“I am disappointed by today’s ruling,” Ricketts said in a statement to the Miami Herald. “My garden not only provided us with food, but it was also beautiful and added character to the community. I look forward to continuing this fight and ultimately winning so I can once again use my property productively instead of being forced to have a useless lawn.”
Source: Growing your own food in America is now a criminal act? | Green Prophet
Mike Kwasniewski started the Charm Farm’s whole-diet CSA in Beverly, West Virginia for a slightly different reason: born and raised in West Virginia, he wanted to find a viable way of doing sustainable farming in a less-affluent rural economy.“I didn’t have that urban market where I could get a premium, so if I could supply more to fewer clients, and if I could structure the farm in a way that it could do all of that,” he says. “Then I’d be better off by focusing on serving the local population instead of shipping [my food] off to the closest metro area.”Kwasniewski describes his whole-diet CSA as a “one-farm local food economy,” and he sees the business model as one that would work for other folks in places without a strong base of farmers’ markets and veggie CSAs.
Source: What if One Farm Raised (Almost) Everything You Ate? | Civil Eats
Standing in a spectacular back yard in beautiful Austin, Texas, I am captivated by the energy permeating from the well-though-out landscape. To my left, a traditional, seasonal vegetable garden proudly contributes an assortment of fresh tomatoes, peppers and onions to the Farmist yield. Directly in front of me, stands a chicken coop expertly fashioned from reclaimed wood and metal.
Paintings, sculptures, painted trees and chickens fill the space between monuments. To my immediate right sits a seemingly out of place mound of garbage. Or is it tree limbs? A compost? My curiosity pitches high.
My older brother, Joseph de Leon is the proud owner and constructor of this urban farm. Soaking in the energy of back yard art, chickens and produce, my curiosity reaches maximum velocity when I finally ask, “What is this mound?” “Hugelkutur,” he replied. “A what?” I asked again. “Hugelkultur. It’s a type of raised bed garden,” he said. I was mesmerized as he explained the process and purpose behind this ancient gardening method.
via Urban Farmist: Resurrecting an ancient practice of growing food | Latina Lista.
While people often say that borders aren’t visible from space, the line between Kazakhstan and China could not be more clear in this satellite image. Acquired by the Landsat 8 satellite on September 9, 2013, the image shows northwestern China around the city of Qoqek and far eastern Kazakhstan near Lake Balqash.
via Where China and Kazakhstan Meet : Image of the Day.
And which area will produce food longer? Maybe Kazakhstan because the Chinese are using up their water. If the Kazaks go for green house production, they may end up feed large parts of China.
Breskin’s project has already increased the overall profitability of the farm where it is implemented. It has reduced total energy costs by 50 percent by running on around $2 per day; appears likely to have generated a 10-month growing season; has caused productivity increases per square foot and per plant – and appears likely to be expanding soon.
The entire project was built for $10,000, and it has already produced more than that amount in food alone.
But rather than aiming to make money on it, Breskin is more concerned about improving the system and getting it into the hands of more local farmers as quickly as possible.
“I’m open source,” he said. “The only reason to patent this is to keep someone else from patenting it in order to monetize it.”
via Dahr Jamail | Open Source Farming: A Renaissance Man Tackles the Food Crisis.
If you enjoy a juicy hamburger or a well-seared steak, we’d advise steering clear of any wooded areas unless wearing full protective gear. A type of tick spotted on Long Island called the Lone Star tick can cause its victims to develop an allergy to red meat, reports NBC New York. All in favor of renaming it Vegan’s Revenge say aye!
via This Tick’s Bite Can Turn You Vegetarian: Gothamist.
Even if we manage to dodge the kale shortage here in the U.S., collard greens are worth a try. Collard greens actually beat kale in a lot of important nutrients, including manganese, protein, and vitamin B3.
via Eat Drink Better | Healthy recipes, good food: sustainable eats for a healthy lifestyle!.
Local food growers, consumers and entrepreneurs in the Lansing, Michigan area have had good cause to celebrate as of late. Last September, Allen Neighborhood Center, a community development agency that doubles as Mid-Michigan’s nonprofit food hub, opened the doors of a warehouse they’d spent months renovating.
Located directly behind their community center on the city’s northeast side, that building, the Allen Market Place, now serves as an incubator kitchen and indoor market. It’s also linked to an online market called the Exchange, that connects regional farmers and food producers with commercial and institutional buyers in a 75-mile range of Lansing.
via Michigan Market Serves Neighborhood with Indoor Market.
Restaurant-goers in France will start seeing a funny little symbol on their menus this week: a skillet with a house on top, indicating your menu choice is made in-house.
It’s part of a new law meant to battle against the surprising amount of factory-made, pre-packaged food in French restaurants, and celebrate the country’s culinary traditions.
However, many in the industry say the law doesn’t go far enough, because it allows dishes made from frozen, pre-peeled or pre-cut products to count as home-made.
via French Law Kicks Packaged Food Out of the Kitchen.
El fantasma del hambre se acerca a Nicaragua. El segundo país más pobre de América Latina y uno de los 10 más vulnerables del mundo al cambio climático, se enfrenta a un fenómeno meteorológico que amenaza su seguridad alimentaria.
via El Niño juega con la comida de Nicaragua | IPS Agencia de Noticias.
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