Newsletter --
September 2008
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In this month's issue:
ISA
News:
Upcoming
Farm Tour: Biver Farms,
Edwardsville
September
30, 2008
A tour of
Biver Farms
in
Edwardsville will show new and existing farmers a successful hoop house
operation. Hoop houses can be used to increase productivity,
control
pests and diseases and for season extension.
Biver Farms is a certified organic farm
producing a wide range of
vegetables, fruits, herbs and bedding plants. Owner,
Brett
Palmer, will
be showcasing the 1.5 acres they have under hoop house production and
share
information on the many benefits of hoop house
production.
The tour will
be held on September 30, 2008, from 1:00 p.m. – 3:30 p.m. Please sign
up by
calling Illinois Stewardship Alliance at (217) 498-9707 or e-mail Lindsay@ilstewards.org. There is no charge to
attend.
For more information click
here.
Local
Food Movement featured in
Springfield’s State
Journal Register
Illinois
Stewardship
Alliance’s
efforts to promote
locally produced foods and help local farmers access new markets were
featured
in the Sunday, August 27 issue of the State Journal Register. The front page article
covered the growing
local food movement and highlighted local activities and initiatives. To view the article click
here - http://www.sj-r.com/food/x223017694/Local-foods-trend-sprouts-up-in-Illinois. Be sure to note the
accompanying stories
under “related links”.
Local
Foods Wholesaling
The
market for local
foods
is expanding beyond farmers markets. That was the message from ISA’s
Local
Foods Wholesaling workshop. The Central Illinois farmers in attendance
heard
from wholesale buyers that California
prices
are going up and farms in Illinois
have a distinct advantage in freight when selling locally. On top of
this,
customers are willing to pay more if they know it’s local, especially
in light
of the recent food recalls. This willingness to pay more goes beyond
farmers
markets – people are looking for local foods in grocery stores,
restaurants,
school cafeterias, and more.
These
markets are huge
opportunities for Illinois
farmers, and ISA tried to take the first step in connecting these
markets by
bringing farmers together with grocery store managers, food
distribution
representatives, and food buyers from schools and hospitals.
“Wholesale
buyers are
an
opportunity for growers to feed more people, spread their overhead
costs and
increase farm income,” said Irv Cernauskas from Irv and Shelly’s Fresh
Picks,
who was a featured speaker at the workshop.
The
other
featured
speaker,
Greg Christian from Greg Christian Catering, agrees. “If there was a
book being
written called ‘Getting More Local Food into More Peoples’ Mouths,’ the
first
three chapters would have been written: farmers markets, CSAs, and
fancy chefs,”
he said. “The fourth could be foodservice.”
The
bottom line is that
farmers can add wholesaling to their current production, in addition to
direct
marketing, and increase sales. The markets are there to pay farmers a
premium
for their local products.
Rolling
on the River 08: Thanks to
all who supported
ISA!
Due
to
the beautiful
weather, a well-organized event and supportive riders; this year’s
Rolling on
the River bike ride was a big success!
This was the third year that Illinois
Stewardship Alliance benefited
from this fundraising bike ride. Riders
began the ride early in the day and were treated to live music and
organic
snacks at the rest stops along the route.
After the ride, participants were treated to
lunch, more live music and
an environmental expo. ISA
would like to
thank the 500+ riders and all the volunteers that made this great ride
a really
fun day.
Farmer
Rancher Grant Proposals
North
Central Region SARE
(Sustainable Agriculture
Research and
Education) is calling for grant proposals due December 1, 2008. SARE is
a research and education/demonstration program, so proposals must be
intended to test a sustainable agriculture technique that is new to the
farm or ranch or to educate/ demonstrate to others a sustainable
agriculture technique that could be used more widely in the area.
Farmers/Ranchers are invited to submit proposals that test, evaluate,
and adapt sustainable agriculture practices for their operations;
conduct learning circles, educational events, field days or
demonstrations to further disseminate information to farmers/ranchers;
develop new technologies; or create or modify equipment. More:
http://www.sare.org/NCRSARE/prod.htm
Local
Food Focus: Terrebonne Farm
Ryne
Tharp is at the forefront of
one of the most
pressing issues in
American agriculture: how do we connect people who want to farm with
farmland? At first glance it seems that all the components are in
place:
the demand for local foods is growing, and there are people who want to
get into farming to supply those markets.
For those
who do not
inherit farmland, the price of land is often prohibitive. The going
price for land in Ryne’s area of Southern Illinois is $3500 per acre,
and that is considerably cheaper than other areas of the state. At that
price, Ryne says, it does not matter how much debt you take on to buy
land, it will not be enough to run a successful livestock
operation.
However,
Ryne is doing it. He did so by beginning on land owned by The Land
Connection, a nonprofit dedicated to establishing successful farmers on
healthy farmland. He then received some help through a grant from
Heifer, an international nonprofit organization that works to end
hunger and poverty, and care for the earth. The grant allowed Ryne to
buy 10 ewes and a ram. “It’s the only way we could have started
farming,” he said. “It was our only chance.”
Ryne now grazes 39 sheep and a small cattle herd, and has several
nearby farmers producing sheep and cattle for him, and he is
considering hogs as well. He works with processors on recipes for
sausages and other products, and then markets these products to
individuals and businesses in the Carbondale area.
There is
much more
demand in the area for his products than he can supply. However, the
Heifer grant he received requires that he pass along the gift – that he
help other people interested in starting livestock operations. Because
of this grant, two more farmers in his area are already doing
this.
Ryne is
an example of an innovative farmer who is finding a way to
produce for the local market while he is helping others access these
markets. As we promote more livestock farmers like him, both our
communities and the diversity of our landscape benefit.
