NEFOOD!

March 2011

Potluck News
A monthly digest of food and agriculture news compiled as
a service of the Northeast Sustainable Agriculture Working Group

1.) Four ways of addressing controversy over animal welfare standards
11.) The plague of the Brown Marmorated Stink Bug
 
1.) Four ways of addressing controversy over animal welfare standards
Federal - USDA
HSUS, Farm Sanctuary Petition FSIS on Downer Livestock
By Roger Bernard, Farm Journal Policy and Washington Editor, AgWeb.com, February 9, 2011
Public comments are being sought by USDA's Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS) on issues surrounding the slaughter of downed or non-ambulatory livestock based on petitions from the Humane Society of the U.S. (HSUS) and the Farm Sanctuary. Read more...
Comments are due on the actions by April 8. 
 
State Standards
New state standards board to examine treatment of farm animals
By Janet Patton, Lexington Herald-Leader, Lexington, KY, February 13, 2011 
There is a battle going on in the supermarket for the hearts, minds and stomachs of meat and egg consumers, and Kentucky is stepping into the fray. The Kentucky Livestock Care Standards Commission, created last year by the General Assembly, is debating the complexities of how farm animals should be treated.
 
Farmers say it is in their best interest to treat their animals well, but animal welfare is an emotional topic for them, for consumers and for animal advocates and has prompted battles across the country. At least seven states — Arizona, California, Colorado, Florida, Maine, Michigan, and Oregon — have passed laws to phase out or limit production practices such as cages for egg-laying hens, gestation stalls for sows and crates for veal calves. Those practices are likely to come under scrutiny eventually in Kentucky, said Danny Wilkinson, an Adair County farmer and Kentucky Farm Bureau board member who is on the commission. Animal confinement is likely to be the most difficult issue the board takes on, he said. Read more...
 
State Legislation
New Virginia animal welfare law contains a comprehensive definition of terms
From Virginia's Legislative Information System website
§ 3.2-6569. Seizure and impoundment of animals; notice and hearing; disposition of animal; disposition of proceeds upon sale. Any humane investigator, law-enforcement officer or animal control officer may lawfully seize and impound any animal that has been abandoned, has been cruelly treated, or is suffering from an apparent violation of this chapter that has rendered the animal in such a condition as to constitute a direct and immediate threat to its life, safety or health.  Read more...
 
Community Relations
Animal rights and wrongs
From editorial in Nature, the International Weekly Journal of Science, February 24, 2011 
A Nature survey shows the pernicious impact of activism on biomedical scientists. Activists often attempt to marginalize researchers, isolating them from their institutions and the wider community. If researchers build better and stronger bonds with both, they can ensure that it is the extremists who are marginalized. Read more...
 
 
 
2.) Two stories on marketing challenges for raw and organic milk
Raw milk stirs controversy in Vermont
By Gina Bullard, WCAX News, Hinesburg, Vermont, February 18, 2011
Lindsay Harris owns Family Cow Farmstand, the largest seller of raw milk in Vermont. "We like the control that we have over our own business so we set our own price and we're able to direct market our milk so we have relationships with our friends and neighbors that buy the milk," Harris said.

State law prevents the sale of raw milk in stores. The Vermont Health Department says that's for safety reasons because raw milk could potentially contain harmful bacteria, including salmonella and E. coli. So farms, like the Family Cow, rely on groups like Rural Vermont. The group holds raw milk classes twice a month. Family Cow Farmstand can sell 40 gallons of raw milk a day. They say Rural Vermont acts as an advocacy group for a growing niche market.

"We teach people how to make dairy products and we use raw milk from the farms that are hosting them," said Jared Carter, the executive director of Rural Vermont. But Rural Vermont milk classes have been put on hold after it received a letter from the Vermont Agriculture Agency saying the group is violating two raw milk laws — basically promoting the sale and use of raw milk for anything other than drinking. And the state says students in those classes may not hold valid milk handler licenses. Read more...


Local, Organic Milk: Nice Idea, but Try Making a Profit
By Katie Zezima, NY Times, February 18, 2011
Organic milk sales are expected to grow by 10 percent this year, according to the Organic Trade Association. But the competition is cutthroat, and small players tend to struggle. “Milk sells for a very, very small margin” of profit, said Nancy Hirshberg, vice president for natural resources at Stonyfield Farm, a leading maker of organic dairy products. “It’s about high volume.” MOO Milk got a lifeline in December, when 14 Whole Foods supermarkets in Massachusetts agreed to sell its milk. But it may not be enough to save it.

“The bankers don’t really have the sense of urgency about what we’re doing and that you have to feed these animals,” Mr. Bright said. “We’re going to bleed out on the emergency room floor.” Read more...

