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Posts Tagged ‘community’

The Carlton County Farmers Market in Cloquet, that is. I’m planning to be there most Saturdays from 9 am – noon, if the weather’s decent. We set up in the parking lot near Premiere Theatres, which is off of Highway 33, so you can’t miss us. This week I’m bringing broccoli, cauliflower, cabbage, a little spinach, some beet greens, salad turnips, radishes, kale, head lettuce, and scallions. Come early for the best selection, but don’t hesitate to stop by later, either!

The other vendors have a lot of goodies I can’t resist, like homemade bread, cookies, jam, and fresh eggs, plus meat if you don’t already have a freezer full like I do. This Saturday there’s some sort of kids’ activity planned during market hours, and kids can always hunt for the Market Mouse (a great idea if I ever heard one!). Next Saturday, July 15th, stop by for a delicious demonstration in memory of Emma Olson, The Bread Lady. It’ll feature Emma’s Finnish cardamom bread as well as bread from bakers Elizabeth Naglak and Terry Sharkey, plus jams and jellies made by farmers market members. Hope to see you there!

 

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It’s CSA Day!

Every day is CSA day in my world, but … Small Farm Central organizes a more official CSA Day each year to promote CSA sign ups, and today’s the day.

Our local twist on CSA Sign Up Day is the CSA Guild’s Local CSA Farm Open House on Sunday, March 19, 2017, 2-5 pm at Clyde Iron. If you’d like to meet the people who will be growing your food for this season, this is your opportunity to interview the contestants — er, farmers– face to face. Or, you can quietly gather business cards and then order a beer. It’s up to you.

One more date to make note of if you’re considering Stone’s Throw Farm CSA: March 15 is the deadline for our wildly popular Early Bird Discount. Sign up or just check out the details here.

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Elden and I still like Dave Hanlon’s homemade bread the very best, but Duluth’s Best Bread has been making some Stone’s Throw Farm members (and their farmer) very happy each week late this season. Yesterday we got our first delivery of their croissants, and I think I saw some drool out there on the porch where farm members pick up their shares.

Our CSA season is ending next week, so I was happy to see via the DNT that I can pick up a few loaves at the DBB bakery when I need good bread this winter. (Psst, that means you Duluthians can get it, too.)

Starting last week, they opened their doors to the public, but only on Thursdays from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m., selling their 1- and 2-pound sourdough bread loaves for $4.50 and $7, $1 off the usual price, and selling croissants for $3, a 50-cent discount.

But their focus is not on having a retail store.

“It’s not our goal at all to have people come in and buy,” said Robert Lillegard, 29, a freelance food writer who wrote “The Duluth Grill Cookbook.” “It’s to make good-quality bread and get it out to people where they are.”

They count Perk Place, Alakef Cup, the Whole Foods Co-op and Lake Avenue Cafe in Duluth and Wednesday Bakery in Superior as among their customers. They also sell their loaves through local farmers markets and Stones Throw Farm, a community-supported agriculture program.

“We’re slowly introducing it to places that appreciate it,” Robert said. “People really like it. If there’s an office with at least 10 people who want it, we’ll make deliveries to offices.”

Band together, folks!

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Farmers Take the Stove ⋅ Tuesday, December 2 ⋅ 5:30 – 7:30 pm at Peace Church in Duluth, MNStove_sm

This much-anticipated event is a fundraiser for the LS-SFA, with a splendid dinner grown, prepared, and served by farmers and LS-SFA members. Also featured is a unique “sustainable silent auction” with farm experiences, local goods, and mouth-watering desserts up for bid.

Tickets available at the door or online by clicking here are $12 for adults, $5 for kids 6-12, and free for kids ages 5 and under.

Hope to see you there!

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HarvestFestPosterDon’t miss the FREE Lake Superior Harvest Festival this Saturday, September 6, at Bayfront Festival Park. It’s the 21st annual showcase of the Lake Superior Sustainable Farming Association, and the crew from Stone’s Throw Farm will be at the farmers market from 10 am-4 pm selling produce. This year, the festivities run into the evening as well thanks to a collaboration with the Twin Ports Bridge Festival. Parking is free from 10-4, too. 

See you there!

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Card2013Seasons

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AutumnSaladBehold a beautiful autumn salad made up almost entirely of vegetables included in our final Stone’s Throw Farm summer share box of the season, way back in mid-October. Salad artist:  friend and farm member Alisa DeRider. Looks good enough to eat!

