2009 Urban Garden Tour is Wednesday, August 5!

Here's an announcement from the Detroit Agriculture Network regarding their annual Detroit urban garden and farm tour.  This is a wonderful event and we encourage you to register early if you are interested in participating.  This tour fills up early each year!

Motown to Growtown: Detroit’s New Food System Grows

While foreclosures, unemployment, and rising food and energy prices affect the lives of many Americans, thousands of Detroiters are taking control of their health and the health of their city by building a new food system from the ground up. This new food economy provides more equitable access to fresh, chemical-free food, uses less land, and is more accessible for consumers than conventional models. On Wednesday, August 5th, we invite you to view this new urban food landscape at the 12th Annual Detroit Agriculture Network Tour of Urban Gardens and Farms.

This year’s tour will highlight a selection of prosperous, innovative, and visually stunning gardens and farms that are contributing to the new food system through bio-intensive urban agriculture and commerce between local restaurants and farmer’s markets. The Garden Resource Program Collaborative works to support the emergence of a new, sustainable food system in Detroit through a network of more than 517 backyard gardens, 244 community gardens, and 46 school gardens. The GRPC facilitates resources, education, and training of urban gardeners, farmers, and community leaders through a variety of programming. Last year’s sell-out tour was attended by over 500 people from across the region. In order to accommodate the growing number of participants, this year’s tour will feature four simultaneous routes. The bus tours will visit east-side, west-side, and central city gardens, while the bicycle tour will weave through gardens located in the Cass Corridor, Woodbridge, and Greater Corktown.

All tours will leave from Catherine Ferguson Academy located at 2750 Selden in Detroit. Sign-in begins at 5:00pm and tours will leave at 6:00pm sharp. After the tour, locally-grown food and refreshments prepared by local chefs will provide you with a taste of Detroit’s new food system. Registration is now open and early registration is strongly recommended. You can register by contacting Ashley Atkinson at 313-237-8736 or via email at aatkinso@umich.edu. When registering, please give the name of every person attending the tour. The fee for the tours is a sliding scale of $1 - $20 to offset costs and help grow Detroit’s agricultural movement. 

Detroit Agriculture Network’s mission is to promote and foster urban agriculture and the sustainable use and appreciation of urban natural resources. The Detroit Agriculture Network, Earthworks Urban Farm/Capuchin Soup Kitchen, The Greening of Detroit, and Michigan State University Extension work collaboratively to support community, school, and family gardens in Detroit, Highland Park, and Hamtramck.

To participate in the Garden Resource Program, learn more about urban gardening programs in the city, or to make a tax-deductible contribution, visit www.detroitagriculture.org or contact the Garden Resource Program Collaborative at 313-237-8736.

Capuchin Soup Kitchen hosts Summer Dinner

Our friends at the Capuchin Soup Kitchen in Detroit Michigan are hosting a summer dinner on Tuesday, July 21 at 6:30 PM at the Capuchin Soup Kitchen located at 1264 Meldrum in Detroit Michigan. The dinner will be prepared by Executive Chef Alison Costello, and following the meal, Patrick Crouch will give a tour of the Earth Works Urban Gardens. The cost is $15.00 per person and proceeds will benefit the Capuchin Soup Kitchen and Slow Food Detroit. Please RSVP via email to valerie@slowfooddetroit.org. by Friday, July 11. The fee will be collected at the event.

Here’s the menu for this wonderful dinner:

• Gunthorp Farms Roast Loin of Pork with fresh cherry chutney

• Earthworks mixed greens, with hazelnut and cider vinaigrette

• Crushed potatoes with parsley and thyme

• Asian mustard greens

• Peach-phyllo strudel with goat cheese cream

There’s also a job opening at the Capuchin Soup Kitchen, but the application deadline is July 10, so if you’re interested, make sure you apply this week!  This is an organization that does wonderful work - here's a link to their "2008 Year in Review"  so you can read more about Earthworks Urban Farm and the Capuchin Soup Kitchen's impact on the local community.  

The Capuchin mission is based on service and nurturing of the human spirit. Employees of the Province of St. Joseph of the Capuchin Order will exemplify the values of this mission in the performance of their responsibilities. Employees are expected to demonstrate and support the Capuchin mission, vision and values throughout all professional responsibilities and activities by acting at all times towards clients, volunteers, vendors, benefactors and co-workers with hospitality, joyful service and compassion; and to partner with all for empowerment and justice. The Soup Kitchen ministry serves meals at our two soup kitchens, assists with groceries, clothing, and furniture items on an emergency basis at our warehouse services center and provides a men’s residential substance abuse recovery program.  

