Local Food Dude

Harris Agriscience Center Agricultural Fair & Farmers Market

2008-05-21T05:24:00.000-07:00

2008-03-06T09:46:00.000-08:00

American holiday foods are changing, and now is the time to discover

2007-11-13T07:39:00.000-08:00

American holiday foods are changing, and now is the time to discover

Fresh Local Flavors
By Emily Listfield Published: November 11, 2007 PARADE Magazine
Ah Thanksgiving. A time of tradition. Recipes passed down through the generations—Aunt Sally’s stuffing, Grandma’s pumpkin pie. Wait a second. Did that pie filling come out of a can? Frankly, we’re pretty sure the pilgrims managed to put on an entire feast without a tin in sight. After all, Thanksgiving began as a way to rejoice and give thanks for the bountiful local harvest. Now, suddenly, everything old is new again. This year, more and more families throughout the country will be resurrecting the purest Thanksgiving tradition of all: celebrating the holiday with a banquet of locally grown food. The local food movement (loosely defined as anything grown within 50-100 miles of where you live) is one of the hottest culinary trends to come along in years—and it’s not just for the crunchy granola set. According to the U.S. Department of Agriculture, there currently are more than 4,500 farmers’ markets in America, up from 2,800 in 2000. Sales generated by farmers’ markets have been estimated to exceed $1 billion a year, with most of the money going directly to small family farmers. Even big supermarket chains like Wegmans and Wal-Mart now offer locally grown foods, making it readily available to consumers everywhere. There are a number of compelling reasons for the soaring popularity of local food. The recent scares—E. coli lurking in bags of spinach, tainted seafood from China—have made most of us think about where our food comes from and how it’s grown. When you buy from a small, nearby farm, you gain a sense of reassurance. (Local, by the way, does not necessarily mean “organic,” though that is often the case.) Environmental concerns also play a big part: Food that is grown locally does not have to be shipped cross-country, cutting back on pollution from fossil fuel. And small farms promote sustainable agriculture, protecting the earth for future generations. But perhaps the most important reason to eat local food is taste. Tom Colicchio, chef and owner of Craft restaurants and head judge of Bravo’s Top Chef, says: “Food that’s grown locally and is in season simply tastes better than food that’s been picked weeks ago, refrigerated and shipped. Once you taste a tomato that hasn’t been refrigerated, there’s no going back. For me, it’s always been about flavor first.”Colicchio isn’t alone. Many of the country’s most influential chefs are hopping on the bandwagon. But you don’t have to think—or cook—like a chef to savor the results. Quite the opposite, as Matthew Dillon, chef and owner of Sitka & Spruce in Seattle, points out: “When you have these wonderful fresh ingredients, you don’t have to play with food as much to create something beautiful. Often, the easiest recipe is the best.” It's not necessary to become a total convert to give local food a try. Instead, you can incorporate a few samples into your menu. There's no better time to start than this holiday season. You can avail yourself of many of the same dishes that were served at the first dinner the Pilgrims and Native Americans enjoyed. Check out nearby farmers' markets and truck stands and ask at your supermarket if it carries locally grown food. (Many have signs to indicate choices.) Look for seasonal offerings such as squash, pumpkins, parsnips, turnips, mustard greens, kale, pears, cranberries and apples. In many areas, you also can get locally produced dairy products, honey, jams and, yes, even locally bred turkeys.“You can recreate the feeling of picking something out of the ground for a festive holiday meal,” Dillon says. “It ties into the idea of giving thanks for what we have and sharing it with your community and family. It really is a wonderful way to celebrate Thanksgiving.”

Here's a good reason why we need to change school lunch!!!

2007-11-13T07:37:00.000-08:00

E. coli loophole cited in recalls
Tainted meat can be sold if cooked
By Stephen J. Hedges
Washington Bureau
November 11, 2007
WASHINGTON
One federal inspector calls it the "E. coli loophole." Another says,
"Nobody would buy it if they knew."

The officials are referring to the little-discussed fact that the
U.S. Department of Agriculture has deemed it acceptable for meat
companies to cook and sell meat on which E. coli, a bacterium that
can sicken and even kill humans, is found during processing.

The "E. coli loophole" affects millions of pounds of beef each year
that tests positive for the presence of E. coli O157:H7, a
particularly virulent strain of the bacterium.

The agency allows companies to put this E. coli-positive meat in a
special category -- "cook only." Cooking the meat, the USDA and
producers say, destroys the bacteria and makes it safe to eat as
precooked hamburgers, meat loaf, crumbled taco meat and other products.

But some USDA inspectors say the "cook only" practice means that
higher-than-appropriate levels of E. coli are tolerated in packing
plants, raising the chance that clean meat will become contaminated.
They say the "cook only" practice is part of the reason for this
year's sudden rise in incidents of E. coli contamination.

"All the product that is E. coli positive, they put a 'cooking only'
tag on it," said one inspector, who like other federal inspectors
interviewed asked to remain anonymous for fear of losing their jobs.
"They [companies] will test, and everything that's positive, they
slap that label on."

There is no evidence that "cook only" meat has directly sickened
consumers. But some inspectors contend that the practice conceals
significantly higher levels of E. coli bacteria in packing plants
than the companies admit to. That's because companies that find E.
coli are allowed to shift that meat immediately into "cook only"
lines, without reporting it to the USDA.

USDA regularly tests for E. coli in slaughtering plants, but only on
meat that packing companies have already deemed free of E. coli, the
agency inspectors say. USDA officials say they do not track how much
meat is put into "cook only" categories, but interviews with a half-
dozen inspectors suggested it is a significant amount.

"The government keeps putting out that we've reduced E. coli by 50
percent and all of that," said an inspector. "And we haven't done
nothing. We've just covered it up."