I love it when farm members send me photos or stories of what they did with their veggies — otherwise I have no idea what happens to them when they leave the farm. For example, after she got her canning tomatoes, Jane sent me a photo of her Stone’s Throw Farm tomato sauce simmering on the stove (as well as enthusiastic & encouraging notes on a regular basis — not that she’s the only one to do so!). I’m happy to receive any and all recipes that people have tried and liked, and I really appreciate it when farm members respond to questions I’ve posed in the weekly newsletter (e.g., how do you like this new variety of ___?)

stoveOnce a year, I get to see and taste what the professionals would do with some of our produce at Farmers Take the Stove. Your friendly neighborhood chefs cook up the best local foods dinner around using ingredients donated by local food producers. Some of us amateurs bring our best dishes, too. This year’s meal is coming up on Thursday, November 14, at Peace Church in Duluth. Get all the details (or contribute to the cause if you can’t make it) at lssfa.org.

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vanpackedYou might be expecting a photo of our fabulous produce display from the Harvest Festival farmers market, but no. What I offer you is a view of our old van (it looks a little rough, but it runs okay) just prior to unloading it on Saturday morning, because I was really appreciating the best thing about a very full vehicle:  there’s no way for the contents to shift during transit. When I arrived at Bayfront Park, everything was exactly where it was when I left the farm. Nice.

Also nice was the weather (mostly); the steady crowd, including some of our CSA members — sweet; the other vendors & exhibitors; and the work of our volunteers and (of course) our Festival Director, Jean Sramek. Jean put it all together, Gina Temple-Rhodes signed our sponsors, Joel Rosen headed the committee and kept the farmers in line, Nels & Carol Hursh supported the food vendors, Jason Wussow brought in the musicians, and others helped plan the event and made it run smoothly — thanks!

Behind the scenes at Stone’s Throw Farm, my parents harvested potatoes and carrots; my mom bagged, bunched, and packaged; and Elden manned the wash & prep station.  My dad took care of the rest of the farm work (there’s work beyond picking?!?), and everyone helped at the Fest on Saturday. We are such a team.

If you missed the event but want to help support your local farmers and cultivate new ones, click here to donate to LS-SFA’s current campaign. Thank you in advance.

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As if I wasn’t already convinced that CSA members are some of the best people on this earth, the Duluth News Tribune reports today that our across-the-road neighbors, Rick and Karola Dalen at Northern Harvest Farm, got some help from their CSA members in financing the balloon payment on their farm loan.

The DNT also points out that there’s still time to join a CSA! We still have 2 shares left at Stone’s Throw Farm, and WhatDoYouHavewe’ll have info on how to order our pastured pork soon.

Time is running out before the first leafy greens of summer are delivered, but there still are openings for additional members at some of the 15 Community Supported Agriculture farms in the Northland.

Community Supported Agriculture connects farmers with eaters to form a sustainable system for local food production and consumption. Most of the farms are organic and use far fewer chemicals to produce their food. They also are local, meaning less energy is used and less pollution expended to harvest the crop and bring it to consumers.

Members benefit by having direct access to fresh local food on a regular basis. And they also may gain a connection to the land and the source of their food.

The farmers gain by having a set income, no matter what the weather or market conditions bring. Members share in the rewards of a bountiful harvest but also share in the risk of farming.” – Duluth News Tribune

Thanks to John Myers and the rest of the staff at the DNT for bringing all this to the attention of their readers, and to Rick & Karola for sharing their story.

PigClusterLuckyPigAnd now, a couple more pictures of our currently-muddy piggies (they were so clean for a while! But, they do love to root in the mud). As Elden said this weekend, “When did the pigs get big?”

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goodfoodnetworkFriday & Saturday, March 8 & 9:  Good Food Transforming our Region Summit

About the keynote:

Dr. [David] Wallinga applies a systems lens to think about health impacts of food and how it is produced, processed, packaged and distributed in today’s global, industrialized food system.”

About the workshops:

Through the lens of food, workshops will include topics such as economic development and jobs, farmer and producer networking, food access, policy advocacy, healthy food, research and infrastructure, food hubs, and farm to school.”

CSA_OpenHouse03-14-13Thursday, March 14: FREE  CSA Open House

Stop by the Zeitgeist Arts Lobby between 5-7 pm to:

  • Meet local farmers (including ME!)
  • Learn about your share options
  • Choose the right CSA for your family

Friday, March 22:  Farmers Take the Stage

Everyone is welcome at this much-anticipated annual event. In addition to great music by great farmers, there will be a silent auction, stories, humor and more.”

This event is a benefit for the non-profit Lake Superior Sustainable Farming Association.

FTTStage

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