The Province of St. Joseph of the Capuchin Order is an equal opportunity employer. The Capuchin Soup Kitchen is a ministry within the Province. Neither the Province nor the Capuchin Soup Kitchen will discriminate against any otherwise qualified employee or applicant for employment with respect to hire, tenure, terms, conditions or privileges of employment because of race, color, religion, national origin, age, sex, height, weight, marital status, disability or other legally protected status.

Position: Earthworks Education Coordinator
  (full-time 30-35 hours per week)

Location: Meldrum Kitchen

Position to start: August 8, 2009

Brief Description
The Earthworks Education Coordinator is responsible for ongoing development of the program curriculum, supply acquisition, program preparation and implementation and program assessment. Additionally the Coordinator will be working in the gardens and kitchen with the youth in the program and will supervise one assistant and the volunteers. The Coordinator will also work directly with the Earthworks Program Manager and Outreach Coordinator in joint program implementation. 
Skills needed
2 years post secondary education required 
Experience and/or advance education in nutrition or child education preferred
Cooking and gardening skills required
Demonstrated excellent communication and planning skills
Excellent driving record 
Valid Michigan Chauffer’s license (or willingness to obtain)

Requires operation office equipment: Fax, phone, copy machine, digital camera, Microsoft and excel computer programs.

Requires working in gardens in the weather variances of the State of Michigan (heat and rain in the spring & summer and cold in the winter), exposure to soil, organic soil & plant pest control materials

Job Grade: 13 Beginning Salary Range: $13 - $17 per hour  

If you would like additional information before applying, please contact Human Resources at 579-2100, ext. 221. To apply, please submit resumes to Human Resources at 1820 Mt. Elliott, Detroit, MI 48207 no later than July 10, 2009. The hiring process will include an interview and extensive background check for qualified candidates, and any individual hired must complete a pre-employment drug and alcohol test.

Business Opportunities for Farmers in Southeastern Michigan

We wanted to pass along these items for farmers located in southeastern Michigan – both are excellent opportunties to showcase and promote your local food products! Please note both have mid-July due dates on the application process.

Grant Opportunity for Local Farmers and Food Producers

Farmers, owners of food-related businesses or those aspiring to enter the industry are eligible to apply for grants from the Food System Economic Partnership (FSEP). Applicants must produce food as a living (not as a hobby) for local markets in Southeast Michigan and established food co-ops may apply as a group. Grant amounts will range between $500 and $2,000. The deadline for applications is July 13, 2009. Funding for these grants is made possible from the Michigan Regional Skills Alliance (MiRSA) of Michigan's Department of Energy, Labor, and Economic Growth (DELEG) and will be distributed by FSEP. FSEP is a nonprofit organization that exists to catalyze change in the food system of Southeastern Michigan.

The grant brochure containing the application form and instructions can be found at:

http://fsepmichigan.org/news/Grant_Opportunity


August Select Michigan Farmers Market at Eastern Market, Detroit!

This market will be held Thursday, August 20, 2009 in Shed 2 from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. at the Eastern Market. This market has space for 48 vendors who produce and sell Michigan specialty and non-specialty crops. There will be limited space available for prepared foods. For vendor information and application forms, please see contact information below. Vendors interested in reserving space for the market must fully complete an application and biography form, indicating "none" if a question does not apply.

Please mail, fax, or email completed forms by July 10th to:
Erin Groeb
Michigan Department of Agriculture
P.O. Box 30017
Lansing, MI
Office: 517-373-2469
FAX: 517-335-0628
email: groebe@michigan.gov

Use Twitter to Market your Local Food

Do you sell your produce at multiple farmers markets? Have customers that wait all year for the first strawberries of the season? An innovative way to let customers know where you are, and what you are selling is via Twitter, a free social networking service that allows you to send text based posts of up to 140 characters. The messages are called "tweets" and those who subscribe to receive your posts are called "followers". You can restrict your tweets to a group of followers, or you can allow open access. The key to a successful marketing message using Twitter is to be friendly, clear and to the point - you only have 140 characters to get your message across!

Example messages would be:

Teresa's Great Garlic is ready!! Expect some in this week's CSA share. Call us if you want to purchase extra garlic 734-123-4567.

We'll be at the Winthrop Farmers Market today from 8:00 a.m. until noon! We have beautiful fresh cut flowers today only!

Today's the last day to register for the Local Food Festival! You can register on-line at (enter web site name).