USDA denied this. In answers to written questions from the Tribune,
department officials said USDA's Food Safety and Inspection Service
"collects its own random samples without waiting for test results
from the plant."

Meat industry representatives and the USDA also said there is no risk
from beef that is fully cooked, because cooking meat above 160
degrees Fahrenheit kills pathogens such as E. coli. Meat companies
also said they have taken significant steps to eliminate E. coli in
meat during the slaughtering process, including lactic acid washes of
carcasses and steam treatments in which carcasses are heated to kill
the bacteria.

Meat found with E. coli, they said, isn't worth as much.

"If raw ground beef has to go into a 'cook only' category, it loses
value," said Randall Huffman, senior vice president for scientific
affairs at the American Meat Institute, an industry group. "There's
not as big a market for that."

Most of the major meatpacking companies offer their own cooked meat
products, such as meat loaf, precooked hamburgers and taco meat
crumbles. They also sell "cook only" meat to food processing companies.

School lunches

Some cooked beef products end up in the National School Lunch
Program, which is administered by the USDA.

The agency bought 2.8 million pounds of cooked beef in 2006,
according to USDA records.

USDA said in a statement that "procurement of ground beef and certain
other products for distribution through the National School Lunch
Program is governed by additional quality requirements," such as
mandatory microbiological testing.

School lunch programs have increased the use of cooked beef in recent
years, especially hamburger patties and taco meat, as a way to
prevent E. coli poisoning from undercooked beef, according to Jeannie
Sneed, a food service consultant formerly at Iowa State University.

But Sneed said she and most school lunch program managers did not
know that the cooked beef they use in school lunches could have come
from cattle contaminated with E. coli.

"I did not know that's a common practice," she said. "Most people are
probably not aware that it occurs. But it probably does not create a
great amount of concern because if meat is cooked at a little less
than 155 degrees, the E. coli is killed."

Regarding the safety of cooked beef, USDA said it "does collect and
sample some cooked, ready-to-eat products for E. coli O157:H7."

E. coli can be difficult to detect and prevent. The bacterium lives
in intestines of cattle, which tolerate it. It can contaminate meat
during the slaughter process if fecal matter comes in contact with
the meat portions of a carcass. That can happen in several ways, such
as when workers accidentally puncture the digestive tract during
removal, or when a cow's hide, which might carry fecal dust, is taken
off.

In humans, E. coli poisoning can cause severe stomach cramps, bloody
urine and diarrhea, kidney failure and even death.

The American meat industry is bewildered by this year's increased
findings of E. coli contamination. Theories about the causes range
from dry conditions in cattle feedlots, where cattle stand in manure,
to changes in feed caused by high corn prices.

Whatever the reason, the result has been sick consumers. The largest
recall so far this year involved the Topps Meat Co. of Elizabeth,
N.J., which went out of business after it recalled 21.7 million
pounds of ground beef due to E. coli contamination. About 40 people
fell ill from Topps meat.

More recently, Cargill, the Minneapolis-based grain and foods giant,
has recalled nearly 2 million pounds of ground beef due to E. coli
concerns. And more than 3 million pounds of General Mills' Totino's
and Jeno's pizzas have been recalled because of E. coli in pepperoni.

The inspectors interviewed for this story contended that the E. coli
increase is due to the methods used to slaughter cattle, as well as
the practice of designating affected meat "cook only."

That practice means companies can profit from meat that they would
otherwise lose. But while the practice is clearly spelled out in USDA
regulations, it is not widely publicized. "If you knew this was all
E. coli positive, would you buy that product?" asked one inspector.
"That's very hush-hush."

Industry: Not cutting corners

The U.S. meat industry produced 26.3 billion pounds of beef in 2006,
from 33.7 million cattle. Meat companies summarily reject the
inspectors' charges that corners are being cut in preventing E. coli
contamination.

Gary Mickelson, a spokesman for Tyson Foods, one of the nation's
largest beef producers, said his company has developed a special
testing program, called Tyson Total N60, to detect E. coli. The
program is so effective, Mickelson said, that other companies now use
it.

"Tyson tests all raw beef components we know are destined for ground
beef production," Mickelson said, adding that the program provides a
95 percent or greater assurance of finding E. coli.

Mickelson also said USDA inspectors have access to Tyson's records on
its E. coli tests.

Cargill declined to comment for this story. Another large meatpacking
firm, Swift Foods Co., did not return phone calls seeking comment.

Some inspectors said that USDA should eliminate the "cook only"
category to force companies to work harder to eliminate E. coli or
face the prospect of destroying beef that can't pass inspection.

But the American Meat Institute's Huffman said that would be a waste
of food.

"You're talking about throwing away a significant volume of product,
which to any food safety person, that doesn't make sense because the
product can still be put through a validated cooking process and be
made safe," Huffman said. "A lot of food products right now are cooked."

USDA performed nearly 11,000 E. coli tests at 1,653 meat plants in
2005, according to the agency's inspector general. From 2004 through
2006, the agency says, 0.17 percent of ground beef samples tested
positive for E. coli.

Inspectors interviewed for this story, however, challenged the
suggestion that it's a small problem. One USDA inspector said a large
meatpacking plant where he worked produced a half-million pounds a
week of E. coli-positive beef that was tagged "cook only."

"It's a smoke screen," the inspector said. "The agency says, 'Look at
all this testing.' They [the meat companies] are still producing a
half-million pounds a week of E. coli product, and we're patting them
on their back."----------shedges@tribune.com

Working Lands Alliance 7th Annual Meeting 11/17/07

2007-11-13T07:30:00.000-08:00

What is Working Lands Alliance?

The Working Lands Alliance (WLA) is a broad-based coalition, whose supporters include farmers, conservation organizations, food security groups, local government associations, and others. These groups (currently over 200) have joined together in an effort to halt the loss of Connecticut’s remaining farmland. WLA is a project of American Farmland Trust (www.farmland.org). Founded in 1980, American Farmland Trust has helped win permanent protection for over a million acres of American farmland. AFT's hard work and sound strategies unite farmers, environmentalists and policymakers.

