Public Comment Sessions on FARMS Study Findings

Dear Friends,

Thanks to all of you who participated in King County’s FARMS study by completing the consumer opinion survey and/or participating in one of the town hall meetings. You’re input on the future of farming in King County and the region was extremely valuable. A big shout out to the 450 of you who completed the telephone survey!

Preliminary results indicate that 89% of you purchased local food at a neighborhood farmers market in the last year and 74% said that is was very important for you to be able to purchase fruits and vegetables grown in King County. Importantly, 85% of you agreed with the statement that “King County should continue to provide services to farmers, such as assistance with permits, drainage improvements, promotion of local farm products, and grants to improve environmental practices.”

Now you have the opportunity to help translate those desires into actions.

The King Conservation District is holding a series of public comment sessions and taking written input on priorities and programs funded by the District’s special assessment. The total assessment is shared between the KCD for operations, originating jurisdictions (cities and unincorporated King County) and watershed stewardship activities. The announcement below provides more detail and the specific dates/times/locations for the public meetings.

We strongly encourage you to participate in person or in writing to support funding allocations for critical farm and food system needs in King County and all its cities. This must be a collaborative effort. Priorities include programs that address farm viability and marketing, farm transition – getting and keeping the next generation of farmers on the land, and increasing farm productivity.

Regards,

Mary

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: April 29, 2009

King Conservation District sets dates and locations for district-wide public comment sessions

District seeks input in advance of 2010 special assessment

RENTON— The King Conservation District (King CD) will hold a series of six public comment sessions in May and June to provide input on conservation priorities and programs that would be funded by the reauthorization of the district special assessment.

The King CD (www.kingcd.org) provides conservation information and technical assistance programs to all landowners within the district’s boundaries (most of King County) on a voluntary, non-regulatory basis. It provides grants for conservation projects and programs, and initiates community outreach activities including workshops, education programs, site visits, farm plans, and consultation on land, water and wildlife management.

The King CD is funded by a $10 per parcel/per year assessment within the district’s boundaries and expires on December 31^st, 2009. It provides approximately $6 million annually to the District. This funding has been allocated to support good stewardship practices by private landowners through King CD education workshops and site-specific consulting, and for natural resource conservation projects in partnership with King County and its cities. For the past decade, King CD has supported salmon recovery work within the District.

“We are inviting landowners, residents, member jurisdictions, and organizations that operate within the boundary of the district to share their ideas about their natural resource conservation needs and work accomplishments of the District” said King CD Executive Director Jeffrey Possinger.

Individuals interested in providing comments can attend any number of the public comment sessions or may submit comments in writing by June 5, 2009 by email to comments@kingcd.org or standard mail at:

King CD Board of Supervisors
Attn.: Public Comment
1107 SW Grady Way, Suite 130
Renton, WA 98057

For more information on the King CD and the public comment process visit www.kingcd.org or call 425-282-1987.

As one of 47 conservation districts in the state, the King CD is a natural resources assistance agency authorized by the State of Washington and guided by the Washington State Conservation Commission.

King Conservation District Public Comment Locations and Dates:

· SHORELINE: Thursday, May 14, 6:00 – 8:00 PM

Shoreline/ King County Library, 345 NE 175th, Shoreline WA 98155

· MERCER ISLAND: Tuesday, May 19, 4:00 – 6:00 PM

Mercer Island/King County Library, 4400 88th Ave. S.E., Mercer Island, WA 98040

· KENT: Thursday, May 21, 6:00 PM – 8:00 PM.

