Via the Seacoast Eat Local blog:

Meadow’s Mirth is now accepting 2010 CSA Members

Have you ever have considered raising your own chickens or other poultry, for eggs or meat? For years, many people have been raising backyard birds—just a few, or a sizable flock—because that way, they can be sure what the animals eat (good, clean, and fair food for them, too!), how the animals live (running and pecking around the yard, truly free-ranging), and how fresh the food is (like, eggs harvested just this morning).

Joseph Marquette and Robert Gibson of Yellow House Farm in Barrington are wonderful local resources of all things related to heritage poultry husbandry. They are friendly faces at Seacoast farmers’ markets, not to mention active planners and participants in Barrington Farm Day and the NH Natural Heritage and Agricultural Fair. And they aren’t selfish about sharing what they know, either! For example, at Slow Food Seacoast’s 3rd Annual Down-on-the-Farm Picnic (held July  12, 2009, at Osprey Cove Organic Farm in Madbury), Joe graciously shared his time and knowledge with a rapt circle of listeners. He talked about the history of domesticated poultry and explained why preserving old-fashioned heritage poultry breeds is important.

If you are ready to raise your own laying hens or broiler chickens, Yellow House Farm can help. They currently are accepting orders for Ancona and White Dorking chicks.  Learn more about these two heritage breeds and how to order Day-Old Hatchlings on their website.

In 2009, Joe and Rob launched Yellow House Farm School (a.k.a. Chicken School) with great success, and the spring 2010 seminar schedule has been announced. One-day seminars that cover choosing, raising, managing, and marketing heritage poultry will be held on Saturdays, 9 am–4 pm, biweekly from March 6 through May 29, 2010. Each 1-day class is limited to only 10 participants, so learn more about the Homesteading Heritage Poultry class and calendar online, then follow instructions there to register—as soon as possible to guarantee your spot. The cost of the 1-day seminar is $45.00.

From Seacoast Eat Local:

Fresh salad greens, spinach, and lettuce … carrots, parsnips, onions, and potatoes … locally raised meats, locally caught fish, locally made jams, jellies, breads, and teas  … New Hampshire grown Christmas trees, wreaths, poinsettias, and kissing balls — these are just some of the products that will be for sale this Saturday, December 5th from 10am-2pm at our next Winter Farmers’ Market indoors at Wentworth Greenhouses in Rollinsford! Wentworth Greenhouses is located at 141 Rollins Road, a mile past Red’s Shoe Barn of Dover. You can find a full list of participating vendors and the products they will be selling at www.seacoasteatlocal.org

• The market is open until 2pm - If you have something else to do in the morning, want a relaxed morning, or just want to avoid the crowds, feel free to come later! Our vendors are well prepared for a large number of customers and will appreciate your business whenever you can get there!

• Volunteer! We’re still looking for a few more volunteers to help set up, provide information during the market, or clean up afterward. Volunteers come for one or two hour shifts, and play a key role in ensuring the success of the markets! Email erin@yogaonthehillkittery.com if you would like to volunteer.

It’s Buy Local Week on the Seacoast. Our friends at Seacoast Local have been organizing and promoting a wide variety of opportunities to shift your spending locally, including buying local food! Read all about their other ideas and events for buying local art, toys, and more >

Help spread the word! Forward this email, post a message on your blog/website/facebook profile, invite a friend to come with you to the market this Saturday - the more the merrier!

For more information, maps and driving directions, visit www.seacoasteatlocal.org. Please note, when coming from the west, Google maps incorrectly lists Shady Lane as a through street near Wentworth Douglass Hospital.

We hope you’ll join us on December 5th as it is going to be another amazing farmers’ market, with an abundance of locally grown and raised foods that you can feel great about buying as you’ll be supporting local farms and agriculture while enjoying safe, healthful, and delicious food!

