|
|
Spring Newsletter
The
spring edition of the Kerr Center newsletter, Field
Notes,
is now online. Check out info on upcoming events and updates
on sustainable food and farming
from around the state.
Read more
Buy Fresh Buy Local - Green Country Farmers' Market Guide Now
Available
The 2008 Buy Fresh Buy Local - Green Country Farmers' Market Guide is
now available for download! The Green Country Farmers' Market Guide
lists farmers' markets in the 18 counties that make up northeastern
Oklahoma. Markets in the cities of Tulsa, Muskogee, Okmulgee,
Collinsville, Owasso, Bartlesville, Sperry, Wagoner, Jenks, Stilwell,
Tahlequah, Haskell and Claremore are
represented. Each listing includes market start dates, times, and
contacts.
Get
your Green Country
Farmers' Market Guide now! (pdf)
"Hunger is Not OK" - Oklahoma
Task Force on Hunger Report Now Available
"...with adequate political will and a focus on
best practices, the
state of Oklahoma and its diverse set of both public and private
organizations can substantially reduce the state's level of food
insecurity in the future. The findings of the Oklahoma Task Force
on Hunger, detailed in this report, intend to offer sound direction
for policymakers, agency officials, and representatives of the charitable
community who aim to address Oklahoma's growing hunger problem."
Download
report
Cooking with Kids Wins Innovation in Prevention Award
 Cooking with Kids, a hands-on food and nutrition education program led
by Kerr Center Trustee Lynn Walters, was chosen for an Innovation in
Prevention Award from the U.S. Department of Health and Human
Services.
The award recognizes Cooking with Kids' success in nurturing healthier
eating habits among elementary school children from low-income
families.
More information, including curriculum materials and free tasting
lessons, are available on the Cooking
with Kids website.
Press release
Press release
Press release
USDA Funds Oklahoma Local Foods Project
The USDA’s Community Food Projects program has awarded a three-year, $300,000 grant to “Cultivating Good Food for Good Health in Green Country.” This is a new project that will help to ensure that Oklahomans have convenient access to healthy and affordable Oklahoma-produced foods.
More information
Oklahoma
Food Connection 2006 Online
The updated Oklahoma Food Connection: A Directory of Agricultural
Producers, Crops and Institutional Buyers is online. In this directory, consumers can find
locally grown foods and farmers can find institutions such as schools interested
in buying locally.
More Information
Rx for an Ailing Food System: Community Food
Security
"What's needed are ways to move the food system from its current
code-blue status towards a state where everyone – young and
old, rich and poor, city and country – has a ready, steady
supply of wholesome food, grown and raised by fellow Oklahomans
at an economic and ecological profit."
Read the essay
|
|
Upcoming
Field Day: From Field to Buyer: Making the Most on Your Growing
Crops
May 29
(Register by May 23)
Susan Bergen will host this field day at Peach Crest Farm,
north of
Stratford. The 9,000-tree peach orchard gave its first harvest
in
2003. To maximize freshness and quality, the peaches come straight
out of the field into a special wash to remove fungal spores
and
bacteria. They then plunge into a cooling bath before drying,
sorting, and grading. The farm also grows 12 acres of certified
organic produce.
More information
Deadline:
2008
Meat Goat Forage Performance Test
May 30, 2008
With
the popularity of last year’s meat goat forage
buck test, the Kerr Center and the OSU Cooperative
Extension Service are again teaming up to conduct the 2008
Meat Goat Forage Performance Test.Goat producers wishing to
test their bucks' performance on forage are invited to enter
bucks in the test, which will run from mid-July until the
end of October. Fee is $120 per buck, and nominations are
due by May 30, 2008.
More information
Ongoing
OK-Grown
Check out this new online resource to help track down the nearest
sources of fresh Oklahoma-grown food.
Sustainable Agriculture Grants
The USDA's Sustainable
Agriculture Research and Education (SARE) Program gives grants to researchers,
students, ag professionals, producers and communities. Click
here for more information.
Oklahoma Agritourism Map
Farms, ranches, wineries, and farmer's
markets across the state are opening their gates, barn doors and fences,
issuing a heartfelt invitation to sample the abundant bounty and natural
beauty found in Oklahoma's growing adventure.
The Oklahoma Agritourism Map features over 300 destinations across the
state with a synopsis of each place and phone number. Some
descriptions also have addresses, directions or web site addresses.
Since most agritourism destinations have seasonal operations, hours
and days, please call before traveling for their
particular operation times and exact locations.
Free copies of the map are available
online.
New Oklahoma Sustainable Agriculture Website
OSU and Langston University are collaborating on a new website that
acts as a central clearing point for resources on all aspects of
sustainable agriculture in Oklahoma. Sections include news and
events, producer's corner, training opportunities, projects and
research, and opportunities for funding.
The Oklahoma Sustainable Agriculture Program closely cooperates with
several broad-based sustainable agriculture programs such as the
Southern Region and National Sustainable Agriculture Research and
Education (SARE) programs funded by the USDA and EPA, related programs
of the Oklahoma Department of Agriculture, Food and Forestry, and the
Kerr Center for Sustainable Agriculture.
Visit site
 Talking to Kids About Farming
Learn about Oklahoma agriculture
from Oklahoma farmers! The Oklahoma Farmer Speakers' Bureau is
a list of farmers who are available to speak to school classes
and/or host tours of their farms.
See the list
Strong and Healthy Oklahoma
Strong and Healthy
Oklahoma is a statewide effort to improve the health of
all Oklahomans by sharing quick and simple ways to make
healthy choices everyday where we live, work, and learn.
More information
Training
for Food Entrepreneurs
Every third Thursday of each month (excluding December) the OSU
Food and Agriculture Products Center located in Stillwater, OK,
holds a “Basic Training” workshop for food business
entrepreneurs. Topics covered include planning your business,
health regulations, product evaluation and marketing, labeling,
processing and co-packing, legalities, assistance available to
entrepreneurs. Call (405) 744-6071 for more information, or go
to www.fapc.okstate.edu/
PAGES/workshop.htm.
Check out the Kerr
Center's Community Foods pages
We invite you to explore these pages and learn
about the Kerr Center’s community foods initiatives.
Community food security is a relatively new concept
that encompasses three broad areas of concern: adequate food and
nutrition for all income levels; sustainable agricultural production;
and closer farmer-consumer connections through local markets.
Find
out more
Localharvest.org
Is the most popular directory and comprehensive
directory of small farms on the Internet Free listing and other
services.
Go to site
|
Short articles or news items may be used on another web site, if source
cited. If you want to use longer articles or publications, do not take
the material, but instead please link to our web page. All material is
protected by Kerr Center copyright. Direct questions about material use:
Maura McDermott, mailbox@kerrcenter.com
|
|
Assessing
Organic Compliance for
Small Farms and Markets