Sep/Oct 2015
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Pollinate This
How buying local packs a powerful can of economic whoop-ass. In his new book, The Local Economy Solution, progressive economist Michael Shuman continues his tireless, 20-year effort to wring the necks of worn economic development strategies and get communities to embrace what is known as “import substitution.” Import substitution is a simple concept. You know…
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A Growing Crowd
Barnraiser’s bumper crop of innovators bring the sexy back to food. Barn raising was the original crowd-sourcing. Back in the day, members of a community got together and literally hoisted up the walls of a barn (you know, like that montage in Witness with all the hunky Amish dudes). St. Helena’s Eileen Gordon brings the…
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Pressing On
Sebastopol Farmers’ Market manager Paula Downing set to retire. In 1991 or so, Paula Downing was newly transplanted to Sonoma County from rural Oregon, working as a paralegal and having to stay indoors all day long, five long days a week. So, she built herself a greenhouse and started growing plants. The Sebastopol Farmers’ Market…
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Golden Globes
Where to go to pick—and pick up—your pumpkin this autumn. Eastside Seasonal Farm and Pumpkin Patch eastsideseasonalfarm.com Meet Wink the donkey, pet goats, climb and get lost in hay bales, and more. Coupons available on their website. Old-fashioned, rural pumpkin patch with few gimmicks other than the pleasure of the farm, its produce, and animals.…
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Ancient Activism
Local gleaners save the harvest, just as they’ve done for thousands of years. Food waste is a hot topic in 2015. According to a report by the National Resources Defense Council, 40 percent of the food in the United States goes uneaten. Americans throw out some $165 billion in food each year. This discarded sustenance…
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Sinking In
How flooding the Russian River might be our best chance to beat the drought. This is today: Groundwater reserves are shrinking. Wells have dried up. Saltwater is encroaching into the Carneros Valley. Tributary streams where salmon and steelhead spawn have vanished, and state efforts to stabilize groundwater use are moving at a glacial pace. Then,…
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Rabbit Redux
A European ancestral staple, rabbit meat is on the comeback—unless it rains. In 2013, a disease outbreak ravaged the North Bay, and when the dust had settled, Eric Shevchenko’s small farm was in ruins. He had just 40 rabbits left. But the farmer has recovered and rebuilt his colony. Shevchenko has also moved from his…
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Saving the Season
Putting up the harvest doesn’t just fill our pantries—it preserves community. Abundance is something we can influence, but not control. A bumper crop operates on its own schedule, forcing you to adjust yours. That’s where preservation comes in. Once a necessity for survival, food preservation—specifically that of vegetables and fruits—now carries a different kind of urgency,…
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Folks You Should Know – Amber Twitchell
Director, VOICES Sonoma. Amber Twitchell is the director of VOICES, a youth-developed and -led community center that provides services to former and current foster youth, homeless youth, and other disconnected youth in our community. Her staff consists of 22 young people between the ages of 16-26, all of who have direct experience in various systems…
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Food Action Heros!
Follow the Rooster to support the system. Riley has committed to visiting a farmers’ market every week. Siska is hosting a farm-to-table dinner at home. The Sandoval family is joining a CSA. So are Lucy and Jessica. Meanwhile, Meredith is following the rooster to a local food event. Actually, they’re all following the rooster. Devised…