 
 
3.) Harvard professors rebuff "2010 Dietary Guidelines for Americans"
New U.S. Dietary Guidelines: Progress, Not Perfection
From The Nutrition Source, Newsletter of Harvard School of Public Health
The 2010 Dietary Guidelines for Americans, released on January 31, 2011, are used to direct federal nutrition and education programs that reach tens of millions of Americans, including school lunch and food assistance programs. The 95-page document is the culmination of a two-year process of scientific evidence review and public hearings that drew thousands of comments from individuals and public health experts, as well as from powerful food industry groups — the Grocery Manufacturers Association, the Sugar Association, the National Milk Producers Federation, and the National Cattleman’s Beef Association, among them.

An ongoing complaint of public health experts is that the guidelines, which are updated every five years, come not just from the agency responsible for promoting the nation’s health — the U.S. Dept. of Health and Human Services — but also from the U.S. Dept. of Agriculture (USDA), which is responsible for promoting and marketing agricultural products.  

“I had hoped that the USDA would be able to give Americans the clear advice about diet that they deserve,” says Dr. Walter Willett, Fredrick John Stare Professor of Epidemiology and Nutrition, and chair of the Dept. of Nutrition at Harvard School of Public Health. “However, the continued failure to highlight the need to cut back on red meat and limit most dairy products suggests that ‘Big Beef’ and ‘Big Dairy’ retain their strong influence within this department. Might it be time for the USDA to recuse itself because of conflicts of interest and get out of the business of dietary advice?” Read more...

 
4.) USDA and others invest $5M to grow broccoli in East
By Steve Szkotak, Associated Press/Bloomberg February 21, 2011
A team of researchers and agricultural agents hopes to take a bite out of the West Coast's $1 billion broccoli monopoly with new strains of the vegetable designed to withstand the East Coast's heat and humidity. They've received a $3.2 million grant from the U.S. Department of Agriculture and $1.7 million in matching private contributions to create a broccoli corridor running from northern Florida to Maine.

Their work has been driven by the rising cost of fuel to ship crates of broccoli from California fields to East Coast grocery coolers, the "eat local" movement and concerns about creating a sustainable, diversified food network.

U.S. consumption of broccoli has nearly doubled in the past 25 years, with Americans now eating 8.5 pounds annually of the vegetable celebrated for its high levels of vitamin C, fiber and antioxidants. Nearly all of that comes from California, according to the U.S. Department of Agriculture. Read more... 
 
 
5.) DFA derivatives trading, farmers roll the dice on farming
Dodd-Frank provision worries dairy farmers
From FiNCAD, the industry standard for financial analytics website, February 16, 2011
The Dodd-Frank financial reform bill could adversely impact how dairy farmers manage price risk, a division of the Dairy Farmers of America warns. Edward Gallagher, the president of DFA subsidiary Dairy Risk Management Services, told the House Agriculture Committee last week that Dodd-Frank could require farmer cooperatives to be classified as swap dealers — an appellation that would require them to post both capital and margin when they trade derivatives. Capital and margin requirements would make derivatives trading more expensive for farmers. Read more...
 
Wall Street Reform Could Impact Cooperatives
By Cindy Zimmerman, World Dairy Business Blog, February 11, 2011
Implementing legislation aimed a reforming Wall Street could have an impact on farmer cooperatives, including dairy co-ops. As the Commodities Futures Trading Corporation (CFTC) implements provisions of the Dodd-Frank Act involving over the counter (OTC) derivatives, the Commission must ensure that farmer co-ops can continue to effectively manage risk and offer hedging tools to their farmer-owners, a representative of the National Council of Farmer Cooperatives (NCFC) said during a hearing in Washington this week. ... For an example, Gallagher discussed the ways in which his co-op helps their dairy farmer members hedge against increases in feed prices. ... Read more...

 
6.) 40 of 55 West Virginia counties have natural population decrease
Census: Near-Record Level of US Counties Dying
Hit by aging population and poor economy, 1 in 4 US counties are dying; WV leads pack
By Hope Yen and John Raby, Associated Press/ABC News, February 22, 2011
In all, roughly 760 of the nation's 3,142 counties are fading away, stretching from industrial areas near Pittsburgh and Cleveland to the vineyards outside San Francisco to the rural areas of east Texas and the Great Plains. Once-booming housing areas, such as retirement communities in Florida, have not been immune.

West Virginia was the first to experience natural decrease statewide over the last decade, with Maine, Pennsylvania and Vermont close to following suit, according to the latest census figures. As a nation, the U.S. population grew by just 9.7 percent since 2000, the lowest decennial rate since the Great Depression.

