a program
director, Stienbarger in this case, would represent that. But the county’s role
in funding programs like the Small Farms and Watershed Stewardship programs is
only meant to improve the landowners’ quality of life. We aren’t regulatory at
all, but people perceive us that way anyway. So we stay in the background.” </div>
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Neither is
Stienbarger’s directorship always easy. When asked for a comment about the
influence Stienbarger had in her life, one woman said, “No. I won’t say. Go ask
his wife.” Stienbarger’s wife, Cindy Stienbarger, Residential Sustainability
and Outreach Supervisor at Clark County Environmental Services, was unavailable
for comment. But, according to Guttridge, there are people still angry over his
firing of three heads of the Master Gardener program seven years ago. According
to reports, there had been serious in-fighting that Stienbarger settled by
rebuilding the program with an all-new staff and location.</div>
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Click here to view the 2012 Small Farm Expo</div>
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Today we’re lined
up for workshops at the Small Farms Expo. It’s taking place at the 78<sup>th</sup>
St. Heritage Farm, whose buildings also house Extension offices. Whether it’s
Lorrie Conway’s “Hands on Cheese Making,” Tony Migas’ “Mushroom Cultivation” or
Denise Smee’s “Conquering Mount Manure, “we drift quietly from place to place,
taking in what we want from the array of land management offerings. We’re young,
we have our nursing babies with us; we’re 80 years old, farming trees now that we’re
widowed and too stiff to bale hay; we’re professionals, looking for ways to
avoid chemical weed control methods; we’re farmers, trying to make our farms
yield enough that we can quit our day jobs. We’re all benefitting from Doug
Stienbarger’s directorship at WSU Extension. </div>
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Clark County
Environmental Services, Water Conservation District, 4-H, Juvenile Justice,
Partners in Careers, the National Weather Service as well as WSU have shared
interests in the Heritage farm. Some programs are privately funded, some
non-profit funded, and some get governmental money. Doug explained that funding
for various programs can come from anywhere, and that programs and funding
changes all the time. He said, “We WSU staff-members are actually tenants here.
In 1989, the county agreed to supply office space, utilities and whatnot, and
the university supplies the faculty.” There’s a kind of beauty in the
arrangement, and a sense that important ground is being broken here. Again.</div>
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Again, because,
until 70 years ago, the <a href="http://www.clark.wa.gov/farm/history.html">78<sup>th</sup>
St. Heritage Farm</a> was the county poor farm. In a program dating back to
1898, the farm housed and fed the homeless in exchange for work at farm duties.
The 78<sup>th</sup> St. property was given to the county by the Anderson family
in 1871. After the original building burned down in 1922, the county replaced
it with one that looked more like an Italian villa than a poor farm. Those were
the years when Washington cities were establishing their first radio transmissions,
Time magazine published its first issue, J Edgar Hoover took over the FBI and
the poor farm provided a setting where impoverished people could work, live and
eat. </div>
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When you walk
along the thick walled halls of Stienbarger’s building today, you can almost
hear the tread of a hundred years of people inching toward a new start in life.
It’s because they’re coming back. The
same acres that fed the homeless in 1912 are stocking the county food bank in
2012. This time the crops are grown by juvenile offenders doing restorative
community service, by displaced veterans who are putting their lives back
together and by volunteers wanting to reconnect with community, “working
together like we used to do.” </div>
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As folks around
town line up for a shared seasonal garden plot and a renewed community
experience at the 78th St. gardens, others are moving back to the country, and
acre by acre, hoping to turn their land into money. After a farm acreage low in 2003, USDA
statistics from 2007 showed that figure increasing. Today there are more than
2,000 farms in Clark County, the average farm cultivating less than 40 acres,
and these are the kinds of people Stienbarger is there to serve.. Instead of major farm businesses growing
hundreds of acres of one or two crops, many farmers in Clark County today come
from urban or non-farm backgrounds. For quite a few, their farm businesses
