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Elizabeth Patten's Page
Latest Activity
Thanks for the invite and info. Won't be able to attend but am interested in the DIY programs.
Wolfe’s Neck Farm JAMboree! at Wolfe's Neck Farm
August 29, 2009 from 1pm to 3pm
JAMboree: Create and can delicious Maine blueberry jam in our version of the coast-to-coast community canning event, "Canning Across America," happening the weekend of Aug. 29-30, 2009. Instructor: Beth Richardson, Master Preserver
It's part of Fou…
The Maine School Garden Network is being refurbished and you're invited to share your project. See www.msgn.org to add your educational garden or school greening initiative to the directory or to suggest favorite resources or curricula. Any content…
Share your updates here about school garden projects and other related activities: resources, volunteer requests, etc. Kitchen gardens can play an important role in expanding access to local food!
Profile Information
- Where in Maine do you live and eat?
- Freeport
- What issues are you and/or your group interested or expert in?
- organics, health and nutrition, food justice, school gardens, hunger and local foods access, CSAs
- If you produce foods of some sort, please choose one of the following:
- I produce foods only for my own and my family's consumption
- Other info about Me (please mention any food, fishing, agriculture, or community groups you are affiliated with):
- Interested in helping others access local [especially organic] foods, and revitalizing the Maine School Garden Network. Healthy Foods from Healthy Soils Teachers' Guide co-author.
Freeport/Pownal "Fresh from the Pantry" program wins cash award
"It's the perfect marriage of two ideas, both sustainable and healthy," according to Sue Mack, Freeport/Pownal Food Pantry Director. "Fresh from the Pantry" brings fresh farm products regularly to food pantry customers, thanks to "seed" money provided by Healthy Casco Bay (HCB), a group funded with tobacco settlement dollars from the Fund for a Healthy Maine. The goal of the project is to educate food pantry clientele on affordable ways to access healthy foods.
The "Fresh from the Pantry" pilot project involves Freeport Community Services and two farms, Laughing Stock Farm in Freeport and Tir na nOg Farm in Pownal, which both run on a community-supported agriculture (CSA) model -- where members buy seasonal farm shares in exchange for fresh produce, eggs, and other animal products. The grant monies will help not only facilitate the budding program but also provide cooking and nutrition classes.
Laughing Stock Farm is an innovative, MOFGA-certified farm run by Lisa and Ralph Turner. Their greenhouse heating system operates with renewable fuel from restaurants' used animal fat and vegetable oil, supplying fresh baby greens and a bounty of vegetables even in mid-winter. Grower Holly Morrison of Tir na nOg Farm raises heritage-breed livestock including chickens, pigs, and cattle as well as growing old-fashioned vegetables and fruits. Delicious, ready-made meals--created from the fresh local ingredients--are distributed to pantry customers by Freeport resident Lindsay Sterling, a former line cook at Fore St Restaurant and the Harraseeket Inn. Robin Metcalf, a Cooperative Extension nutrition aide, focuses her classes on the health benefits of daily fruits and vegetables, combining menu ideas and preparation tips with tastes of the farm-fresh foods.
Part of the grant funding will be used to develop a guide to share the model program with other areas, and as a basis for an expanded summer season program.
FMI contact Elizabeth Patten
Comment Wall (2 comments)
- At 8:22am on April 24, 2009,
Deborah Gideon said…
- Oh, thanks. I don't think it's the same woman I remember from Lincolnville. Weather's getting so delightful. Have a great weekend.
- At 7:40am on March 26, 2009,
Deborah Gideon said…
- Hi Elizabeth. It's good to hear from you. Some exciting things happening these days. I love the local (and slow) food movement. Oh, I finally got my website up. Check it out at www.beeblossom.com if you want. Happy Spring! BTW, do you who the Robin Metcalf is mentioned in the article about the Freeport/Pownal food program?
Latest Activity
- By Land and By Sea: Connecting Maine's Farming and Fishing Communities on March 5, 2010 from 9am to 10:15am
- By Land and By Sea: Connecting Maine's Farming and Fishing Communities on February 28, 2010 from 5pm to 7pm
Check it out - Penobscot East's CSF made it on Channel 5 this weekend. Recognize anyone in the footage?
FRESH movie showing at Allen Avenue Unitarian Universalist Church
February 26, 2010 from 6pm to 9pm
The movie FRESH celebrates the farmers, thinkers and business people across America who are re-inventing our food system. Potluck, movie, discussion. Childcare available.
Hi Cassie,
For insurance, see your current agent and ask for a liability rider to cover you at farmers' markets.
For permits, see the Maine Dept of Ag permits page for such things as processed foods.
Links to a few [farmers' market aware] insurance…
Thank you for the responses. They have been very helpful.
If you are interested in becoming a vendor, please get in contact with Laura Campbell at sweethollowsfarm@gmail.com
We hoped to be located in the AmVets parking lot/field, (across from Hodgeman's Frozen Custard) right on rt. 100.
Thank you!
La…
Are there any in the Oxford Hills area? or the Lewiston / Auburn area? I have cut flower bouquets (in season) and think a buying club is a great idea.
Share your experiences, thoughts and questions about consumer buying clubs.
Cassie, I agree with the below messages - go to the Dept of Ag website or call someone there and find out what you need for a license depending on what you sell. I sell perennials and it is a quick form and it comes back just as quick. I carry liabi…
Thanks Sue couldnt remember the phone#. Its a process is all Im saying
Cassie, your best bet is to be in touch with whoever organizes the market you are thinking of selling at. Some markets require that each vendor have their own product liability insurance, and some markets recommend but don't require it. And BTW I've…
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