Special gratitude to the chefs who kindly offered their time and talent in order to prepare menu items and to all of the farm businesses who generously donated their wonderful locally grown products, including Aiki Farms, Bloomfield Schools Harris AgriScience Center, Gresczyk Farm, The Garlic Farm, Holcomb Farm CSA, Maple Lane Farms, and UConn Dairy. Many thanks also to Slow Food – Connecticut Chapter for their generous contribution in support of our efforts to serve locally grown food items.
MENU

Kale & Potato Soup- Kale grown at Bloomfield's Harris Agriscience Center Prepared by Bloomfield Farm-to-Schools Program
Nanna’s Bread & Butter Pickles - Cupola Hollow Farm, West Suffield
Salad Greens & Shoots – Raised by Robert Burns, Aiki Farms, Ledyard
Curried Winter Vegetables -Root vegetables from Holcomb Farm CSA, West Granby Prepared by Chris Prosperi, Metro Bis Restaurant, Simsbury
Cheddar & Juustoleipa Cheese - UConn Dairy, Storrs
Pears & Apples – Belltown Orchards, Glastonbury
Roast Beef Sandwich- Natural beef provided by Four Mile River Farm, Old Lyme, Artisan Bread – Fabled Foods Bakery, Deep River Prepared by Jason Collin, The Firebox Restaurant, Hartford
Lamb Pastitsio- Lamb raised by Beaver Brook Farm, Lyme, Jersey Milk Feta Cheese, Beaver Brook Farm, Lyme, Fresh Milk, Mountain Dairy, Storrs, Parmesan Cheese, Calabro Cheese Co. East Haven Prepared by UConn Dining Services Local Routes Program

Apple Cider from Belltown Orchards, Glastonbury
Black Currant Juice from Maple Lane Farms, Preston
Seltzer & Water from Hosmer Mountain Soda, Willimantic

Plow to Plate Cooking Series

2007-09-18T12:43:00.001-07:00

Kids Class Sunday, Oct. 7, 11-2 p.m "Back to the Barn, Down on the Farm", a special family event sponsered by the Plow to Plate community coalition will be held at The Silo/Hunt Hill Farm Trust. Led by Chef Tim Cipriano, Director of Food Services in the Bloomfield, Connecticut public schools and known as the "local food dude", the events will also feature Big Green Truck Pizza, to serve specialty pizzas from the wood-fired oven built into the back of a restored 1946 International Harvester truck. Buddy Hurlburt from Hautboy Hill Farm in Cornwall will be there with his "Milkbulance". We will be making whipped cream utilizing fresh cream from his cows. Parents and children will also learn about the source of goat cheese & milk, for example, and visit with farm animals from Green Chimneys School.

BLOOMFIELD HS STUDENTS GROW AND PREPARE THEIR OWN FOOD

2007-09-18T12:42:00.001-07:00

Agriscience, Culinary Arts & Food Service Department prepare vegetables grown at BHS to teach students about healthy living through cooking

On September 21st at Bloomfield HS at 12:45pm, Chef Timothy Cipriano a/k/a Local Food Dude, BHS Culinary Arts instructor Chef Paul Waszkelewicz and Teacher Joe Rodrigues of the Harris Agriscience Center at BHS will be making Kale Soup with the Agriscience and Culinary Art Students. All the vegetables with the exception of the potatoes were grown on campus in raised beds at Bloomfield HS Harris Agriscience Center.

This collaboration between the three departments is cutting edge education. The Agriscience Students start the vegetable seedlings in their on-site greenhouses, when ready to be moved outside the students plant the seedlings in one of the twenty raised beds at the Center. When school starts in September the Chefs from the Food Service Department (School Lunch) harvest the vegetables to be used as part of the school lunch program. In addition the Culinary Arts Students also harvest the vegetables to be used in their classes. Teaming the Agriscience students and the Culinary Arts students teaches each other the real cycle of life.

Global Warming Fighters Honored

2007-05-26T18:18:00.000-07:00

Hartford Courant
Global Warming Fighters Honored
Awards Coincide With Rell, Schwarzenegger EPA Threat
By JOEL LANGCourant Staff Writer
May 22 2007
Connecticut's version of the Oscar awards for best performance in fighting global warming were handed out Monday to six individuals, including the food services director of Bloomfield schools and the owner of an organic juice bar in Hartford.The emcee of the ceremony at Department of Environmental Protection headquarters, Commissioner Gina McCarthy, said it was a sign of Connecticut's leadership on climate change.The awards were presented on the same day that Gov. M. Jodi Rell and California Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger had an op-ed article in the Washington Post, threatening legal action if the federal government continues to block state efforts to set emissions standards for passenger vehicles.Among those cited for their efforts, Tim Cipriano, the Bloomfield food services director, was recognized for using locally grown produce that does not need to be transported long distances.Imini Zito, the owner of the Alchemy Juice Bar Café, runs a business that achieves a low "carbon footprint" partly by using biodegradable take-out containers and making deliveries in a vehicle that runs on bio-diesel fuel.Other individual winners of the Climate Change Leadership awards were:Andy Bauer, a middle school teacher in Glastonbury, who made his hometown of Portland the first municipality to purchase electricity through a state clean energy program.Charles Button, an assistant professor at Central Connecticut State University who created a new course in energy management and helped develop a schoolwide sustainability plan.Lynn Plant of Fairfield, a marketing strategist who created a climate change page on her town's website.And Bryan Garcia, who helped develop Connecticut's Climate Change Action Plan that calls for steep reductions in greenhouse gas emissions and is now program director of the Yale University Center for Business and Environment.Yale University also received an award for instituting measures that, as of last year, cut its greenhouse gas emissions by 41,000 metric tons.In their op-ed article Rell and Schwarzenegger faulted the federal Environmental Protection Agency for delaying action on California's request for a waiver to set tailpipe standards for vehicles that Connecticut and 10 other states have also adopted.The EPA is scheduled to hold hearings on the waiver today. If it does not grant the waiver, Rell and Schwarzenegger wrote, "we have an obligation to take legal action and settle this issue once and for all."Contact Joel Lang at jlang@courant.com.