"Natural decrease is an important but not widely appreciated demographic phenomenon that is reshaping our communities in both rural and urban cores of large metro areas," said Kenneth Johnson, a sociology professor and demographer at the University of New Hampshire's Carsey Institute who analyzed the census numbers. Read more...


7.) Rural development depends on access to broadband
NY Times editorial, February 23, 2011
New Rules for New Technology
The proposal from the Federal Communications Commission to stop subsidizing rural phone lines and start subsidizing rural broadband connections is long overdue. Right now an estimated 14 million to 28 million Americans have no way of getting access to the Internet. The proposal would direct the fund to provide incentives for companies to lay fiber-optic cable and digital switches to connect rural homes to the Internet at high speeds. Read more...
 
 
8.) Two stories on increasing global adoption of biotech crops
From ISAAA website, International Service for the Acquisition of Agri-Biotech Applications
Global Status of Commercialized Biotech/GM Crops: 2010
2010 is the fifteenth anniversary of the commercialization of biotech crops, first planted in 1996. As a result of the consistent and substantial economic, environmental and welfare benefits offered by biotech crops, millions of large, small and resource-poor farmers around the world continued to plant significantly more hectares of biotech crops in 2010. Progress was made on several major fronts: accumulated hectares from 1996 to 2010 reached an historic global milestone; a significant double-digit year-over-year increase in biotech crop hectarage was posted, as well as a record number of biotech crop countries; the number of farmers planting biotech crops globally increased substantially; across-the-globe growth, reflected increased stability of adoption and that biotech crops are here to stay. These are very important developments given that biotech crops already contribute to some of the major challenges facing global society, including: food security and self-sufficiency, sustainability, alleviation of poverty and hunger, help in mitigating some of the challenges associated with climate change and global warming; and the potential of biotech crops for the future is enormous. Read more...
 
EU moves to allow traces of GMO in feed
By Raf Casert, Associated Press/The Boston Globe, February 22, 2011
A European Union committee on Tuesday approved rules that would allow the import of animal feed contaminated with small traces of genetically modified crops. The EU Commission and Parliament are expected to accept the rule by this summer, which would change the bloc's attitude toward biotech food.

Tuesday's decision by a panel of experts from the 27 EU countries could be a breakthrough for such major exporters such as the United States, Brazil and Argentina. It was immediately welcomed by the European feed industry and condemned by environmental groups. Read more...

 
 
9.) NY City school children owe city $2.5 million for lunch
From Foodlinks America, February 11th & 25th, 2011, published via email by California Emergency Foodlink
 
Nationwide participation in the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), also known as food stamps, reached 43.5 million people in November 2010, the highest level ever.  Poor economic conditions, successful outreach efforts, and program improvements that open access to SNAP have combined to take enrollment to a new record level every month for the past two years.
 
The official November 2010 count of 43,595,794 people receiving SNAP benefits reflected an increase of 394,957 individuals over October 2010.  The total was some 5.4 million people above the November 2009 participation level. 
 
Significant participation increases occurred in states throughout the country.  The nine states that recorded increases of more than 20% over the year (November 2009 to November 2010) were:  ID (28.3%); NV (27%); DE (25.4%); UT (24.9%); FL (23.2%); MD (22.1%); NJ (22.1%); TX (21.6%); and RI (21.4%).
 
The recession is pinching the budgets of low-income households so tightly that sometimes they do not even have lunch money for school children.  Sympathetic school food service employees often provide a meal anyhow and make a note to have the school bill the parents.  But many schools are now in the unenviable position of sanctioning parents as state administrators and USDA bear down on them to pay costs incurred.  
 
In places like New York City, the problem is growing to significant proportions.  A recent news article noted that, “Of the City’s 1,600 schools, 1,043 owe a collective $2.5 million to the state department of education for meals served in the first three months of the school year.”  The annual shortfall is expected to approach $8 million.  “The school has become the collection agency, and that’s not their business,” stated Randi Herman, an official with the city’s principals’ union.  The issue is now being addressed by the City Council.
 
 
10.) Rosanne Barr does a reality TV series about her farm
Roseanne Barr to Go Nuts in New Lifetime Series
By Tim Kenneally, The Wrap, February 14, 2011
Lifetime announced on Monday afternoon that it has ordered 16 episodes of a new, unscripted series from the 58-year-old former "Roseanne" star. The series will follow Barr as she attempts to run a macadamia and livestock farm in Hawaii. Read more...
 