Once you start using Twitter, you should use it consistently to keep your followers informed, but be careful not to overuse the service - one complaint that users have is that some tweet too frequently about trivial things and undermine the impact of their messages. How will you know if your Tweets are successful? The service lets you monitor how many followers you have - your followers should grow and sales should increase!

Celebrating 15 Years of Organic Farming!

Michelle and Danny Lutz of Maple Creek Organic Farm are celebrating their 15th year of organic farming with their CSA members. To commemorate their anniversary, Michelle and Danny made a special offer last year-the first 100 members that signed up and paid in full received a special 15th anniversary Maple Creek Farm tote bag.

We are proud to be Maple Creek CSA members and wish Michelle and Danny a Happy Anniversary and a successful growing season!

The Lutz's are not only great farmers, they are excellent marketers. Their delivery truck displays their name, phone number, logo and location. Their on-line tools include a well designed web site that offers current and potential members information about their CSA program, on-line sign-up and payment, photos of the prior season's weekly shares, recipes, forums for members to communicate and share information, and a Maple Creek Farm cookbook to purchase. Michelle writes a blog and the farm is on Facebook, an on-line social network that helps you connect with others. If you are a CSA farmer or direct marketing your produce to customers, you may want to visit www.maplecreekfarm.com and see their successful marketing tools in use!

Phosphorus - the next OPEC?

Hi,

Just read an interesting article in the June edition of Scientific American. I checked and its available on-line at http://www.scientificamerican.com/article.cfm?id=phosphorus-a-looming-crisis. America is a net-importer of phosphorus, and we may be as vulnerable to a monopolization of this commodity as we currently are with oil. So just breaking the chain of foreign oil is not enough, we must make sure we have sustainable access to phosphorus. The author details how increasing the big three: Reduce, Reuse, Recycle will increase our ability to continue to support our growing population.

Bob

Eat Local Food in Palm Springs!

We are always happy to see our products being used at different markets around the country. A couple of weeks ago, Randall Fogelman, Director of Special Projects for the Eastern Market Corporation visited The Palm Springs Certified Farmers Market. Randall found our Eat Local Food reusable shelf talkers being used in a beautiful vendor display and he graciously took some photos to share with us.

If you find yourself in that area, The Palm Springs Certified Farmers Market takes place every Saturday morning from 8am - 12:30pm from May through October. It's location is adjacent to the Camelot Theatres, 2300 Baristo Rd. in Palm Springs. Featuring fresh produce grown by more than 20 local farmers, the market also offers cheese, bread, fresh cut flowers, nuts, and California-grown olive oil.

Support the Farmers Markets and Local Farmers in your community!

Why do I Need a Web Site or On-Line Store?

Web sites are cost-effective calling cards on potential and existing customers. Here are some reasons why you may need a web site for your local food business:

1) You can’t be in two places at one time - you will tap into new markets that don't require your physical presence.
At Eat Local Food, we use our web site and on-line store to stay in touch with existing customers and to reach potential new customers in other areas where we can’t physically be. We recently received an order for tote bags from Fairbanks, Alaska!
As a grower or food entrepreneur, you are busy growing or making your product, selling at farmers markets, presenting in-store demos, or delivering produce to your CSA customers. While are you busy working, your web site represents you and your business. It’s a way to let potential customers learn about you, your business, your product and your values without you having to physically be there!


2) A web site offers a way to stay in touch with existing customers and let them know you're still here!
As a grower or food entrepreneur, you may sell your products on a seasonal basis. Or your business location may also be your home, not an established retail location. Your customers may not be seeing you on a regular basis. A web site offers you a way to stay in touch with your customers. You can write newsletters, a weekly blog, showcase new growing techniques, explain your business and even sell products on-line. An added bonus is that you can update your web site or write your newsletter during the time of day that best suits your schedule.


3) Presenting a good impression as an established business adds to your authenticity.
In today’s competitive economy, a web site presents a professional image for your business. It says that you are an established business owner with existing customers and products that are in demand. It’s important that your web site represent you and your business well – a poorly put together web site may not present the image you desire and can have a negative effect on sales.


4) With proper presentation and promotion, your web store will make sales for you.
Making a sale through your on-line store is like a gift. In most cases, you haven’t even met the customer – they just found you on the internet and liked what you had to offer. However, having a web site on the internet is not enough. You will need to draw customers to your site through on-going, active promotion. Search engines such as Google and Yahoo offer the small business owner tools to help attract customers to your site. E-newsletters, blogs and free internet listings are all proven marketing techniques to help increase sales. Popular web sites that offer internet listings free or for a small donation include www.localharvest.org, www.eatwellguide.org, and www.greenpeople.com.