started out as a hobby or a second income. Some of them knew little or nothing
about farming or even marketing when they started. That’s why Stienbarger runs
annual 12-week <a href="http://clark.wsu.edu/horticulture/smallAcreageProgram/LivingOnLand.html">Living
on the Land</a> and <a href="http://county.wsu.edu/clark/agriculture/business/Pages/default.aspx">AG
Business</a> seminars and that’s where his <a href="http://smallfarms.wsu.edu/farms/locate_search.asp">Farm Finder</a>
database comes in. Product information for any farm in Washington or Oregon is
on the WSU Extension website, and people can get the information using the
tool. “It’s not 100 percent accurate,” Stienbarger admits. “There are farms on
there that are gone, because I only hear about needed updates if somebody tells
me. Plus, a lot of what we have is happenstance. There are 1,700 farms in that
data-base, so there’s no way I can check on each one regularly.” Yet,
Stienbarger is the man who pores over Farm Finder visitor stats gleaning IP
addresses as if they were baby chicks, and acts like a man who would check and
update every contact himself, given the time.</div>
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Doug Stienbarger
says farms and farmers are as varied as tomato strains, each farmer unique and
each farm producing its own special harvests according to its own business
plan. CSA’s, roadside stands, restaurant supply farms, commercial nurseries,
dairies, poultry farms or what-have-you, they all have one thing in common. They all have a better chance of success
because of the programs Stienbarger runs. According to him, they are Clark
County’s stars, but if that’s true, he must be the sun.</div>
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<a href="http://vimeo.com/40127207" target="_blank">Click here to view Lorrie Conway's new lambs</a></div>
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<br />DTMcIntoshhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13803402453560399582noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1263545011066848155.post-14647502933953870882012-03-25T14:06:00.000-07:002012-03-25T14:06:47.291-07:00<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgwlTpkPzszki4o6EPauvQzyw1F4eP0MLcW7iTJEeY77_5Vn_7ro04QTYDorY7L2leNcAO7MA2Sh7WrJTtfkEfGULGM6k0uIA6QSeBdZO_8A03igxtkmk6yVCMPFuyqJZ_rrremzAGKip4/s1600/VFM+Rick%27s.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgwlTpkPzszki4o6EPauvQzyw1F4eP0MLcW7iTJEeY77_5Vn_7ro04QTYDorY7L2leNcAO7MA2Sh7WrJTtfkEfGULGM6k0uIA6QSeBdZO_8A03igxtkmk6yVCMPFuyqJZ_rrremzAGKip4/s1600/VFM+Rick%27s.jpg" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Rick's Wild Mushrooms at Vancouver Farmers Market</td><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><br /></td></tr>
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Spring-like sunny weather drove people out of their homes Saturday, and many flocked to <a href="http://www.vancouverfarmersmarket.com/" target="_blank">Vancouver Farmers Market.</a> For some, early spring is about green onions or the first asparagus. Others' springtime indicator is all about morel mushrooms and, for that, Rick's Wild Mushrooms is the place to go. </div>
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Because most of the mushrooms he harvests are foraged and are not easily mass-produced, Rick provides highly sought after <a href="http://thegreatmorel.com/index.shtml" target="_blank">morels</a>, <a href="http://www.wildernesscollege.com/identifying-wild-mushrooms.html" target="_blank">chanterelles</a>, porcinis, and others in season. </div>
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Rick said he can offer fresh mushrooms for several months each year, much longer than their short harvesting season would normally allow. When asked how he does it, he said, "We go up really high". With snow sometimes still on the ground in July in Southwest Washington's Cascade Range, it makes perfect sense.</div>
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Without an internet listing or even a publicized phone number, Rick has no
trouble selling his specialty mushrooms, <a href="http://www.wildernesscollege.com/fiddlehead-ferns.html" target="_blank">fern fiddle-heads</a> and nettle
greens. Later will come wild huckleberries. </div>
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The products he doesn't sell at the market or at <a href="http://www.vancouverfood.coop/" target="_blank">Vancouver Food Co-op</a>,
he markets to specialty restaurants. According to Shawn Merrill at the co-op, certain varieties of mushrooms also freeze well, and can be found year-round at the co-op. Among them are the chanterelles, porcinis, and matsutakes.</div>
