Consumers and all Interested residents
will have
an opportunity to get to know farmers and learn about traditions, plants,
animals, fertile soils and waters that produce our regional foods. The
increasing demand for food that is grown locally and sustainably offers both
challenges and opportunities for farmers and consumers. Our society has geared
us to expect that all foods will be available at all times. Can we find greater
meaning and satisfaction in “eating with the seasons”? Is it possible for more
of us to start growing some of our own food? As we reframe our ideas about food,
farming and a future that is sustainable, are there also opportunities for
creating a greater sense of community? Many tracks and workshops will appeal to
you. For example, Track 3: “Food Sovereignty – What is a Local Food Citizen?”
sponsored by Lourdes Hospital:
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Live
Local! Buy Local! Eat Local!
Workshop:
Explore local food options with Central NY Bounty’s local food home delivery;
www.cnybounty.com; Farmers’ Markets; Community Supported Agriculture, buying
clubs and more with Phillip Metzger, RC&D Coordinator, USDA Natural
Resources Conservation Service, Central NY; Karma Glos from Kingbird
Farm,
www.kingbirdfarm.com and Lisa Bloodnick from Bloodnick Family Farms.
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Navigating
to Local Food…A Map to Your Own Foodshed
workshop in Track 3: Get energized about Gardening in Your Back Yard
with Dennis Lockard, an enthusiastic Master Gardener, and Starting a
Community Garden with Stacie Edick, Community Gardens Coordinator
with Cornell Cooperative Extension of Chenango County. Get excited about great
grassroots efforts and learn about A Tree Grows in Binghamton: Of Gardens,
Grocery Co-ops and Galvanizing Community Projects with David Currie
from the Binghamton Regional Sustainability Coalition (BRSC) and Scott
Barvainis, Farm Manager for Volunteers Improving Neighborhood Environments
(VINES) and Marz Farm, a certified organic hay and vegetable farm.
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What’s so
special about pasture-based meats and poultry, organic food, raw milk and other
foods you may have never tried?:
At this workshop in Track 3, learn about the risk and protective factors
of raw milk with Martha V. Pickard, Ag/Grazing Program Coordinator,
Adirondack North Country Association. Hear from Jim Gardiner, an Organic
Valley dairy farmer, foods educator and health educator. Troy Bishopp of
Bishopp Family Farm will speak about the many health benefits of grass fed
beef.
www.thegrasswhisperer.com;
www.eatwild.com
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In the
Environmental Health through Agriculture workshop, Track 4,
learn what farmers are doing to promote healthy soils, streams, rivers, forests,
and other aspects of our environment. Learn what consumers can do to promote
these efforts, through discussion with Rick Reisinger owner of
Reisinger’s Apple Country, Dr. Darrell L. Emmick, Grazing Land Management
Consultant, and Bob Almeter, County Executive Director, Farm Service
Agency, USDA. All of the workshops in Track 4 are sponsored by the NYS
Grazing Lands Conservation Initiative.
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If you are
concerned about child health
and want to be inspired by models and success stories, Track 1: Farm to
School, offers three excellent workshops.
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If you are
concerned about food policies and practices affecting health of individuals and
families,
the three workshops in Track 2, Navigating to Local Food and Health,
are sure to be of interest. Find out how major public health challenges can be
addressed with healthy, nutrient dense, local and affordable food.
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The
workshop in Track 4 on Community Health: Repairing Damages from a
Broken Food System will also be of interest.
