Uncategorized
Scaling Up Workshops: How to grow more, sell more and make more
Post Date: Wednesday, October 21st, 2009
Consumer demand for local foods is growing and Farm to Table, NMDA, and NMSU and University of Arizona Coop Extension are teaming up to offer a series of two workshops that will help farmers and ranchers in the Middle Rio Grande Valley and the Four Corners area to expand their businesses and meet this demand. The theme of the workshops is “Scaling Up: How to grow more, sell more and make more.”
In the first workshops, successful farmers from the area and beyond will present on their experience with:
- Community Supported Agriculture programs (CSAs),
- Selling to restaurants and institutions,
- Season extension for year round production and sales,
- Livestock marketing, and
- Diversifying product mix.
The workshops will also provide farmers and ranchers with the opportunity to meet in small groups with these farmers to think about which production and marketing improvements will work best for their own farms or ranches.
Workshop participants will be eligible to receive free, one-on-one consulting about their farm and ranch business.
The workshops will be held in the following three locations:
FARMINGTON
Tuesday, November 3, 2009
3pm to 8pm
First Presbyterian Church
865 North Dustin Avenue
SHIPROCK
Wednesday, November 4, 2009
Shiprock Chapter House
US 64
10 am to 3 pm
BELEN
Saturday, November 14
Belen Public Library
333 Becker Ave
10am to 3pm
A $5 registration fee covers lunch or dinner and refreshments. To eat, YOU MUST RSVP one week before the workshop. For more information or to RSVP, contact Ilana Blankman at (505) 473-1004 x 12 or ilana.blankman@gmail.com.
Topics: Farm To Table Conferences, Workshops, and Trainings, Uncategorized |
The Community Food Projects (CFP) Request for Applications for FY2010 is Out!
Post Date: Thursday, September 24th, 2009The Community Food Projects (CFP) Competitive Grants Program is the major funding source for community-based food and agriculture projects in the U.S. The Fiscal Year 2010 Request for Applications (RFA) was released September 23, with a deadline of November 19. The CFP Request for Applications describes what is funded and how to apply: http://www.csrees.usda.gov/funding/rfas/community_food.html
There is no Letter of Intent process, so all applicants must submit a full proposal to be considered for funding. All proposals must be submitted electronically. If you plan to apply this year and are not already registered with grants.gov, it is important to start that process immediately, since it can take up to two months. More information and technical support contacts are available at: http://www.csrees.usda.gov/funding/electronic.html.
If you are interested in applying for the CFP grant and want some help figuring out if your project is a good candidate and/or need some help putting your proposal together, Farm to Table can help. Contact Ilana Blankman at ilana.blankman@gmail.com or 505-473-1004 x 12.
Topics: Uncategorized |
New Food Safety Report
Post Date: Thursday, September 24th, 2009A new food safety report, “Bridging the GAPS: Strategies to Improve Produce Safety, Preserve Farm Diversity and Strengthen Local Food Systems,” was recently released by Food and Water Watch and the Institute for Agriculture and Trade Policy. This timely report shows how current government and industry protocols and regulations intended to promote food safety often have the opposite effect by placing unfair burdens on farmers, confusing consumers, damaging the environment, and hindering the growth of local food systems.
Topics: National News, Uncategorized |
New Resource: Funding Opportunities for Agriculuture and Community Development Projects
Post Date: Thursday, January 29th, 2009There are lots of great opportunities to obtain federal funding for your agricultural project. Click here to download this handy Federal Funding Opportunities Matrix.
Topics: Uncategorized |
Weak economy puts more kids in line for free meals, report says
Post Date: Monday, December 15th, 2008See the article below from CNN.com from Thursday, December 11.
The sagging economy is taking a bite out of federal school-meal subsidies as more students take advantage of free or low-price breakfasts and lunches, nutritionists say in a report released Thursday.
About 425,000 more students are participating in the National School Lunch Program, a group reports.
The School Nutrition Association surveyed more than 130 school nutrition directors from 38 states to produce its report, “Saved by the Lunch Bell: As Economy Sinks, School Nutrition Program Participation Rises.”
The nonprofit organization said that about 425,000 more students are participating in the National School Lunch Program and the School Breakfast Program in 2008-09 than in the previous school year.
That represents an average increase of 2.5 percent from 2007-08, the report says.
These numbers hold true despite a slight decline in the number of students enrolled in public schools this school year, according to the study.
More than three-quarters of the districts surveyed reported a rise in the number of students eating free meals under the U.S. Department of Agriculture program, the report says.
Many of the school district employees who monitor the food programs complain that the federal subsidies fall far short of the rising costs.
According to the association, the estimated average cost to prepare a school meal is $2.90, but the federal reimbursement is $2.57.
School lunch programs are experiencing a potential loss of at least $4.5 million per school day, based on 30 million school lunches provided, the group says.
The good news, according to association President Katie Wilson, is that “this year, when hunger is more common, more students are able to eat a balanced, nutritious meal at school.”
Meals served under the USDA programs must meet nutrition guidelines based on the Dietary Guidelines for Americans. For lunches, that means no more than 30 percent of calories can come from fat and fewer than 10 percent from saturated fat.
Topics: Uncategorized |