Local Food 101, With a School as His Lab

2007-05-26T18:16:00.000-07:00

New York Times
May 13, 2007 Local Food 101, With a School as His Lab
By GERRI HIRSHEY
TALL, bald and of robust appetite, the chef Timothy Cipriano is casting an appreciative eye at the young free-range chickens clucking in their moveable, open-air run outside the Agriscience and Technology Center at Bloomfield High School. “By fall, I can give you three dozen eggs a week,” predicts Joseph Rodrigues, the agriscience teacher who oversees greenhouses, raised-bed gardens and a set of big, burbling aquaculture tanks. “Fantastic. We’ll do frittatas,” Mr. Cipriano murmurs. The two men are amiable and enthusiastic co-conspirators. Mr. Cipriano, the food service director for the Bloomfield school district, is also a committed activist for the Connecticut Farm-to-School program, which advocates serving students fresh, locally grown and sustainable food. He is clearly delighted by Mr. Rodrigues’s next promise: “We’ll be raising tilapia. It’s a good, mild fish the kids like. I’m hoping to give you a couple of decent harvests.”Having cajoled a few students out of study hall, Mr. Rodrigues has set them to transplanting heirloom tomato seedlings in the greenhouse. He walks between potting benches reciting tomato varieties: “Moskovich. First Ladies. Juliets. The Great White ... .” The crops also include snap peas, leeks, broccoli rabe, carrots, herbs, lettuce, arugula, okra and squash. Crews of volunteer students will tend the beds over the summer, with early harvest going to a local food bank.Students also test recipes, from watermelon gazpacho to Mexican pizza, and Mr. Cipriano has gathered the favorites in a self-published compendium intended for the delectation of “Not Your Average Lunch Lady.” His most popular dish is Squapple Crisp, a toothsome bake of winter squash, apples, cinnamon and brown sugar topped with crushed cornflakes. Has he had some losers? “Kale with carrots,” he admits. “Hey, kids are kids. You can’t push it too far. And their tastes seem to change overnight.” His own children, ages 5, 3 and 2, are crazy about asparagus and anything spicy, he says, “at least for now.”At the beginning of the fall term, Mr. Cipriano, also known in these parts as the Local Food Dude, will feed some of the fresh bounty from the agriscience plots to his students, who already enjoy Connecticut-grown fare from local farms in the cafeteria. Classes in the culinary vocational program just up the hill will get baskets of produce to experiment with. At 35, Mr. Cipriano bears a physical and spiritual resemblance to that legendary evangelist for basic, homegrown American cuisine, James Beard. He says he left restaurants and corporate food service to enjoy more family time on the same schedule as his wife, who is a teacher. He was middle school chef at a private academy in Cheshire before he came here to head the kitchens last July. Though Mr. Cipriano has brought his “eat local” message to all the district’s schools, the cafeteria of the 700-student Bloomfield High is his main laboratory. Beneath posters of Serena Williams asking “Got Milk?” students are enjoying a “brunch for lunch” of scrambled eggs, French toast strips and a tasting of four locally harvested maple syrups. There is also an Asian stir-fry station with jasmine rice and a counter serving favorites of the area’s large West Indian population. Last growing season, Michael Buchanan, a local farmer and Jamaican immigrant, grew callaloo, a leafy vegetable also known as pepperpot, and students made short work of that taste of home. Mr. Rodrigues’s classes are also growing incendiary Scotch Bonnet peppers, a Caribbean staple, to keep dishes lively in the fall. Mr. Cipriano has noticed the added benefit of cultural commingling at the steam table as students try different cuisines.“Food is a great teaching tool,” he says. “It touches so many areas — agriculture, the environment, different cultures. It’s immediate, it’s fun and they almost forget it’s good for them, too.”In the busy kitchen, a chef, Solomon Johnson Jr., is recalling the day last fall when Mr. Cipriano floored his staff by unloading several bushels of fresh Connecticut corn. Long accustomed to simply reheating the canned version, the kitchen workers were aghast. “We steamed it and put it out there,” Mr. Cipriano says. “The kids shucked it themselves and went crazy for it. We ran out halfway through the first shift.”Mr. Cipriano says he has had consistent support from school administrators, who enjoy school-catered wraps and snacks at meetings, and the district is building an early-childhood magnet school with a farm theme and hands-on greenhouses. This summer, Mr. Cipriano has another job as manager of the new Litchfield Hills Farm-Fresh Market, which opens at Center School in Litchfield on June 30. The Food Dude will be out there every Saturday, invoking the market mantra (“Be a vocal local, buy local food”), sampling new produce, grass-fed beef and organic dairy products — and developing more recipes. “And come September,” he says, “I can’t wait to feed it all to my kids.”E-mail:conn@nytimes.com