<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"> If you're a mycovore, you may consider joining the </span><a href="http://www.psms.org/rules.php" style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;" target="_blank">Puget Sound Mycological Society</a><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;">, and learn how and where to become a forager yourself.</span><br />
<br />DTMcIntoshhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13803402453560399582noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1263545011066848155.post-41886839578703496952012-03-07T14:52:00.000-08:002012-03-07T14:52:05.908-08:00What about that snail on a leaf?<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjk2GPIYXtIWkMfbxhJxxg0epmibNi3rSpywNsdhhjSJZKmyS_aim1wEvSdpQw6a66EOpDr7G88hVDjS0h84RumFX58K4GCFXsZASwpooVaiwB7Hdhmb5fW7AFTlh3AJZjBbAzeYYl9HYg/s1600/slow+food+snail.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjk2GPIYXtIWkMfbxhJxxg0epmibNi3rSpywNsdhhjSJZKmyS_aim1wEvSdpQw6a66EOpDr7G88hVDjS0h84RumFX58K4GCFXsZASwpooVaiwB7Hdhmb5fW7AFTlh3AJZjBbAzeYYl9HYg/s1600/slow+food+snail.jpg" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">We gardeners hate those disgusting leaf-chomping
snails, but we love the <u><a href="http://www.slowfoodusa.org/index.php/programs/details/ark_of_taste/">Slow
Food USA <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></i>ARK <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">of
</i>TASTE</a></u> snail. When an Ark of Taste snail is shown beside an
available food listing, it means that its grower is helping preserve a food variety
that industrial standardization threatens to eliminate. In the United States
today, there are some 200 foods on <a href="http://www.slowfoodusa.org/">Slow
Food’s</a> <a href="http://www.slowfoodusa.org/downloads/USArkofTaste_01.20_.10_.pdf">endangered
list</a>.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; text-indent: .5in;">
<span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">While the Slow Food movement in general attempts
to improve sustainability practices worldwide, one of its close-to-home
activities is that of raising public awareness to the weakening availability of
some wonderful food varieties. Here in the Pacific Northwest that list includes
geoduck, Olympia native oyster, black republican cherry and Ozette potato.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; text-indent: 0.5in;">
<span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif";">Slow Food says that over 800 varities of food world-wide are on the endangered list. The good news is anybody can be a part of biodiversity just by producing, selling or consuming foods that are on the list.</span></div>DTMcIntoshhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13803402453560399582noreply@blogger.com0Vancouver, WA 98686, USA45.71942 -122.621249845.6307325 -122.7791783 45.8081075 -122.4633213tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1263545011066848155.post-61500417476939567342012-03-07T11:29:00.000-08:002012-03-07T13:56:16.480-08:00CSA/CSP Farm Tours Announced<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhKIRE7nH_VRqTgCE8SbfdPY7qWMY2j0DVG243VjMpk5RWfQhrc_RpPra5dNiwL9lLmmnk7twmBXzBQP-Ouoa2AuOHiUqajGVtTdg_TLq1d49_EFRInsK-BQIKQyn-EMBKR2k1SLOgke80/s1600/crocus.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="160" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhKIRE7nH_VRqTgCE8SbfdPY7qWMY2j0DVG243VjMpk5RWfQhrc_RpPra5dNiwL9lLmmnk7twmBXzBQP-Ouoa2AuOHiUqajGVtTdg_TLq1d49_EFRInsK-BQIKQyn-EMBKR2k1SLOgke80/s200/crocus.jpg" width="200" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Crocus announces spring</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; text-indent: .5in;">
<span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif";">It's that magical time of year. Lenten roses,
crocuses and primroses are in bloom, and Southwest Washington farmers are
posting their 2012 community supported agriculture (CSA and CSP) shares and
events. </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; text-indent: .5in;">
<br /></div>
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<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif";">March 21</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; text-indent: .5in;">
<span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif";"><a href="http://huntersgreens.com/">Hunter’s Greens</a></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; text-indent: .5in;">
<span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif";">Farm tour, “A
Journey in Sustainability” </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; text-indent: .5in;">
<span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif";">2:00</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; text-indent: .5in;">
<span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif";">11116 N.E.