 
11.) The plague of the Brown Marmorated Stink Bug
Entomological Society of America website, March 2, 2011
Suddenly they are everywhere. These foul-smelling bugs, originally from Asia, were first detected in Pennsylvania in the late 1990’s. Now they are damaging fruits and vegetables and invading homes in many parts of the United States. State, federal, university, and industry entomologists from the eastern U.S. and Canada will converge at the Harrisburg Hilton Hotel in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, March 18-21, 2011, to discuss the brown marmorated stink bug plague during the 82nd Annual Meeting of the Entomological Society of America's Eastern Branch during a symposium called “The Plague of the Brown Marmorated Stink Bug.”
 
Dr. Tracy Leskey, symposium co-organizer and research entomologist at the USDA Appalachian Fruit Station, notes that this invasive stink bug is very unique because it has become a serious year-round pest. Throughout the growing season, it attacks a wide variety of fruits and vegetables. In the fall and winter, homeowners and businesses are invaded as the bugs seek shelter from the cold. Currently, the brown marmorated stink bug has been officially detected in 33 states and the District of Columbia. Read more...
 
+ JOBS
 

Market Farm Manager
Wright-Locke Farm Seeks 
Winchester, MA  
Wright-Locke Farm is a 300-year-old historic farm recently purchased by the Town of Winchester, Certified Organic, for the last 20+ years has been planted in a successful PYO raspberry crop.  The Wright-Locke Conservancy Board, which operates the farm under a Mangement Agreement with the Town of Winchester, plans  to expand our farm in 2011 by  growing a wider variety of market vegetables on our approximate 3 + acres.  Our produce will be sold as PYO, at our local farmer’s market and through local area restaurants. We are hiring a Market Farm Manager for the 2011 season. This is a 22-week, seasonal position beginning May 1 and extending to the end of September. Send letters of interest and resumes to Archie McIntyre, Wright-Locke Farm, at amcintyre@archiesisland.com. http://www.wlfarm.org

Development Fellowship 
Boston Tree Party/Hybrid Vigor Projects
Boston, MA
The Boston Tree Party is a collaborative campaign to plant 100 pairs of heirloom apple trees in publicly used spaces across Greater Boston.  The tree plantings will take place in partnership with a diverse range of institutions, organizations, businesses, and communities. We are looking for a fun, smart, well-organized, and self-motivated individual to help us grow the Boston Tree Party revolution.  Now--mid April (with the possibility of an extension). 6-week paid, 15 hours per week.  Most of the work can be done from home. Please send a cover letter and resume to: Lisa Gross, Founder and Director, Boston Tree Party/Hybrid Vigor Projects, Lisa.Gross@hybridvigorprojects.org 

Campaign Director & Office Manager
Fresh the movie
Park Slope, Brooklyn, NY
The FRESH team is looking for a passionate, talented, food loving powerhouse to take over daily operations and campaign management for the good food documentary FRESH. Salary range from $42,000 to $48,000 depending on background and experience. Please send cover letter, resume (or linkedin profile), and references to Ana Joanes, anasofiajoanes@gmail.com
 
Full Time Gardener 
Arrows Restaurant
Southern Maine 
James Beard Award winning Chefs Mark Gaier and Clark Frasier of Arrows Restaurant and MC Perkins Cove in Ogunquit, Maine are searching for a full time gardener for their high production restaurant garden in Southern Maine. Salary is commensurate with experience.  Please send resumes to dinner@arrowsrestaurant.com.
 
Assistant CSA Manager
Farmer Dave's 
Dracut, MA

Sous Chef
Butter Beans Kitchen
Brooklyn, NY
We pair our nutrient-rich food with cooking, and wellness classes that educate kids on how to make smart food choices, along with learning where their food comes from, how it grows and why it is good for them. If you are interested please send your resume toinfo@butterbeanskitchen.com

Farm Network Coordinator
Just Food
New York City, NY
The goal of this position is to increase Just Food’s capacity to provide greater access to healthy food in low-income neighborhoods, keep small-scale family farms in business and provide support and technical assistance to farmers in the Just Food network. The Farm Network Coordinator will be responsible for increasing farmer participation and supporting those farmers providing food to NYC communities through the Fresh Food for All, CSA in NYC, and The City Farms programs. The Farm Network Coordinator will also work with Just Food’s Farmer Advisory Committee, which includes 8 regional farmers and cooperative extension agents, for generating ideas and gathering feedback. To apply:  Qualified candidates send cover letter and resume by email to Just Food at info@justfood.org.  Please include the words “Farm Network Coordinator” in the subject line and respond no later than Monday March 14, 2011.For more details, please see the Just Food website: http://www.justfood.org/get-involved/jobs-just-food

