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Urban and Community Agriculture

24 Jul

In this video, Michael McCormick, executive director of the Food Resource Center in Livingston, Montana, talks about the center's philosophy of focusing on hunger as a part of poverty; supporting local growers by using the center's commercial kitchen to prepare and preserve food; offering culinary classes; focusing on traceability of local foods and more. With the center's philosophy, the food bank becomes a central force in the community to address positive social change on a local level....

23 Jul

Three guest speakers from across the U.S. talked about the work they are doing to create more just and accessible food systems in their communities: Scarlett Kaplan, S.A.V.E. Club at Hellgate High School in Missoula, MT; Ayisah Yusef, Rural Coalition in Washington, DC; Phil Nguyen, The Food Project in Boston, MA. Over 100 high school students, educators, and activists converged in Missoula October 6-8, 2013 for the Growing Leaders Youth Summit to plant big ideas about how to diversify the future of food. It was the largest event of its kind in Montana and showed that a #YouthFoodRevolution is gaining momentum...

23 Jul

Jim Adkins, founder of the International Center for Poultry (ICP), located in Old Fort, North Carolina, addresses that question and others during a March 2013 workshop in Great Falls, Montana. The workshop was presented by the National Center for Appropriate Technology, Mission Mountain Food Enterprise Center, and Salish-Kootenai College. It was funded by the USDA Risk Management Agency. For the past thirty years, Jim has raised over fifty breeds and varieties of standard bred poultry (that includes chickens, ducks, geese and turkeys). In 1994, he received his poultry judging license from the American Poultry Association which has taken him to thirty...

23 Jul

The National Center for Appropriate Technology, with funding from the National Network of Public Health Institutes, held a statewide meeting on October 12, 2012, to discuss the obstacles and opportunities of having more fresh, nutritious, locally grown food in hospitals, nursing homes, and other health-care institutions. Farmers, ranchers, health institution officials, and others gathered at the NCAT headquarters in Butte, Montana, to take part. Dave Prather, General Manager of Western Montana Growers Cooperative, delivered one of the keynote addresses....

23 Jul

The National Center for Appropriate Technology, with funding from the National Network of Public Health Institutes, held a statewide meeting on October 12, 2012, to discuss the obstacles and opportunities of having more fresh, nutritious, locally grown food in hospitals, nursing homes, and other health-care institutions. Farmers, ranchers, health institution officials, and others gathered at the NCAT headquarters in Butte, Montana, to take part. Mark Branovan, Hospitality Services Director at St. Luke's Hospital in Duluth, Minnesota, delivered one of the keynote addresses....

18 Jul

Know Your Farmer, Know Your Food is a USDA initiative to promote sustainable local and regional food systems that will support small and mid-sized farms and ranches, promote healthy communities and protect our natural resources....

18 Jan

In this episode, John Wallace, manager of NCAT/ATTRA's SIFT farm – which stands for Small-Scale Intensive Farm Training – talks with Victorian Tilley about the farm's shift from growing food to sell to growing food to help meet the nutritional needs of the community through donating to local charities. The SIFT farm is located at NCAT's headquarters in Butte, Montana, where John and Victorian both work. Victorian is an Energy Corps member with AmeriCorps and is currently NCAT's Farm Energy Educator. The farm's goals in the past were focused on proving economic viability; now it has transitioned toward donating to charitable organizations...

12 Oct

In this episode, Andrew Coggins, an agriculture specialist with  NCAT's ATTRA, the National Sustainable Agriculture Information Service, at NCAT's headquarters in Butte, Montana, talks about the process NCAT followed to build two new high tunnels on its SIFT demonstration farm at the Butte office. The high tunnels were supported in part by a grant from the USDA NRCS's Environmental Quality Incentives Program (EQUIP). For information on this topic, or about applying for the EQUIP program, you can contact Andrew directly at andrewc@ncat.org. Related ATTRA Resources: High Tunnels in Urban Agriculture High Tunnel Fruit and Grape Production for Eastern Growers High Tunnels for Vegetable Production in...

13 Sep

In this episode, we talk with Margaret Krome, the Policy Program Director of the Michael Fields Agricultural Institute in East Troy, New York. She is also a board member of the National Center for Appropriate Technology. Margaret talks about the impact of the ATTRA program – which is managed by NCAT through a cooperative agreement with USDA Rural Business Cooperative Service – and the important sustainable-agriculture issues she sees going into the future. ATTRA resources on issues Margaret mentions in the episode – soil health, urban agriculture, cover crops, internships, and more – can be found on our website....