156th Street</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; text-indent: .5in;">
<span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif";">Brush
Prairie, WA 98606</span></div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; text-indent: .5in;">
<span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif";">Jim said: I
plan to discuss how concepts and philosophies of the <a href="http://feeds.feedburner.com/worldwatch/all" target="_blank">sustainability</a> movement, bio-regionalism, appropriate technology and permaculture inform the farming we
do here at Hunters’ Greens.</span> <span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif";">The tour
originated as a tour for the CSA farmers, so I may tend towards the technical
nuts and bolts</span></div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; text-indent: .5in;">
<span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif";">March 24</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; text-indent: .5in;">
<span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif";"><a href="http://www.inspirationplantation.com/">Inspiration Plantation</a></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; text-indent: .5in;">
<span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif";">Farm tour
and pasteurized meat tasting event</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; text-indent: .5in;">
<span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif";">1:00 – 3:00
PM</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; text-indent: .5in;">
<span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif";">24311 NW
24th Ave</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; text-indent: .5in;">
<span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif";">Ridgefield,
WA 98642</span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif";">Farmgirl Jen
said: Join Farmer Matt for a walking
tour around IP!</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; text-indent: .5in;">
<span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif";">See, hear
and learn all about the past, present and future of this Diversified Family
Farm and get all your Farm & Animal questions answered!</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; text-indent: .5in;">
<span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif";">Also... Join
FarmGirl Jen for our Annual Meat Tasting and get your Meat CSP & FarmStore
questions answered! </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; text-indent: .5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; text-indent: .5in;">
<span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif";">April 14</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; text-indent: .5in;">
<span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif";"><a href="http://clark.wsu.edu/calendar/details.asp?event=973">Small Acreage Expo</a></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; text-indent: .5in;">
<span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif";">Details not
yet listed check website for updates</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; text-indent: .5in;">
<span style="display: none; font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif";">Eric Lambert said: </span><span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif";">Eric Lambert, Small Acreage Program Coordinator, <a href="http://clark.wsu.edu/" target="_blank">WSU Clark County Extension</a>, said: The Small Acreage Expo is a day of education,
community building and fun. Come and learn about topics you're interested in
and meet local agencies that serve our community. </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; text-indent: .5in;">
<br /></div>DTMcIntoshhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13803402453560399582noreply@blogger.com0Vancouver, WA, USA45.6387281 -122.661486145.5499126 -122.8194146 45.727543600000004 -122.50355760000001tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1263545011066848155.post-19260749864578617592012-02-28T20:24:00.002-08:002012-03-07T07:53:41.021-08:00VANCOUVER FOOD COOPERATIVE WANTS TO DO MORE FOR LOCAL FARMERS<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh4iaEKHZ4eIF9qQDIrOaTW8x7hEtE5AW3l85NjmJv3vWssxhyqqNpg0MMnMxVRtfX3xIJod5r_OtfZLIYqhtPzlL6qHKJ9UJ5RYSBvxhfo0cYW_FuBgrfXTeZgZRhXhAACOpOX0hbMhfg/s1600/VFCveggies.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh4iaEKHZ4eIF9qQDIrOaTW8x7hEtE5AW3l85NjmJv3vWssxhyqqNpg0MMnMxVRtfX3xIJod5r_OtfZLIYqhtPzlL6qHKJ9UJ5RYSBvxhfo0cYW_FuBgrfXTeZgZRhXhAACOpOX0hbMhfg/s1600/VFCveggies.jpg" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Farm fresh produce at Vancouver Food Co-op</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
<br />
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif; font-size: small;">I’ve been looking for a centralized meeting place among
local community supported farms in Southwest </span><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;">Washington…a one-stop website
where consumers can quickly locate farm specific items. </span><a href="http://www.swwa-csafarms.com/Index.php" style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;">SW WA CSA Farms</a><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"> has a website
where many of our local farmers are listed. The website includes basic
information about how the Community Supported Agriculture (CSA) program works.
The </span><a href="http://www.swwa-csafarms.com/Index.php" style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;">SW WA CSA Farms</a><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"> site
is a starting place, but it is not interactive. It provides contact information.
Only. In order to find out each farm’s features, a person would have to
personally interview each and every CSA in Southwest Washington. I did manage
to visit two farms so far, </span><a href="http://northwestorganicfarms.com/" style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;">Northwest
Organic Farm</a><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"> and </span><a href="http://farmfoodlocal.blogspot.com/2012/02/interest-in-pasture-raised-meat.html" style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;">Inspiration
Plantation</a><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;">. (See previous posts), but the big project will take time.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;">
Clark County needs an informational hub now, today. Our renewed
interest in community interaction and local food production has engendered a need
for cohesive, interactive information about local farm products. Nationally,
Americans are trending back from social isolation toward a renewed sense of
community, and many wonderful information hubs are cropping up. Kirk Wright
wants the <a href="http://www.vancouverfood.coop/">Vancouver Food Cooperative</a>
to become that communications hub for Southwest Washington's self-sustaining local farmers and consumers.
</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;">
Wright, President of <a href="http://www.vancouverfood.coop/">Vancouver Food Cooperative</a> (VFC), in
an interview this week, said that while farm fresh produce, dairy and meat
products are not their only interests, these products are high in priority at
the co-op, and he thinks VFC can help local producers succeed. </div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;">
As Wright sees it, a dynamic, informative website is an
essential part of economic success in today’s world. Besides providing local
producers a conveniently located storefront for their products, Wright says a
strong web presence is an essential component in linking interested consumers
with local producers. VFC is revamping and upgrading its web presence right now.