Manager
Small Planet Institute 
Boston, MA
http://www.theapplywizard.com/1/InstituteManagerPosition

Fellows for our Summer Program Fellowship
CitySprouts
Cambridge, MA 
The Fellowship is an opportunity to spend the summer in urban food gardens, delivering educational and leadership building programming to Middle School youth. Fellows work with a Garden Coordinator in running our Summer Intern Program at 2 school gardens. Fellows help plan and lead lessons and activities relating to gardening, food and nutrition, environment and community service. They will also act as mentors to CitySprouts middle school interns. Fellows will also work as a team to perform garden maintenance at CitySprouts’ 12 school gardens.  June 20 ‐ August 19, 30 hours/week, Monday‐Thursday, 8:30 ‐ 4:30. Please send a cover letter and resume to fslater@citysprouts.org. Please note this is an unpaid position.

Online Communications & Campaign Strategist
Slow Food USA 
Brooklyn, NY
Slow Food USA is seeking a senior level, versatile, and experienced online communications and campaign strategist. The ideal candidate uses innovative online strategies and has a demonstrated track record of significantly increasing and expanding online engagement; meeting fundraising targets, and leveraging cutting edge technologies. As part of a high performing team responsible for launching integrated online-onground engagement strategies, this person will pilot SFUSA to become a leader of online campaigning in the food movement.By March 4, please submit to cover letter, resume, and three references to: jobs@slowfoodusa.org. Include in subject line: SFUSA Online Strategy  

Summer Teaching Interns
Holly Hill Farm
Cohasset, MA
The Friends of Holly Hill Farm is the education center is located at 236 Jerusalem Road, Cohasset, MA 02025, just 1/2 mile away from historic Cohasset center and beautiful Sandy Beach. Seeking enthusiastic summer teaching interns to assist with school field trips, summer programs, and curriculum development. If you wish to apply, please send a cover letter detailing teaching, farming or gardening experience as well as a resume to Jon Belber, Education Director, Friends of Holly Hill Farm, jbelberhollyhill@hotmail.com.  www.hollyhillfarm.org.    

Interns - Education Assistants
Science Barge
Yonkers, NY
The goals of the Science Barge program are to educate students and the public in Yonkers and the greater New York area about sustainable development, urban farming and renewable energy, and to advance understanding of integrated systems for food and energy production. Tours and education programs are available to school and youth groups, as well as the general public from April 11 through October 30, 2011, Monday through Friday, with public programs and tours offered weekends. For more information, please visit http://groundworkhv.org/sciencebargepage2.html.  Groundwork Hudson Valley is looking to fill internship positions for education assistants on the Science Barge. Interns are expected to work Monday through Friday from 9:30am-1:30pm from June 6th to August 19th. Session start/end dates are slightly flexible.  Session includes initial training period.  Interns will receive compensation of $8/per hour.

Urban Farm Intern
South Boston Grows
Boston, MA 
The candidate needs to be available from 4/17/11 through Thanksgiving 2011 Monday-Friday and some Weekends. The spring hours are 2-5 pm and the summer hours (starting 7/5/11) will include 2-4 mornings but the schedule is still TBD. The ideal candidate would have some flexibility to choose summer hours. We are looking for a great fit. Compensation: A stipend and/or class credit will be available to the candidate. Contact Information: Please submit cover letter and resume with 2 references to Phoebe K. Flemming (subject: SBG intern) southbostongrows@gmail.com, 617-939-6541

Kitchen Manager
The Terrace Cafe, Brooklyn Botanical Garden
Brooklyn, NY
Seeking a trained culinary professional to help as we make the transition toward a sustainable, locally sourced and seasonal menu. New hire will be responsible for the daily operations of the cafe kitchen, and provide professional leadership and direction to kitchen personnel. Ensuring that all recipes, food preparations, and presentations meet Chef's specifications and commitment to quality is crucial. Help us create and execute a beautiful and contemporary menu. Salary $50,000. Health care after six months. Apply at BBG.cafe@gmail.com 

NYS Hops Specialist
Cornell Cooperative Extension
Madison County, NY 
With the Northeast Hop Alliance, CCE is hiring a Community Educator. The CCE Educator will work with growers throughout New York State to re-establish commercial specialty hop production. The position is flexible and can be part time or full-time. There is funding available for one and a half to two years through a NYS Specialty Crops Grant. The position may include a full New York State benefits package – health/dental insurance, retirement, and vacation. The position may require some night and weekend work. To apply, please send resume, cover letter, and contact information with three references to: contact@MadisonCountyAgriculture.com.  Applications will be accepted until noon on 3/21/2011.

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