Food System Economic Partnership 2009 Conference

Interested in learning more about the food system in southeastern Michigan?

The Food System Economic Partnership of Southeast Michigan is sponsoring their fourth annual conference on Thursday, June 18, 2009. The conference will be held at the LISD-Lenawee County Vocational Technical Center located at 1372 North Main Street (M-52) Adrian, MI 49221.

Kamyar Enshayan will be the keynote speaker on the topic, “Strengthening the Local Food Economy”. Kamyar Enshayan has worked in Northern Iowa to make locally grown foods more visible and available by connecting institutional food buyers to nearby farmers and processors. In 2007, 26 Northern Iowa grocers, restaurants, and institutions purchased $2.2 million from local food and farm businesses. Enshayan has been on the Cedar Falls City Council since 2003 and is the director of University of Northern Iowa's Center for Energy & Environmental Education.

The conference breakout sessions include a wide range of informative, current topics. Here is a sample of the sessions offered:
Incorporating Local Food in Business Operations
How to Sell Produce Direct to Schools
Small-Scale Organic Vegetable Production
Detroit Food Policy Council
Michigan Farm Market Association Update

On-line registration and conference location directions are available at http://www.fsepconference.org/. Early registration is open until June 1, 2009 and the cost is $40. The cost includes materials, attendance at sessions, and a seasonal local food lunch.

If you would like additional information regarding registration, sponsorship, and/or exhibiting please contact Jennifer Fike at 734-222-6859 or fikej@ewashtenaw.org.

Michigan Junior Iron Chef

Here’s an exciting local food cooking challenge for Michigan High School students from our friends at the Michigan Nutrition Network of Michigan State University Extension and the C.S. Mott Chair of Sustainable Agriculture at Michigan State University:

Dear Michigan High School Student, School Employee, or Community Member:

We are excited to invite high school students to join the first Michigan Junior Iron Chef Competition! This competition gives students hands-on cooking experience and teaches them about local foods and healthy food choices. It starts with a recipe contest (entries due May 8th, 2009) and ends with a cook-off competition on September 19th, 2009. Michigan Junior Iron Chef is sponsored by the Michigan Nutrition Network – Michigan State University Extension and the C.S. Mott Chair of Sustainable Agriculture at Michigan State University.

Here’s how it works:
Part 1. We challenge teams of 3-4 high school students to work with an adult coach to make one tasty, healthy school lunch meal featuring Michigan-grown and commodity foods. A list of these foods along with rules for participating are available on the Michigan Junior Iron Chef website listed below. Recipes should be easy and practical for school food service to use and meet nutrition guidelines for school lunch. (See rules on the website for more details.) To enter, teams submit an application and recipe for their meal by May 8th, 2009. Recipes will be judged by creativity, use of local foods, nutritional quality, and practical use for school food service. Winning recipes will be shared with schools throughout the state in a Michigan Junior Iron Chef Cookbook. To participate, student teams must be from Michigan schools which have at least 50% free and reduced-price meal participation. We ask that teams that enter the recipe contest be made up of 9th-11th graders so they may cook as a team at the competition in the fall of 2009.

Part 2: Teams that win the recipe contest will prepare and cook their meals on-site at the Michigan Junior Iron Chef Competition on September 19th, 2009. Teams will also create a nutrition education and marketing packet to present with their meals at the cook-off. Meals will be judged by an expert panel on taste, presentation, creativity, use of local foods, nutritional quality, and practical use for school food service. Prizes will be awarded to three winning teams for Best in Show (best overall), Best Use of Local Foods, and Best Nutrition Education and Marketing Packet. Prizes for the first place team, Best in Show, will be worth up to $150 per student team member and will include an award of $500 to the food service program of the team’s school! Reimbursements for travel for one vehicle per team and up to $100 for ingredients for practicing recipes will also be provided to teams that compete in the cook-off.

The event will also include a cooking demonstration and a healthy lunch along with tours of some of Michigan State University’s farming and food production facilities. Local farmers who provide ingredients for the event will also be invited to attend.

Spread the word! Help us recruit creative student teams for this exciting event! For more details and resources, go to our website at www.mnn.fcs.msue.msu.edu. Thanks for your help in promoting healthy eating habits and celebrating Michigan foods!

Sincerely,

Michigan Junior Iron Chef Planning Team
Michigan Nutrition Network, MSU Extension
2100 Anthony Hall
East Lansing, MI 48824
mnn@anr.msu.edu
www.mnn.fcs.msue.msu.edu