Wright sees a dynamic web presence as key to the co-op's future as well as
being important for local farmers.<br />
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Through a VFC supported blog feed, farmers could make crop
announcements when specific crops are ready to sell, other community programs
could announce their events, and co-op members could work out co-op related
communications.</div>
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Besides blog feeds, co-op volunteers dream of fact sheets
for each co-op item, including links to additional information and recipes. <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Azure Farms</i> <a href="http://www.vancouverfood.coop/products/Azure-Farm-Quinoa%2C-Organic-%285-lbs.%29.html">quinoa</a>,
for example, is one of the world's "wonder foods". People want to put
quinoa on their tables but have no idea how to incorporate it into tasty menus.
Wright says that with cooking guidelines and <a href="http://allrecipes.com/HowTo/Quinoa/Detail.aspx">links to tried and tasty
recipes</a>, more people would turn quinoa into a staple of their weekly diets,
and come back to the VFC website for more. He said, “I want the VFC website to
provide this kind of information for all its products, including in depth
information on local farmers’ goods.”</div>
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Because the co-op and its website development is volunteer
dependent, it takes time for ideas to turn into action. While volunteerism for
the co-op is on the upswing, farmer involvement in the co-op has not yet
increased as much as Wright hoped it would. "Local farmers are
quirky," he said, "While some are anxious to get involved with one
another and with our co-op, others are very private and avoid contact with the
public."</div>
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VFC opened its new, larger, more central location at 1002
Main Street last fall, allowing the co-op to expand its inventory and be more assessable
to the public. In order to promote local food production, about 25 percent of
VFC's square footage is set aside for locally produced fruits and vegetables. The
acquisition of a large two-door cooler has increased the co-op's efficiency,
and they hope to add a display freezer with glass doors in order to better
display locally grown meats as well as an open-air refrigerated produce display
case.</div>
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"Growth has been phenomenal," says Wright, "We
started our first storefront with an inventory of a couple of hundred items and
now we're up to a well-stocked store of nearly two thousand different
products." Wright attributes the co-op’s progress mainly to its
volunteers. Part of the upturn is because<a href="http://astoriacoop.org/wp/">
Astoria Cooperative</a>, a highly successful food co-op in Astoria, Oregon,
recently donated a number of bulk food bins to VFC. “The bins provide us with a
safe and sanitary way to offer grains, seeds, nuts and cereals,” Wright reports.
Another reason for the co-op’s success is because the USDA has identified downtown
Vancouver as a "<a href="http://www.ers.usda.gov/data/fooddesert/index.htm">food
desert</a>," meaning that downtown residents lack adequate access to
quality groceries. VFC allows residents, many without cars, to walk to
the co-op rather than going grocery shopping on public transit or being limited
to convenience store fare.</div>
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Seating before a stylish hardwood counter at the front of the
store gives Wright special pride. “It is the heart of the store,” he says, “a
place where community can meet.” Whether Vancouver Food Cooperative will become
Vancouver’s farm-product information center depends on community members,
farmers and volunteers. If you want to help, co-op staff will be happy to hear
from you.</div>
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<a href="http://www.vancouverfood.coop/pages/Contact-VFC.html">http://www.vancouverfood.coop/pages/Contact-VFC.html</a></div>
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<br /></div>DTMcIntoshhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13803402453560399582noreply@blogger.com0Vancouver, WA, USA45.6387281 -122.661486145.5499126 -122.8194146 45.727543600000004 -122.50355760000001tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1263545011066848155.post-24283312345908782742012-02-18T18:57:00.000-08:002012-03-07T13:57:34.320-08:00Interest in pasture-raised meat is mushrooming in Ridgefield<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi1T4rWZW0UU0JNKPeL6sPxXtwH6HBY2L8rPH-6GNHgOTgEQJIdmanc8mJXFTVGzhlgHx8P3hJ9YJktE95B7udkFCNJpcFV1Z-bXOwCO2UkCgLBOqWmAPBDjlSVpJW8r1-8JzXnybp47AY/s1600/inspirationchicks.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="233" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi1T4rWZW0UU0JNKPeL6sPxXtwH6HBY2L8rPH-6GNHgOTgEQJIdmanc8mJXFTVGzhlgHx8P3hJ9YJktE95B7udkFCNJpcFV1Z-bXOwCO2UkCgLBOqWmAPBDjlSVpJW8r1-8JzXnybp47AY/s320/inspirationchicks.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Matt Schwab explaining moveable chicken coop theory to farm visitors</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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RIDGEFIELD, Washington-- Before today, Matt
and Jen Schwab say, when they opened their farm one afternoon each month, maybe
five or six visitors would come. On cold and rainy February 18, 2012, more than
50 people showed up to take a look.</div>
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Visitors entered the
24 acres of fields near the farm store. Inside the gate 230 new brooder hens
clucked and pecked and next to them a
small herd of piglets roamed free. Nearby were Chinese geese, Indian runner ducks
and a variety of chickens; but the real attraction was Matt Schwab, farm owner.