- Sara Zoe Patterson, on behalf of Seacoast Eat Local
www.seacoasteatlocal.org
blog.seacoasteatlocal.org
on Facebook

Senator Deb Reynolds, chair of the Milk Producers Emergency Relief Fund (MPERF) Board, invites legislators, farmers, conservationists and consumers to a public informational forum on the Keep Local Farms initiative. The forum will be held in Representatives Hall of the State House in Concord on Tuesday, December 8 at 10:00 am. Keep Local Farms is a new voluntary program that is a joint effort of New England dairy farmers and the six New England state departments of agriculture, with the goals of stabilizing New England’s dairy farms and ensuring residents of a continuing supply of fresh, locally produced milk and dairy products. The December 8^th forum will explain how the program works.

The forum is for anyone interested in New Hampshire’s milk supply and where it comes from, and where it will come from in the future. It is also for all those interested in maintaining the dairy farms that provide additional benefits of the scenic working landscape and rural character to New Hampshire communities, protect ground and surface water supplies, wildlife habitat and open lands enjoyed by outdoors enthusiasts of all kinds.

While the MPERF Board has determined that the state’s dairy industry is in need of assistance due to the depression of farm milk prices throughout 2009, (where farmers have been paid half of their costs to produce milk), the state’s revenue and budget shortfalls have left the fund established by the legislature in 2006 unfunded. The MPERF board is hosting this public forum on the Keep Local Farms initiative to raise awareness of the situation caused by the unprecedented, low milk market prices, and of this new opportunity to compensate farmers more fairly for what they produce and contribute to their communities and region.

The Keep Local Farms program connects consumers with dairy farmers through education and direct support. This is an opportunity for consumers who are interested in purchasing local foods to support local dairy farmers, their community and the local economy. For more information or to contribute, go to the website: www.keeplocalfarms.org

New Hampshire Farm Museum Presents Thanksgiving on the Farm - Saturday, November 21st 10am to 3 pm
Take a horse drawn ride through the farm fields to Grandmother’s farmhouse for a taste of a Victorian Thanksgiving on the farm.   Hear the stories of Thanksgivings past from costumed guides on a special tour of the historic Jones farmhouse.  Meet the farm animals and our heritage Naragansett Turkeys, the first American turkeys.  Explore the barns filled with agricultural implements and try the big yellow barn hunt.  Enjoy hot cider and pumpkin pie in the farmhouse kitchen and warm up by the campfire with roast chestnuts and popcorn. Museum Country Store will be open for Holiday shopping.  $10. adult/ $5 child.

Nov. 22^nd NH Farm Museum Annual NH Wine & Cheese Tasting, Sunday 4-6 pm at the Plummer Homestead

Join us for a great evening of wine and cheese made in our state. Learn about New Hampshire wines, taste some delicious cheese from New Hampshire Farms and meet the cheesemakers from Via Lactea Farm in Brookfield. Cheese will be available for purchase or place an order for the holidays. You can also bid on some great silent auction items for holiday giving. Space limited please reserve ~ call 652-7840 $10. per person

10+ Marketing Strategies & Tips to Consider When Selling Farm Produce”  Workshop

Are you looking at potential farm markets for next season? Or  are you wondering how to juggle different markets in one season? To tackle these questions, the University of New Hampshire Cooperative Extension, Rockingham County,  has organized a day-long workshop “10+ Marketing Strategies & Tips to Consider When Selling Farm Produce” . Specialists, a panel of growers from New England and industry professionals will discuss different aspects and types of markets, branding, pricing, profitable crops as well as crop and revenue insurance.The workshop is scheduled for Monday, November 2, 2009 from 8:30 am till 3:30 pm at the Rockingham County Nursing Home Auditorium in Brentwood (William Sturtevant Way - off North Road) in New Hampshire.

Speakers are Richard Bonnano (Pleasant Valley Garden, Methhuen, MA), Josh Jennings (Meadow’s Mirth, Stratham, NH), John Moulton (Moulton Farm, Meredith, NH) and Bill & Anna Spiller (Spiller Farm U-Pick, Wells, Maine). Michelle Chambers from “Red Tomato” will talk about the importance of branding to engage and empower customers. Pricing farm products and cost of production will also be presented. Michael Sciabarrasi, Extension  Professor, Business Management Specialist

UNH Cooperative and David Tuttles from Tuttle Farm in Wells, Maine, will also be speakers. The Pros and Cons of Crop Insurance will also be discussed.