Much More than a Farm Market

2007-04-06T16:30:00.000-07:00

04/06/2007
Litchfield Enquirer
By: Emily M. Olson

By the end of June, the Litchfield Hills Fresh Food Market will be up and running Saturdays from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. outside Center School on West Street in the center of town, providing residents with produce and other homegrown foods from more than 20 vendors who hail from Litchfield and surrounding communities.
But the idea behind the food market reaches far beyond a weekly stop for tomatoes and corn on the cob.
The market's founders, who are establishing themselves as a nonprofit agency under the name Litchfield Hills Food System (LHFS), want to bring the idea of healthy eating to children in the public schools, using the foods that are sold at the market for education and, of course, meals in the schools.
The LHFS, led by acting executive director and board president Bill Burgess, has a membership including Superintendent of Schools Domenic Vita, First Selectman Leo Paul, residents Bill Davenport, John Morosani, Mark Herron, Litchfield Bancorp vice president Paul McLaughlin, Dr. Denuta Thibodeau and retired executive and attorney Alan Cohen.
"It's an amazing board of directors," said Mr. Burgess, who is also a member of the Economic Development Commission. "Because there are so many pieces to the LHFS, it requires a lot of work, and every one of the people on the board is touching one of these initiatives."
The grand opening of the Litchfield Hills Farm Fresh Market is about two months away, and the organizers of the movement to bring fresh produce to the community as well as its schools have received grants to support the effort and have secured a Market Master, Tim Cipriano, food service director for the Bloomfield School System. The Market Master is responsible for the planning, development, evaluation and day-to-day operations of the farmers market. Resident Kay Carroll is involved in the organization's marketing campaign and other volunteers are helping to make food market a reality.
More than the food market
Above and beyond the weekend food market, Mr. Burgess explained, the food system group is developing a program called "cafeteria in a classroom," as well as initiatives that will involve the schools' food service provider, chefs, food educators, and Region 6 agricultural education students, to name a few.
He stressed that the LHFS is a community-drive organization whose mission is to build "a strong community-based foundation to promote education programs linking the economic and health benefits of Connecticut-grown local food and sustainable agriculture," according to a written statement.
"We want to give kids in the schools experience with eating local foods," Mr. Burgess said. "That could include perhaps being involved through culinary art classes, developing some recipes out of local schools, having guest chefs come in to prepare foods and talk to kids about the nutritional value of local foods. It's an educational effort, getting kids interested in where local foods come from, all within the relatively new federal guidelines for school wellness and healthy foods. This all falls into the Board of Education's guidelines from the state for healthy eating, so we have the schools involved as well as the Education Connection, which has the schools' food service contract. They report to the schools, and we'll be establishing a collaboration of outside resources.
"We want to see if our schools can design a program that will improve and establish more healthy eating habits," Mr. Burgess added. "Schools are already trying to do that, so it's a continuation of the kinds of things that are being done now, but featuring local growers and value added vendors, like Bantam Bread, and getting kids to have a closer experience of local, fresh foods. And it's all for the health and well bring of our students and the community."
This year, the proposed school budget includes a request for a Spanish teacher in the elementary school. Mr. Burgess suggested that a lesson in food could be part of that new curriculum.
"Wouldn't it be great to have Spanish foods accompany that? We could have a chef come in and talk about [Spanish] foods that are local. These themes are an important part of it all," he said.
Other efforts on behalf of the educational piece of the LHFS could be the establishment of an herb garden at the high school, which would be overseen by science program students. Sustainable agriculture education-teaching students the value of food grown or raised by local small to mid-sized farmers and producers "who commit to the vitality of the earth, their livestock and their workers ... and is prepared in ways that maintain and respect purity, freshness and flavor," according to the statement, is a priority when working with students, Mr. Burgess stressed.
"The idea is to give the kids a sense of what sustainable agriculture is all about," Mr. Burgess said. "We're reaching down into the very impressionable areas of the school community. They're our future leaders-it has to start with them. This could also extend to the culinary arts program. The students could design some foods and serve them to the elementary school students. It's all about adding to the idea of sustainable food, health and well being."
Joining forces with Wamogo Regional High School's vocational agricultural education center, which has a greenhouse and teaches various farming courses is another part of the effort. And the Connecticut Junior Republic, which has run its own farm stand for years, is also getting involved.
"At Wamogo, they're going to be using the greenhouse to grow domestic cut flowers," Mr. Burgess said. "We have a number of people involved in that, and they'll bring them down to Litchfield and sell them at the farmer's market. They bought some additional land adjoining the school and the students will plant crops, nurture and grow those products and bring them to the market too.
"At CJR, they just hired a new plant science teacher, and they're thinking about how they can get involved," he continued. "They also know that everyone comes to the farmer's market, so they're thinking about partnering with Wamogo."
Economic development and support
The LHFS is also about supporting continuing economic growth. Since Mr. Burgess also sits on the Economic Development Commission, the establishment of the food market and the food system programs are intended to encourage local business owners and growers to participate and earn local dollars.
"At the same time we are trying to support the economic development of the community," Mr. Burgess said. "We want to maintain the rural character, so this is also about farm preservation, helping our local growers, in Litchfield and surrounding areas, because it helps them be economically viable. We want to keep [local farmers] in business, so bringing fresh foods into the schools on the basis of themes could be part of it, for example."
State and local grants, including a recent donation from Litchfield Bancorp, are going to be a great help, Mr. Burgess said.
"We're still waiting for our non-profit status, and it's gratifying to know that we've got so much support. We're really on a fast track here," he said proudly. "What makes us smile is when people want to do their bit to support us. That makes us believe we're on the right road. We're getting support because we're a community initiative and people believe in what we're doing."
To learn more about the Litchfield Hills Food System and the Litchfield Hills Fresh Food Market, visit the Web site at www.litchfieldhillsfood.org, or call 860-361-9125.

Farm-to-Trough-to-School

2007-04-02T08:14:00.000-07:00

Local produce in schools means better taste, more profits

2007-03-27T06:30:00.000-07:00

Local produce in schools means better taste, more profits
by adam gorlick / associated press writer

MAR 25, 2007 3:20 PM EDT
WORCESTER, Mass. (AP) -- They're rarely considered haute cuisine, more often
serving as jokes for students or worse -- becoming the stuff of food fights.