<br />
<a name='more'></a></div>
<div style="font-family: Calibri; font-size: 11.0pt; margin: 0in;">
Schwab introduced
his farm with reference to<a href="http://michaelpollan.com/"> Michael Pollan</a>'s
book, <a href="http://michaelpollan.com/books/"><span style="text-decoration: underline;">Omnivore's Dilemma</span></a>.
With this reference and others, Schwab let visitors know that
Inspiration Plantation's "new farming" methods depart from the Ag
school concepts of 1950. Instead of permanent, stinking acre-long coops, Schwab's
coops are open-air structures built on logs and moved from site to site around
the farm weekly. Ditto for the pig, lamb
and calf pens. This way, say the Schwabs, the fields are constantly
reinvigorated.</div>
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<br /></div>
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Built by his
ancestors in the 1880s, Schwab inherited the 24 acres in 2004 and started
farming with a travel trailer and six chickens. Today the farm's email list
alone has grown to over 600, Jen says, and interest in the farm has mushroomed.
</div>
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<br /></div>
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When you want
chicken or duck eggs, you can drive onto the farm any hour of the day or night
to pick up eggs, leaving your payment on the honor system. And when you are
ready to order your grass fed and pasture raised meat and poultry, Matt and Jen
will make sure your order is processed just the way you want it. Order forms
for beef, lamb, pork and poultry are available on line at <a href="http://www.inspirationplantation.com/">Inspiration Plantation</a>.
Harvest dates for poultry are varied from May through October, while harvest
dates for beef, lamb and pork are June and October only. Don't delay! If the size of the crowd on the farm
today was any indication, meat and poultry shares in Matt and Jen's free range
farm will be sold out soon.<br />
<br />
The Inspiration Plantation will offer another farm tour in March. Those interested can visit the <a href="http://www.inspirationplantation.com/" target="_blank">website</a> and sign up for email alerts on tour scheduling. </div>DTMcIntoshhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13803402453560399582noreply@blogger.com0Ridgefield, WA 98642, USA45.815115 -122.742600945.770846999999996 -122.8215649 45.859383 -122.6636369tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1263545011066848155.post-27006937695557482512012-02-16T18:49:00.000-08:002012-03-07T05:33:04.855-08:00Farmers can be Tweeters<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjPUpfwrH9HPSPZkl09xe42suxjwtCTnprHIkbGy__vqklXWPKFdOnvhLEf5OISZPNgos-dHpm6yA4PfQrjAXf3CBmQ2dd8f5_MxPyt0YoWgCEVm2M7RjlFf8Z9ObyFpX7BbKRNQK7UH0U/s1600/AgChatFoundationLogo_CMYK.gif" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjPUpfwrH9HPSPZkl09xe42suxjwtCTnprHIkbGy__vqklXWPKFdOnvhLEf5OISZPNgos-dHpm6yA4PfQrjAXf3CBmQ2dd8f5_MxPyt0YoWgCEVm2M7RjlFf8Z9ObyFpX7BbKRNQK7UH0U/s1600/AgChatFoundationLogo_CMYK.gif" /></a></div>
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Want an easier way to get messages to your buyers? Try Tweets!</div>
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<br /></div>
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Among this year's
crop of websites is one that promises farmers they are just a step away from
effective blogs, tweets and email campaigns. Targeting farmers, <a href="http://agchat.org/"> AgChat</a>
offers real help with social advertising. AgChat's advantage over many other
attempts to connect farmers into social media. AgChat is a Foundation with
sponsors who pay to help make it meet farmers' social media needs.</div>
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<br />
<div style="font-family: Calibri; font-size: 11.0pt; margin: 0in;">
<a href="http://agchat.org/agvocates">Agvocacy</a> offers Agchat, a weekly twitter
chat at 8 pm Eastern time, where all a person has to do is log in to Twitter or
go to the Agvocacy website.</div>
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<a href="http://agchat.org/agvocates">Agvocacy</a> defines <a href="http://twitter.com/#search?q=%23agchat">#AgChat</a> as "a weekly moderated conversation on
Twitter for people in the business of raising food, feed, fuel, fiber."