13 Jun
In this episode, NCAT Agriculture Specialist Linda Coffey talks with Kourtney Ross and Audrey Hollis of the United People’s Community Organization Market and Farm in North St. Louis City, Missouri. The mother and daughter discuss how their organization came to be after they observed how getting involved with gardening created interest in food among neighborhood children and how much the children enjoyed taking part in gardening tasks.
21 May
In this episode, NCAT's Daniel Prial has a conversation with Cary Junior of the Southeast Michigan Producers Association. SEMPA is a cooperative of black, rural farmers outside Detroit. Its focus is getting the cooperative's produce into urban areas, especially areas with high food insecurity.
17 Apr
This episode features an Interview with Aldo Andres Marega, organic farmer from El Gauchito Hill Farm in Yolo County, California. The interview includes: biography, first years of experience, farmers markets and restaurant sales, challenges or challenges of fertilization and pest control, and advice for beginning farmers. With Martin Guerena, NCAT program specialist.
29 Mar

The farmer/rancher share of the food dollar has shrunk dramatically in the last century. The processing, marketing, and distribution sector reaps the majority of the profit in our food system these days and at smaller scales, more growers are turning to direct marketing to increase the viability of their operations. Not only does direct marketing enhance the farmers’ position in a competitive economic environment, but it creates personal connections that allow farmers, consumers and communities to unite around increasing access to good quality, locally grown food. Making the most of your time as a producer is critical if you’re trying to...

17 Nov

In this episode, NCAT Program Specialist Martin Guerena interviews Martin Barnes of Capy Organics in Yolo County, California. The interview touches on the farm's early years and starting the Davis farmers market; its first crops; diversification of crops; the transition from markets to CSAs (Community Supported Agriculture); the expansion to Southern California and the Pacific Northwest; technological innovation; expanding its CSA to 50,000 customers; its pest challenges then and now; its fertilization program with compost and foliar applications; and Martin's advice to beginning farmers on land and markets....

13 Nov

This webinar features pertinent information on the status of nutrition programs in the state of Montana. Presenters discuss ways to make farmers markets more accessible to all demographics and increase sales and traffic to markets through programs such as SNAP (Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program), Farmers Market WIC (Women, Infant, and Children program), and Senior Farmers Market Coupons. It also includes creative ideas to bring the culture of health to your market with fruit and vegetable incentive programs and how to fund raise for them. The following resources with the archived Farmers Market Nutrition Program webinar: 1. Montana Farmers Market SNAP manual https://www.ncat.org/downloads/EBT-Manual-062614.pdf 2. Farmers...

13 Nov

In this episode, NCAT Local Food Specialist Demetrius Fassas talks about the challenges and opportunities of introducing a local food Harvest of the months in Plevna, a small town in rural eastern Montana. The school's two food-staff members, Connie Long and Bertie Reger, talk about the challenges of finding the food; the importance of having a supportive school administration; and the positive impacts of the program on the students. Please call ATTRA with any and all of your sustainable agriculture questions at 800-346-9140 or e-mail us at askanag@ncat.org. Our two dozen specialists can help you with a vast array of topics,...

27 Oct

In this episode, Dave Prather of the Western Montana Food Growers Cooperative talks about the challenges that were overcome when the cooperative was created....

25 Oct

In the this episode, Michael McCormick, executive director of the Food Resource Center (FRC) in Livingston, Montana, talks about how the FRC grew from a more typical food pantry to a more active role in addressing poverty and its effects in the community. FRC now has a commercial kitchen, where it conducts vocational classes, and offers a lot of healthy food produced by local and Montana ag operations. The philosophy is to help people improve their lives, not simply feed them for a day....

19 Oct

In this episode, Kevin Ellis, a Sustainable Agriculture Specialist with the National Center for Appropriate Technology, visits with two presenters at the 2017 Texas Hispanic Farmer and Rancher Conference. Farmer Juan Raygosa of the Terra Preta Farm and Deputy Director of the Sustainable Food Center Joy Casnovsky talks about marketing strategies for working directly with hospitals and other institutions as well as work-site CSAs....

24 Jul

This podcast features excerpts from a panel discussion on marketing that took place during an NCAT workshop on vegetable production and business management held at the Heifer Ranch in Perryville, Arkansas, 1n May 2017. NCAT’s Southeast Regional director Margo Hale facilitated the discussion, and the panelists were (in order of appearance) Mary Bone of Lighthouse Produce Farms in Fargo, AR; Ben Maddox of New South Produce Cooperative in Little Rock, AR; and Paul Chapracki of Ozark Alternatives in Lowell, AR. In this segment the panelists discuss successful strategies for selling at the farmers market and through CSAs. They also offer...

23 Jun

Robert Maggiani, a horticulture specialist with the National Center for Appropriate Technology, talks with Larry Butler, co-owner of Boggy Creek Farm in Austin, Texas. They talk about the farm and the value added products it has sold over the years. The farm's website is available here. There is a short description of the farm here. The conversation is part of the Beyond Fresh project, a SSARE-funded project with the following objectives: 1. Research opportunities for value-added processing of sustainably grown fruits and vegetables in Texas, with special attention to the appropriate scale of production. 2. Increase the sales and profitability of value-added products...

03 Mar

For many farmers and ranchers, branching into institutional sales alone might seem daunting. Some producers may rely on independent distributors or co-ops to engage with these markets. We want to open our toolkit for successful relationships with institutional buyers to all those that attend this webinar. The subjects of importance that will be covered include developing partnerships, direct marketing, wholesaling, forward contracting, utilizing MOU’s, and briefly, food safety. Join us for this hour long webinar and hear from other producers that have developed successful relationships with institutional buyers....