But meals being dished out in the country's college dining halls and
grade-school cafeterias are getting tastier and more nutritious thanks to a
growing number of programs that encourage local farmers to sell their crops
directly to schools.

The arrangements mean fresher meals for students, and they're also heaping
new profits on farmers' plates.

"I care about what I eat, so I'm happy the school is doing what it can to
help make meals healthier," said Joe Levering, a sophomore at Clark
University who was surprised that the carrots he had for lunch on Thursday
came from a Lunenberg farm, just about 25 miles away from this campus near
downtown Worcester.

"And it's a great idea to support local farms so they could stay in
business," he said.

Clark is one of about a dozen colleges in the state participating in the
Massachusetts Farm to School Project, a three-year-old program that helps
eliminate the middleman in food distribution by having more farmers bring
their fruits, vegetables and dairy products straight to campuses.

The arrangements reaped more than $415,000 for about 90 Massachusetts
farmers last year.

Across the country, more than 200 colleges and 1,000 public school
districts in 35 states have similar programs, said Marion Kalb, director of
National Farm to School Program, based in Santa Fe, N.M.

The national program was launched in 2000 after schools in California and
Florida started buying food directly from farmers. It now helps foster new
programs with marketing, legal assistance and purchasing arrangements.

The Massachusetts Farm to School Program was started by Kelly Erwin, who
got the idea while working for the state agriculture department as a
marketing specialist.

She attended a school food service trade show in 2002, where she tasted
"the worst food you've ever had in your life," and decided to make a push
for getting fresher ingredients into school kitchens.

After losing her job to state budget cuts, Erwin formed the Massachusetts
Farm to School Project with about $20,000 from MassDevelopment, the state's
finance and development authority, and Project Bread, a Boston-based
anti-hunger organization.

In the past three years, the program has grown to include about 75 public
school districts and a dozen colleges across the state. Fifty farms are
delivering their produce directly to schools and have partnered with about
40 smaller farmers to distribute their crops for them.

John Culver, MassDevelopment's CEO, said his agency will continue funding
the project so it can encompass more colleges.

"Massachusetts is rich in schools that aren't going anywhere," he said.
"The students consume at least three meals a day on a regular basis, so we
know there's a clear market that could be developed."

At Clark, about 20 percent of the ingredients for student meals come from
locally grown crops during the fall and spring, said Jim Lachance, the
school's executive chef. During the winter, when the dozen farms they get
produce from have fewer crops available, the amount drops to about 5
percent, he said.

"The biggest limitation we have is in the growing season," said Cheryl
Walker, general manager of Clark's dining services.

For Lanni Orchards, the Lunenberg farm responsible for the carrots,
potatoes and onions being cooked at Clark this week, selling directly to
schools has accounted for about 20 percent of its growth during the past two
years. The farm delivers its produce to about 20 grade schools and five
colleges in Massachusetts.

Pat Lanni, who owns the family farm with his cousins, said he's hoping the
new market he's tapped will lead to a new crop of customers who will put a
premium on locally grown food.

If the students are aware that the tasty and healthful food they're eating
at school comes from a nearby farm, they're likely to seek out farmers
markets and local produce when they have to feed themselves after
graduation.

"If we all get them to eat their veggies when their young, I'll have
customers forever," he said.

LOCAL LABELING

2007-03-20T08:54:00.000-07:00

For the past two years Fowler & Huntting has been able to supply farms with a small round label that identifies the product as being grown for Fowler and Huntting. A farm maker (3 letter code) is printed in the middle of the label which identifies the farm. These simple sticker labels are cost effective and are easy to use for many smaller farms. Any farm working with Fowler can call us. We will print labels in any quantity for them to pick up on demand same day. The cost per sticker amounted to about ½ penny per sticker. Going forward, we are requiring all our farms to label all boxes benefiting customers and themselves. Additionally, this satisfies the bio terror act concerning traceability requirements.

New England Grown.com Interview

2007-03-12T10:03:00.000-07:00

The Local Food Dude, New England Grown
Back when I went to school, the lunch ladies were quiet, older women in hair nets who heated frozen meals in huge steam trays and served them up to students who complained loudly about the unchanging rotation of soggy breaded chicken, pizza, hot dogs, and hamburgers. Some school cafeterias may not have changed much since those days, but the schools in Bloomfield, Connecticut have a decidedly different feel. For one thing, the lunchtime offerings might include roasted root vegetables from local farms or fresh fruit straight from the tree. And, instead of the lunch ladies, they have Timothy Cipriano: The Local Food Dude.

As part of the Connecticut Farms-to-Schools program, Tim has brought farm-fresh food into the school system. His approach to convincing students that local and fresh vegetables are better than steam-tray hotdogs has been one of deep education. In his former position at the Dodd Middle School, Tim incorporated his food into the curriculum. Students learned to prepare dishes, to do nutritional and cost analysis of recipes, and to “market” new recipes to the school community. And commitment to good eating didn’t stop there – through a grant from the USDA Fresh Fruit & Vegetable Program, fruit and vegetable trays were made available to students during after school activities, in homeroom, even in the guidance counselor’s office, a program that continues at Dodd today. Tim has now brought his commitment to local, fresh food to the Bloomfield School system, where he is working with the local 4-H program, the Culinary Arts Department, Vo-Ag Program and the Food Services Department to develop a comprehensive food program.

Tim has shown that kids will eat vegetables and fruit – if they are prepared in ways that bright and appealing. Green beans from the can and watery squash are a no-go, but glazed carrots, strawberry soup, Italian vegetable soup, and raspberry coleslaw get great reviews for both nutrition and taste.

We asked Tim a few questions:

How did students respond to your first attempts to replace the usual cafeteria food with locally grown, fresh fruits and vegetables?
Both school communities I worked in were also farming communities at one time, more recently they are now bedroom communities. The students were perplexed, but the parents were very happy that I was incorporating locally grown products into their students’ lunches.