Visitors can share viewpoints and ideas about issues impacting agriculture,
such as sustainability, water, communications, agronomy, animal welfare, USDA
programs, mainstream media coverage and public perceptions of farming; or, they
can just sit back and watch the conversation unfold. </div>
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Sister chat, <a href="http://twitter.com/#search?q=%23foodchat">#FoodChat</a>, also a creation
of <a href="http://agchat.org/agvocates">Agvocacy</a>, takes place on the third
Tuesday of each month. It is tailored more specifically to the interests of
consumers, nutrition professionals, foodies and influencers of food choices. <a href="https://twitter.com/#%21/search/%23foodchat">#FoodChat</a> gives its
followers an opportunity to “meet a farmer” and also helps those in agriculture
learn from consumers.</div>
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<br /></div>DTMcIntoshhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13803402453560399582noreply@blogger.com0Vancouver, WA, USA45.6387281 -122.661486145.5499126 -122.8194146 45.727543600000004 -122.50355760000001tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1263545011066848155.post-60982051563770270672012-02-14T20:59:00.000-08:002012-02-16T19:00:39.271-08:00Inspiration Plantation (CSP) Tour on Saturday, February 18<br />
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Have you heard about
the <a href="http://www.inspirationplantation.com/" target="_blank">Inspiration Plantation</a> tour on Saturday, February 18 at 1:30 pm?</div>
<div style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11.0pt; margin: 0in;">
Inspiration Plantation
offers shares in meat, poultry and egg productions and seeks to aid in the
marketing of other locally produced foods. If you want locally raised meat and poultry, this will be a great place to go. You can bet I'll be there.</div>
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They posted:</div>
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</div>
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Meat
CSP Info Q&A Session and Mini
Farm Tour</div>
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This
Saturday February 18th, 1:30pm</div>
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<span style="font-size: small;"> We
will explaining our Meat CSP, answer any & all questions about it as well as
our farm and farming practices. We will also take a mini farm tour!
There is no need to RSVP, simply show up! Please try to be
on time, as this event starts promptly at 1:30pm. Also, be sure to dress
appropriate for the weather - boots are always recommended!</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: small;">Hope ya'll have a
great week and we look forward
to seein' some of ya this Saturday! </span></div>
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<span style="font-size: small;"></span></div>
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Matt & Jen Schwab</div>
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Farmer & FarmGirl</div>
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Inspiration Plantation</div>
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</div>
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a Diversified Family Farm</div>
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</div>
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24311 NW 24th Ave</div>
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Ridgefield, WA 98642</div>
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Their website has more, go to <a href="http://www.inspirationplantation.com/">http://www.inspirationplantation.com/</a></div>
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</div>DTMcIntoshhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13803402453560399582noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1263545011066848155.post-90993509569062369722012-02-09T20:29:00.000-08:002012-03-07T05:35:51.168-08:00CSA share-holders, share your food-share experience at Farm Food Local<br />
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VANCOUVER,
Washington -- If you are a CSA share-holder in Southwest Washington, please
share your experience.</div>
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How did you find
your CSA? </div>
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How did you decide
which one to join? </div>
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Have you been happy
with the food your CSA provides?</div>
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How has CSA
membership improved life for you and your family?</div>
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Any tips for people
still deciding whether they want to join a CSA?</div>
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<br /></div>
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</div>DTMcIntoshhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13803402453560399582noreply@blogger.com0Vancouver, WA, USA45.6387281 -122.661486145.5499126 -122.8194146 45.727543600000004 -122.50355760000001tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1263545011066848155.post-17439433157517039642012-02-09T20:24:00.001-08:002012-03-07T05:37:52.820-08:00CSA farms, post your thoughts at Farm Food Local<br />
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VANCOUVER,
Washington --Southwest Washington is home to at least 2 dozen community
supported farms. If you are one of them, please post here at Farm Food Local
about your farm.</div>
<div style="font-family: Calibri; font-size: 11.0pt; margin: 0in;">
How is selling
shares in your harvest working for you?</div>
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What can people get
at your farm that is unique and special about your farm?</div>
<div style="font-family: Calibri; font-size: 11.0pt; margin: 0in;">
Tell us how you
started, what you've learned and why people buy shares from you.</div>
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Many more people
