Shop our local SJ island Food Co-Op, Farmer's Market, SJ shops featuring local craftspeople and producers, and make a stop at all our farmstands: Mitchell Bay Farm, Sweet Earth Farm, Saddleback Ranch, States Inn ... paintings - Memories of France (radishes) and Jean, Milking - by local artist L. DegnanCobos How important is local agriculture to our local economy?(we're talking JOBS)
Again, One in every six US consumers surveyed by analyst group Mintel are going out of their way to buy local food products as much as possible, with potential for further growth, according to recent findings. However, the research company said stronger promotion activities may be required to play up potential benefits to the consumer of local goods in order to ensure more mainstream acceptance.
Taking a summer jaunt on the inter-island ferry? Check the list of links on the right for more info on the other island's farms. Scroll our links, right, to Island Certified Local, for restaurants and others carrying foods from island producers.
Good for our health, good for our Mother Earth, good for the strong local economy.
Don't forget - join our local SJI Co-Op today! They have an amazing selection of groceries and dry goods and have many local products (beautiful creamy Quail Croft Cheeses, lovely and crisp Blue Moon and other local greens and produce, nutritious delicious LaCrover eggs, fantastic States Inn pasta, breads, & baked goods - and a whole lot more!! They're also open once a week for non-members if you want to check things out first. Don't see what you want? Write it on the board - they seem to have most anything in a week or so. And, the prices are great!!
Tell everyone you know - the SJI Co Op's at Surina Business Park, off Malcom St. (turn off Argyle at the Jehovah Witness church - the Business Park is first left on Malcom). "Though she is but little, she is fierce" - and tha's a compliment!
Our two local bakeries - Cafe Demeter and San Juan Bakery - they're both wonderful! Daily soups, quiche and veg pizza in addition to rustic natural yeast breads and bakery sweets at Cafe Demeter + coffees, teas, and a great bottled wine selection, also at Farmer's Mkt. on Sat; at Bakery San Juan - lovely and delicious french pastries and cakes, beautiful french and other breads and coffee by the cup. Their breads are also available at Kings and the Marketplace. Kings now will slice your bread for you, too - sometimes that really helps!
If you want amazing food grown within the few miles of our county prepared for you - visit Madden at Steps Restaurant and Wine Bar. Yay - they are open again!! The atmosphere is happy - it makes you feel elegant; the food is incredible, and Madden is a chef's chef and an incredible generous friend to us and to the island.
And -
- Our first Land and Sea Youth Club cob oven is complete (cob is clay - our island clay) - it's at Marinkovich's, and has now cooked many pizzas, veggies, halibut, salmon and other baked goods. It's beautiful - check it out on L & S Youth page. We'll keep you posted on our next oven build with cob mentor Ryan Browne of Earthlore.
- Go to local, environmentally-friendly household products store Compost It - Products for Sustainable Living's webpage & visit the shop at Nichols and A St. next to the ferry overload parking. Maureen has baby chicks for sale, coops by local carpenter Steve Gutmann, & carries chicks hatched at San Juan's Sweet Earth Farm, in addition to carrying wonderful products from 14+ islanders and counting.
----- Hi Graduates - Looking for something more than a career?
The Practical Training/Farm and Garden Apprenticeship program is taking app's for 2009-2010 (until 10/1/09 for U.S. and Canadian students 9/1/09 for international students).
We wrote about this on our April Actions post, but it bears repeating:
Today, more than 1,200 apprentices have been trained in the organic fields, orchards and greenhouses at UC Santa Cruz, learning not only how to raise food and flowers, but how to make the food system itself more sustainable by addressing issues of social justice. They are today's organic farmers, market gardeners, urban agriculturalists, school garden teachers, and others working to promote local, healthy food in communities around the country.
Contact the Center for Agroecology and Sustainable Food Systems, UC Santa Cruz, 831-459-2321 email: apprenticeship@ucsc.edu
Recent graduates exemplify the program’s potential to create new farmers…
Kelsey Keener, Ryan Power, and Noah Bresler raise vegetables, fruit, and heritage livestock on historic Williams Island near Chattanooga, Tennessee. Mike Nolan and Gabe Eggers coax crops from the sagebrush country of southern Colorado for local markets. Amy Rice-Jones manages the brand new Bounty Farm, where she coordinates a team of volunteers growing food for low-income residents of Petaluma, California.
Read more of the profiles of UC Santa Cruz apprentices here.Photo above, left: The Farm to College Project at UC Santa Cruz - The Farm-to-College project at UC Santa Cruz links the Center’s Farm on the UCSC campus with other local organic farms and with UCSC campus organizations to bring organic produce to the campus dining halls and restaurants, while bringing students to the Farm for sustainable food systems education.
Supporting the "Grow a Farmer Campaign" an independent project that helps financially support the housing needs of the CAFS program, or taking part in this program are 2 ways to help. Click here for homepage of the CASFS program.
Check out the web page and YouTube video for the "Grow A Farmer Campaign".
AND...We can also learn from this program, and work to develop a training program for farmers right here. We're starting, with our L & S Youth Club Farm Garden and farmworker training; we know others on the island are thinking the same thing, and doing it, too.