08 Apr

Presented on March 31st, 2016, this webinar provides information about the Montana Harvest of the Month program and how to get your local products served in Montana schools. If you are interested in selling your veggies, whole grains, lentils, beef or apples in schools, now is a great time as schools across Montana will be joining this statewide program that features a Montana-grown food item every month in classroom activities, taste tests, and school meals. This webinar is geared towards producers who would like to sell their products in schools, as well as anyone interested in learning about this great...

29 Jan

Urban farmers face many risks in producing safe and affordable food. Some of the risks are common to all types of farming; however, many are unique to the urban setting, including zoning regulations, access to water, and managing contaminated soils. While many cities in the U.S. are working to address some of the needs of urban farmers, profitability remains a challenge. This webinar focuses on the risk management strategies of two urban farms – City Roots Urban Farm in Columbia, S.C., and Newton Community Farm in Newton, M.A. – and how they have overcome several of the barriers facing urban farmers...

18 Dec

Juan Raygoza of Terra Preta Farm shares his thoughts on an innovative new partnership with Doctor's Hospital at Renaissance (in McAllen, Texas), explaining what this means to the community and to him as a small organic farmer. Learn more about the SOAR Partnership Like the SOAR Partnership on Facebook Visit Terra Preta Farm Like Terra Preta Farm on Facebook Funding to develop this video was provided by the Organic Transitions Program of the National Institute of Food and Agriculture, U.S. Department of Agriculture, under award number 2013-51106-20970....

18 Dec

Jessica Wilcox, the Food and Nutrition Services Manager at Livingston Healthcare, and Dr. Alison Harmon, Associate Professor of Foods and Nutrition and Sustainable Food Systems present on recent research done on sustainable foodservice in rural hospitals in the state of Montana. The title of their presentation is “Sustainable Hospital Food Service: Restoring Health and Prosperity to Rural Montana.” This presentation took place at the Nourishing People and Sustaining Communities Farm to Healthcare Conference in Livingston, MT on November 7, 2014....

18 Dec

Seth Bostick, the Executive Chef at Kalispell Regional Medical Center, describes how he has worked with Thomas Cuisine Management to procure healthy and local foods for the hospital’s patients and staff. Emily McKey, a dietician at Village Health Care in Missoula, speaks to the specific needs and opportunities for serving local, fresh food in the setting of a skilled nursing facility. This presentation took place at the Nourishing People and Sustaining Communities Farm to Healthcare Conference in Livingston, MT on November 7, 2014....

18 Dec

This panel highlights a few producers and processors who are working to diversify their market through partnering with institutional buyers such as hospitals and senior living facilities. Shay Farmer discusses the Mission Mountain Food Enterprise Center (MMFEC), a federally-inspected food processing facility, and the strategic planning involved with foodservice directors, growers, and distributors to increase the amount of minimally-processed, season- extended, regional food served in public institutions. Dave Prather, General Manager of the Western Montana Growers Cooperative illustrates the partnerships the Growers Cooperative has working on the wholesale level with the foodservice departments of three hospitals in Montana, as well...

18 Dec

Members of the Park County Food System Council discuss ways they collaborate to ensure access to healthy, local food for all residents. The Council is made up of representatives from the school, hospital, food bank, MSU Extension, the county sanitarian, and local producers. The panel took place at the Nourishing People and Sustaining Communities Farm to Healthcare Conference in Livingston on November 7, 2014....

17 Sep

Jan Tusick, Director of the Mission Mountain Food Enterprise Center, discusses GAP, HAACP, and other food safety regulations during the "Entering the Institutional Food Market" conference at the National Center for Appropriate Technology in Butte, Montana, on April 25, 2014....

17 Sep

Aubree Roth, Farm to School Coordinator with Montana Team Nutrition discusses USDA guidelines for selling local food to schools during the "Entering the Institutional Food Market" conference at the National Center for Appropriate Technology in Butte, Montana, on April 25, 2014....

29 Apr

Local food was once considered to be in the purview of consumers and small-scale producers. Recently, policymakers, including those residing in cities, began embracing local food systems as a solution to a myriad of urban problems, including lack of green space and a dearth of healthy food availability. As part of this shift in policy, cities and other jurisdictions have embraced production in the urban environment. But at the local and state levels, such policies are often based on a vision of how food might be grown in a city, and do not consider the feasibility or viability of such ventures....

29 Oct

FoodCorps Montana service members have worked to source local beef in school lunches in order to invest money in the local economy and feed our children healthier meals. FoodCorps is a national non-profit organization that places emerging leaders in communities across the nation to connect kids to real food and help them grow up healthy. We do this by placing these leaders in limited-resource communities for a year of public service where they conduct hands-on food education, build and tend school gardens, and facilitate getting high-quality local food into public school cafeterias. Every community and state brings unique opportunities and challenges. In Montana,...

15 Apr

ATTRA Program Specialist Hannah Lewis gives a brief overview of Local Foods Systems....