You’ve involved students in learning about their food, in addition to offering them better choices. To what extent do you believe that this involvement accounts for the success of your program?
Getting the students involved with more than just eating is huge. The students see me as Chef Tim, a cool bald guy in school rather than a “Lunch Lady”. The students that I worked with were more receptive to try new foods.

Do you work with teachers to integrate your programs into what students are learning in their science classes? Do the teachers support your work?
Teachers definitely support the program. I am currently working on tying the Vo-Ag and Culinary Arts departments together to work with the food service in my high school.

How do parents convince their children to eat real food, rather than junk and fast food?
I feel the best way is to have a family meal and incorporate fun foods into the meal; instead of having baked squash, try Squapple, Roasted Butternut Squash & Apple Crisp with a crunchy cornflake topping. Let the kids go shopping with you; let them choose which fruits and vegetables they want to try.

How do parents get their schools to support them in their efforts to improve their children’s diets?
Get the facts, go to the Board of Education meetings and speak up. Call the food service director and ask what can be done to get a program in place. Volunteer to do some of the legwork to get the program up and running.

Do you think a program like yours could work in every school district, or does your area have unusual resources that allow for a progressive program?
It could definitely work in every district in the country, all that is needed is a group of dedicated individuals who want it to happen.

Do you think poor, city schools could afford to develop a program like yours?
Yes, where there’s a will there’s a way!

Does your food cost significantly more than most school lunches?
$.14 for a local apple vs. $.22 for a Washington State Apple. Local apple traveled 10 miles and was picked that morning, WA apple traveled 1600 miles and was picked weeks ago.

How many programs like yours do you know of in the U.S.?
There are many farm-to-school programs happening around the country. CT alone has a large number of participating districts, see www.ctgrown.gov, then look for the Farm-to-School link for more information.

What role do local farms play in improving children’s diets?
The support of local farms is vital for this program to function, without their help and support we would not be able to operate.

What are the most popular dishes in your schools?
Steamed Calaloo, Collard Greens, Squapple, Warm Cinnamon Apples, Glazed Carrots & Swiss Chard, Roasted Beets.

Learn more about The Local Food Dude at his website.

Once you’ve done reading, start talking: to the food services director at the local school, to other parents, to the principal, to local farmers. The more people who become excited about the possibility of healthy, locally-grown school lunches, the better the chance of changing the school lunch program. Good luck!

Meat's trip from farm to plate not easy

2007-03-04T16:24:00.000-08:00

Sunday, March 4, 2007
BY BRIGITTE RUTHMAN
Copyright © 2007 Republican-American

LITCHFIELD -- The demand for organically raised meat is filling more pastures with livestock these days, but how to get the meat off the hoof and on the table poses a dilemma for farmers.

The answer may turn out to be a portable slaughterhouse, an unusual option that will discussed at a meeting here next week.

With few commercial slaughterhouses, farmers must figure a way to make the animals they raise ready for sale in a manner approved by federal regulators. You can buy a chicken and have the farmer slaughter it for you, but the same isn't true of cattle, sheep, pigs or goats because they generally aren't sold whole, said Commissioner of Agriculture F. Philip Prelli.

"There is a growing demand for organic meat and not enough plants to process the meat," Prelli said.

At Laurel Ridge Farm in Litchfield, John Morosani has been taking two or three of his 80 beef cattle a month to Bristol Beef, the state's only USDA approved plant. If it ever closes, Morosani said, he'll have to drive out of state. A longer drive would mean more expense, time, and stress for animals that tend to taste better if they are stress free before they are slaughtered, Morosani said.

Find your dream home at MyCTHome.com
He's among several who are supporting a plan to bring a portable slaughterhouse to the area. Demand for the beef Morosani produces is growing faster than he is able to supply since he began selling to the public last fall. As is true of others like him, his ability to increase his herd hinges on many variables, including a cost effective, humane and federally approved slaughterhouse.

"We are overwhelmed," he said. "Even without advertising."

Bruce Dunlop, manager of a farm cooperative in Lopez Island in the state of Washington, will explain the portable slaughterhouse option as a possible solution at 7 Thursday night at the Litchfield Inn. The event, which is expected to draw elected officials as well as producers, is cosponsored by The White Flower Farm and Litchfield Hills Greenprint, a land conservation organization which aims to preserve existing farmland in part by assisting in the development of commercial opportunities for existing farm operations.

"A lot of processing plants have closed and we have found there are many areas that lack a service within a reasonable distance from the farm," Dunlop said. "You can buy a cow, but not a steak, from the farmer, and you can't sell to a restaurant. The regulations have gotten more complicated while consumer interest has grown exponentially."

An engineer by trade, Dunlop raises sheep and pigs and operates a USDA mobile slaughterhouse which has served livestock farmers in the northwest corner of Washington state for four years. The first-of-its-kind, 26-foot mobile slaughterhouse, which looks something like a cross between a mobile home and a big horse trailer with no windows, cost $150,000 to build, two-thirds of which was acquired through grants. It can process 1,500 animals per year, at a cost of about $550 per animal to produce commercially ready cuts. Of that $550, $75 is for slaughter.

At best, the profit margin for raising beef cattle isn't great, Dunlop said.

A cow that weighs 1,200 pounds produces about 400 pounds of retail-ready meat. It sells for an average of $4 to $20, a pound, depending on the cut. The retail value is between $2,000 and $2,500.

Thursday's talk is free.