want to join a CSA, so how can they find out what you offer and how to sign up?</div>DTMcIntoshhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13803402453560399582noreply@blogger.com0Vancouver, WA, USA45.6387281 -122.661486145.5499126 -122.8194146 45.727543600000004 -122.50355760000001tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1263545011066848155.post-81263960907813227712012-02-08T17:44:00.000-08:002012-03-07T05:40:36.451-08:00Buying into a CSA means no weeds to pull<span style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue",Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Joining a CSA doesn't mean rolling up your pant legs and getting out a hoe.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue",Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">After reading that some CSA shares sell out early, I chose one almost at random and put my check in the mail.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue",Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Well, don't be like me. After mailing the application form and check, I promptly forgot which one I joined. I checked my bank account for a week, thinking the check would post and I could see the name of my payee. No such luck. Turns out farmers are so busy farming they don't get to the bank very often. </span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue",Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">I finally went back to the list of websites I'd found on the SWWA CSA website, clicked through them, and decided I would just call all of them until I found the one that had a check with my name on it. </span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue",Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">I got lucky and found my CSA with the first call. </span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial;">Smart peole would make those calls before sending the check, but, </span><span style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue",Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">I have to confess, I'm elated with the CSA I've joined. </span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue",Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Owning a share in a CSA feels like being a part-owner of that farm, but better because I won't have to pull weeds!</span> DTMcIntoshhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13803402453560399582noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1263545011066848155.post-82136940700266025272012-02-01T17:18:00.000-08:002012-03-07T05:45:42.353-08:00Subscribing to a CSA? Shop early<br />
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People in Clark County can subscribe
to a farm’s crop harvest, but how is it done? </div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; line-height: 150%;">
According to Shawn Morrill, store manager
at the Vancouver Food Co-op, unless you already know a CSA farmer or member,
subscribing to a farm crop, or CSA, requires effort. Washington State University Small Farms Team,
Local Harvest, Inc. and the SW WA CSA are some of the organizations that have
lists of farms selling shares of their harvests, and there are others. But
getting a list of farms is only the beginning. </div>
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Some farms offer a short twelve-week
share, while others boast as long as a twenty-four week season. Some offer only
a few vegetables, while others offer a wide variety of both fruits and
vegetables as well as cheese, eggs, poultry and more. Some are simply
alternative farms, while others are holistic, 100 percent organic, vegan, the
list of choices goes on. Costs for a share and delivery options vary greatly as
well. </div>
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While it may be under development,
there seems to be no truly all-inclusive clearinghouse of information available
for Southwest Washington, so that interested people have to search websites,
make phone calls and even visit farms before being able to decide which CSA to
join.</div>
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A word of caution, farmers recommend
that you reserve your share early, because shares in a popular CSA can sell out
long before the growing season begins. </div>DTMcIntoshhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13803402453560399582noreply@blogger.com2Vancouver, WA 98686, USA45.71942 -122.621249845.6307325 -122.7791783 45.8081075 -122.4633213tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1263545011066848155.post-6896359223461121472012-02-01T15:38:00.000-08:002012-03-07T05:42:31.734-08:00Subscription Farming<br />
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Buying shares is
no longer just a term for the national stock exchange, and food-purchasing contracts
are one of Clark County’s popular new trends in household grocery buying.</div>
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A growing number
of farmers and householders in Southwest Washington, as in communities
throughout North America, Europe and Japan, are entering into yearly food
harvest contracts. For a contracted sum of money, the farmer supplies households
in his network with a percentage of his weekly harvests throughout the growing
season. Instead of just hoping to sell their produce at a roadside stand or at
a farmers’ market, many farmers are organizing sales through Community
Supported Agriculture, better known as CSA’s.</div>
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A CSA is a group
of individuals who pledge support to a farm operation in exchange for a share
of the farm’s food production. Shareholders typically pledge support in advance
to cover the anticipated costs of the farm’s operation for the year, and in return,
they receive shares of the farm’s bounty throughout the growing season. Most
CSA’s offer a diversity of vegetables, fruits and herbs, with some also offering
shares in eggs, meat or dairy products. According to the USDA, the concept of community-supported
agriculture, or “subscription farming”, began in Switzerland in the 1960’s, and
by 1993, the United States had 400 member CSA’s.</div>
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According to Southwest
Washington’s SWWA CSA Farms website 16 subscription farms in Clark County have
shares to offer interested individuals for the 2012 growing season.</div>
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<br /></div>DTMcIntoshhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13803402453560399582noreply@blogger.com09868645.6387281 -122.661486145.5499126 -122.8194146 45.727543600000004 -122.50355760000001