Kent/King County Library, 212 2nd Avenue N., Kent, WA 98032

· SEATTLE: Wednesday, May 27, 6:00 PM – 8:00 PM

Seattle Public Library (High Point branch), 3411 SW Raymond St., Seattle WA 98126

· CARNATION: Thursday, May 28, 6:00 PM – 8:00 PM

Carnation/King County Library, 4804 Tolt Avenue, Carnation WA 98014

· ISSAQUAH: Tuesday, June 2, 6:00 PM – 8:00 PM

Issaquah/King County Library, 10 W. Sunset Way, Issaquah WA 98027

# # #

MEDIA CONTACTS:

Jeffrey Possinger, Executive Director or

Jason Chambers, Public Information Officer

King Conservation District

425-282-1987

Barry Bartlett, The Bartlett Group

206-335-4694

Save Money by Shopping @ Farmers Markets?! King 5 says so

Jump to video.

Maria Hines wins James Beard award for Best Chef Northwest

Maria Hines, of Tilth Restaurant, took home the award for Best Chef in the Northwest beating out fellow NW culinary marvels Jason Wilson (Crush), Joseba Jimenez de Jimenez (The Harvest Vine), Ethan Stowell (Union), and Cathy Whims (Nostrana). Congrats to Chef Hines! Chef Hines has been a huge proponent of using local ingredients, including her "producer spotlight" dinners, which highlight a specific local producer throughout a multi-course meal. We wish her the best and will continue to follow her phenomonal culinary accomplishments.

Community Supported Agriculture...reinvented?

Every Wednesday, across the nation, most newspapers print their food section, providing plenty of great reading. I was trawling through the web this morning, looking for interesting articles about local food, when I came across this headline: Ashland farmer reinvents model for community supported agriculture. Hmmmm. Very intriguing, especially for a guy like me who loves CSAs, as a business model, as an eating philosophy and as a semi-cryptic initialism. Each CSA program is unique. There have been a few creative twists tried out over the years, some more effective than others.

Crown S Ranch in the Methow Valley runs a meat and poultry CSA, radically different than the traditional vegetable and fruit shares (a phenomenal way to secure a locally grown Thanksgiving turkey!)

Full Circle Farm, near Carnation, WA, has taken the CSA model and tweaked it to fit a more modern lifestyle, with web-based accounts, multiple share sizes, year-round service, and some exotic foods.

Helsing Junction Farm, outside of Rochester, WA, offers a Foodbank Farm Donation, where "every season we accept donations from our members and we then match those funds, allowing us to deliver CSA boxes directly to families who rely on the food bank for some of their dietary needs." (From their website)

There are CSAs delivered by bicycle (for those who are "hyperlocal"), cut-flower CSAs, winter-only CSAs, harvest-your-own CSAs (the lovechild of CSAs and U-picks), and many other iterations

What did this farmer to to "reinvent" the CSA model? He offered smaller share sizes. Not, in my mind, a "reinvention" of the CSA model, but the farmer's CSA model tweak represents a shift in the reach of and target audience for CSA programs. In the past, CSAs were primarily targeted for the "core" of the local food scene, but in the last five years or so, they have really taken off, spreading outward and adapting to the desires of the so-called "second tier" consumers. It's an interesting trend that both supports the sustainability of local farms and meets increasing market demand.

RIGHT NOW is the best time to sign up for a CSA. Check out the 2009 Puget Sound Fresh CSA Directory to find a program near you.

Kudos for Puget Sound Fresh Farm Guide!

Fresh off the press, our 2009 Puget Sound Fresh Farm guide got a thumbs up from Mark Lovejoy, owner of Garden Treasures nursery and organic farm in Arlington. While we always appreciate getting good feedback on what we do, it makes us do a little jig when our local farmers feel supported.

FYI, a PDF version of the Farm Guide is available on our companion website www.pugetsoundfresh.org Here's what Mark emailed last week:

"Just took a PDF look at the 2009 Puget Sound Fresh Farm Guide. Looks amazing, great logos, beautiful artwork, and very easy to read and understand with the symbols and the maps.

The guide definitely is the only local print resource many small farms and roadside farms have to get the word out affordably [sic], and to customers who like to do the farm tour thing and eating local.

Great job and well done!"

Thanks Mark. You make us blush!

If you're interested in distributing the guide, contact Mark McIntyre at mark@cascadeharvest.org