CT AG-Day

2007-03-04T16:22:00.000-08:00

Wednesday, March 21, 2007, Agriculture Day at the Capitol will be taking place in the North Lobby of the Capitol. From 10 am to 1pm, over 30 agricultural associations and their representatives will be on hand to showcase themselves and to distribute information. Legislative leaders visit these booths and it is our opportunity to inform these policy makers of the importance of agriculture, to voice our concerns, and discuss legislation important to agriculture. At noon, the official presentations begin with the official proclamation of "Connecticut Agriculture Day". For further information, please contact Ron Olsen at 860-713-2550.

Farmers Market Promotion Program - Invitation for Grant Applications

2007-03-04T16:18:00.000-08:00

The USDA Agricultural Marketing Service is pleased to announce the availability of approximately $1 million in competitive grant funds to support farmers markets and other direct marketing projects: USDA ANNOUNCES SECOND YEAR OF FARMERS MARKET PROMOTION PROGRAM GRANTS.

You are invited to submit proposals under the Farmers Market Promotion Program (FMPP) for Fiscal Year 2007. We urge agricultural cooperatives, local governments, non-profit corporations, public benefit corporations, economic development corporations, regional farmer’s market authorities, and Tribal governments to consider developing proposals for this grant program. The allocation of grant funds will be carried out in a single round of competition. Eligible entities must be owned, operated and located within one or more of the 50 United States and the District of Columbia. The maximum amount of any one proposal is $75,000.

Listed below are links to the application materials:

§ Notice of Funding Availability (Federal Register, February 27, 2007)

§ FMPP Guidelines

§ FMPP forms and website links

o SF-424 (Application for Federal Assistance)

o SF-424A (Budget Information)

o SF-424B (Assurances Form)

o TM-29 Project Proposal Narrative Form

o TM-30 Supplemental Budget Summary Form

§ FMPP Application Checklist

Application forms and program guidelines are also available at the AMS Marketing Services website at Farmers Market Promotion Program. The deadline for submitting a FMPP application is the close of business on April 13, 2007.

All proposals will be given full consideration in an impartial review process and selection. We are looking forward to receiving innovative proposals that will assist us in expanding the domestic consumption of agricultural commodities while strengthening the nation’s farmers markets.

'Food Dude' opens home-grown website 2/22/07

2007-03-04T16:13:00.000-08:00

Tim Cipriano has been the director of Food Services for the Bloomfield school district since July 1, 2006, described himself as a self-taught chef.

His 15 years of experience in the culinary arts, which includes working at several restaurants in the Northeast, has resulted in a website for school nutrition professionals - www.localfooddude.com.
The purpose of the site, which he started last month, is to support locally grown fruits, vegetables and other food sources. The site emphasizes sustainable food sources in the New England region, and includes information ranging from recipes to a list of local farms.
About 40 staff members working under Cipriano, who previously worked as the chef for Dodd Middle School in Cheshire. He has three children and his wife Maura is a teacher.
He discussed recipes he introduced to the district as part of a pilot program, such as "Squapple Crisp." The treat, which combines a winter squash and an apple crisp topped with cornflakes, is considered the most popular.
"There's something different," he said. "That makes it more exciting. We want to try different things than the kids are used to eating."
He also works in cooperation with the Connecticut Farm to School Program, which operates under the auspices of the departments of agriculture. It has been in place for a few years and supports local farmers, he said.
"Instead of apples that were picked in (the state of) Washington and shipped here, you have apples from Connecticut that were picked a few days ago," said Cipriano regarding the program. He said the reduction of emissions from delivery trucks traveling across the country to deliver food could be reduced by local deliveries, he said.
"It is healthier for the environment, for the economic climate and for the consumers," he said.
The program has been discussed by the Department of Environmental Protection because of the effect that climate changes can have on certain foods.
He has also worked with the program "Fresh Fruits and Vegetables," which serves 25 school districts, and will participate in a forthcoming NOFA (Northeast Organic Farming Association) discussion panel at Windsor High School.
By: Brian Woodman Jr., Staff Writer
©Bloomfield Journal 2007

2007-02-05T07:18:00.000-08:00

New York Times: Michael Pollen - Unhappy Meals

2007-01-30T09:18:00.000-08:00

MAGAZINE January 28, 2007 Unhappy Meals By MICHAEL POLLAN Thirty years of nutritional science has made Americans sicker, fatter and less well nourished. A plea for a return to plain old food.
http://www.nytimes.com/2007/01/28/magazine/28nutritionism.t.html?pagewanted=1&ei=5070&en=8fd0f76806b0baa2&ex=1170651600&emc=eta1

CULTIVATING AN ORGANIC CONNECTICUT CONFERENCE

2007-01-30T09:16:00.000-08:00

SATURDAY, MARCH 10, 2007, 8:30AM - 4:45PMWINDSOR HIGH SCHOOL, WINSDOR, CTBrought to you by: United Natural Foods
Featuring:NANCY JACK TODD AND JOHN TODDScientists, authors, activists and co-founders of the New Alchemy Institute and Ocean Arks Institute speaking on THE PROMISE OF ECOLOGICAL DESIGNTo build truly sustainable communities and lighten the footprint humans are making on the earth requires a new way of thinking about design, recycling, conservation, and renewable energy. Taking our cues from long-existing ecosystems on our planet we can create successful local food systems and virtually eliminate pollution, providing a healthier environment and better quality of life for everyone.
Local Food Dude will be part of a panel discussion; "How to Start a Revolution: Stories from the Front Lines of Local Food"

LocalFoodDude.com is LIVE!

2007-01-23T06:11:00.000-08:00

Good Day Everyone,
I just started a new web site devoted to Local Foods for “Not your Average Lunch Lady”, Check it out at www.LocalFoodDude.com. This website is a site devoted exclusively to promoting the consumption of LOCALLY Grown Foods in Schools. The site went live a week ago and I am still adding to it, but I wanted to get the word out. Please give me as much feedback as you can so I can improve the site.
Be a VOCAL LOCAL, Buy LOCALLY GROWN!
Chef Tim