Who should attend: Anyone exploring new markets or adding new ones to their existing one such as selling at Open Air Farmers Markets, Winter Farmers Markets, Community Supported Agriculture, Pick-Your-Own,Restaurants, Supermarkets, Institutions, Farmstands..

Registration before October 26 is  $15 per person and includes lunch. Late registration is $20. This workshop has been made possible with the support  from the USDA Risk Management Agency (RMA).Download a flier with details from  http://www.extension.unh.edu/ or contact Deb Stevens at 679-5616.

This Saturday, Oct. 3, Apple Annie will be participating in the Green Buildings Open House sponsored by the New Hampshire Sustainable Energy Association. For more information about the open house and other places you might want to visit, see www.nhsea.org.

Pie makers and pie eaters alike will not want to miss the New Hampshire Farm Museum’s fall fundraiser, The Great New Hampshire Pie Festival on Sunday October 4, noon to 4pm.

Professional pie bakers will be offering samples of their signature pies—festival goers will pick the People’s Choice awards! An amateur pie making contest will take place simultaneously; judges include John and Jennifer Forsyth, creators of americanpieways.com with prizes donated by King Arthur Flour and sponsors including Ray Beaudoin & Sons oil company in Rochester. The event will be held under tents, rain or shine.

Activities throughout the afternoon include a children’s pie eating contest, tours of the historic Jones Farm, hayrides, and popular farm animal tours.

Advance tickets to the festival are $10 ($12 at the door; $6 for children under 12) and are available at the Farm Museum Country Store or by calling 603-652-7840. For more information on entering the contests email at info@farmmuseum.org and put “pie contest guidelines” (indicate amateur or professional) in the subject line. (30)

The UNH Department of Hospitality Management presents first Gourmet Dinner fall semester 2009, to give students the opportunity to showcase fundamentals learned at the Whittemore School of Business and Economics

University of New Hampshire (UNH) students embrace the challenge of creating a fine dining event on a budget as a nonprofit venture. Every semester, Advanced Food and Beverage students in the Hospitality Management program organize two gourmet dinners that serve between 100 and 200 guests each night.

The experience gives students a glimpse of what is to come in their future after graduation, as they take full responsibility for budgeting, service standards, marketing, sustainable practices and ethics surrounding a high-end event. The exercise is a project that accompanies an intensive capstone lecture. And the students are expected to develop a theme and menu that will capture guest interest within the targeted demographic.

Introductory and intermediate hospitality freshman and sophomores work for the juniors and seniors as servers and beverage attendants. Back-of-the-house kitchen staff, from the hospitality basic culinary course, joins the mix for class credit.

“We’re finding team work to be the crucial ingredient to the success of the dinner. When working with a team of different skill levels, you face large challenges especially for an event of this caliber,” notes Executive Chef Kristin Jones.

The first dinner this semester, Season to Remember, a Gourmet Homecoming Celebration will feature six courses of harvest-inspired, local when available, dishes, while capturing the excitement surrounding Homecoming weekend at UNH.

The dinner will take place at Stillings, 20 Ballard Drive, Durham, NH, on October 9, beginning with cocktail hour at 6 o’clock and dinner to follow. Tickets are $50 and can be purchased online at www.wsbe.unh.edu/gourmet-dinners.

Slow Food Seacoast’s “Time for Lunch” eat-in was actually a teach-in/workday. An enthusiastic crowd met at the Dover, NH, High School greenhouses to initiate a greens growing project that will supply the district cafeterias with salad mix once a week.

Shawn and Sarah Stimson, organic farmers from Sustainable Farm Products, volunteered their time to give a demonstration and answer questions. Afterward, we all piled into the greenhouse to plant 36 trays for the school. It was a fantastic morning!

More pictures on our Flickr page.