Local Foods News from Healthy Communities of the Capital Area
Summer 2013
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Upcoming Events
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2nd Annual Maine Farm to School Network Conference
October 19, 2013
Portland Schools
Registration coming soon
FMI: Ken Morse 207.393.0134 or kenmorse@mac.com
Maine Network of Community Food Councils Summit
October 18, 2013
St. Mary's Nutrition Center, Lewiston
Registration coming soon
FMI: Ken Morse 207.393.0134 or kenmorse@mac.com
7th National Farm to Cafeteria Conference
April 15-18, 2014
Austin, TX
Registration Deadline: July 13
FMI & Register:
www.farmtocafeteriaconference.org
Common Ground Country Fair
September 20-22, 2013
Unity, ME
FMI: www.mofga.org/theFair
Maine School Garden Open House
September 28, 2013
FMI: www.msgn.org
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Local Farmers' Markets
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Kennebec County
Augusta
Farmers' Market at Mill Park
1 North Water Street, the old Edwards Mill site
May-November
Tuesdays 2-6pm
December-April
Tuesdays 12:30-2:00pm
EBT, WIC, Credit & Debit Accepted
www.farmersmarketmillpark.org
Augusta Farmers' Market
Turnpike Mall, Western Ave/Whitten Road
May-October
Wednesdays and Saturdays
10:00am-1:00pm
Viles Arboretum Farmers' Market
153 Hospital Street
May-November
Fridays 12:00-5:00pm
Belgrade
Belgrade Lakes Farmers' Market
Main Street, Belgrade Lakes Village
May-October
Sundays 8:00am-1:00pm & Thursdays 2:00-6:00pm
www.belgradelakesfarmersmarket.org
East Vassalboro
East Vassalboro Farmers' Market
357 Main Street, Vassalboro Grange
Fridays 3:00-5:30pm
Gardiner
Gardiners Farmers' Market
Route 201 Brunswick Avenue, On the Common (will be moving to the water front)
May-October
Wednesdays 3-6pm
EBT & WIC Accepted
Hallowell
Hallowell Market Day
Water Street (Route 201) at the foot of Winthrop Street
May-October
Tuesdays 4:00pm-8:00pm
Manchester
Mayflower Farmers' Market
Route 17, next to Post office at the big red barn
May-November
Wednesdays 3:00-6:00pm
Saturdays 10:00am-2:00pm
Oakland
Oakland Community Farmers' Market
895 Kennedy Memorial Drive
Fridays 2:00-6:00pm
Waterville
Downtown Waterville Farmers' Market
Appleton Street & Maine Street at the Concourse
April-November
Thursdays 2-6PM
Wayne
Wayne Farmers' Market
Main Street, Village Center Green next to Post Office
May-September
Saturdays 9:00am-12:00pm (noon)
EBT Accepted
Winthrop
Winthrop Farmers' Market
Main Street
May-September
Saturdays 9:00am-1:00pm
Other Options:
Crown o' Maine Organic Cooperative, for worksites looking to create their own mini farmers' market, buying clubs may be just what you need. To learn more visit www.crownofmainecoop.com
KLFI Online Marketplace, an online ordering system that allows shoppers to purchase a large variety of foods from Maine producers, in cooperation with the Gardiner Farmers' Market, Crown O' Maine Organic Cooperative, and local vendors. To get a username and password, please call 207.712.9734 or email klfi@gardinerfarmersmarket.org. To learn more visit www.klfi.buyingclubsoftware.org or klfi.org.
Somerset County
Canaan
Canaan Farmers' Market
Route 2, downtown Canaan in restaurant parking lot (formerly known as Purple Cow)
May-October
Saturdays 10am-2pm
canaanmefarmersmarket.webs.com/
Fairfield
Fairfield Farmers' Market
Main Street (Route 201) Nazarene Church parking lot
June-October
Wednesdays 2:00-6:00pm & Saturdays 9:30am-1:30pm
WIC Accepted
Pittsfield
Pittsfield Farmers' Market
Corner of Hathorn Park at Park Street & Forest Street, across from the Church of the Nazarene
May-October
Mondays & Thursdays 2:00-6:00pm
Senior Farm Share & WIC Accepted
www.pittsfieldfarmersmarket.org
Skowhegan
Skowhegan Farmers' Market
Somerset Grist Mill
May-October
Saturdays 9:00am-1:00pm
June-October
Wednesdays 3:00pm-6:00pm
Saturdays 9:00am-1:00pm
November-April
1st & 3rd Saturdays 10:00am-1:00pm
EBT, WIC, Debit & Credit Accepted
www.skowheganfarmersmarket.com
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Links to Useful Resources
| National Farm to School Network
F2SN enables every child to have access to nutritious food while simultaneously benefiting communities and local farmers.
FMI & Resources: farmtoschool.org
Maine Ag in the Classroom
MAITC provides information about agricultural concepts to teachers, students, and interested citizens.
FMI & Resources:
MSGN promotes and supports educational gardens for youth and encourages school programs that teach healthy eating and environmental stewardship.
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| Join Our List |
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Greetings!
You are receiving this newsletter because you have been identified as a leader in your school or community around local foods efforts.
I welcome any and all feedback on this newsletter's format and content and encourage others to submit local foods articles, news, resources, and success stories that may be of interest or useful to others.
Please forward this newsletter to others as appropriate and encourage them to subscribe. You may unsubscribe at any time you feel this newsletter is not germane to your work or interests.
Again, welcome. I hope you enjoy!
Renee Page,
Central District Maine Farm to School Network Representative
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| Increasing Access to Local Foods in Southern Kennebec County | | Local Foods Forums a Success!
 HCCA convened four local foods forums this spring to examine access points to local foods across southern Kennebec County and gauge interest in forming local community food councils. Increasing access to local foods serves to boost local economic development by supporting local farmers and local foods vendors as well as improve health through increased consumption of fresh fruits and vegetables. A variety of stakeholders from schools, food pantries, municipal government, farms, and more convened in Augusta, Gardiner, Mount Vernon, and Wayne to identify local foods access points and learn more about how the local food system as a whole affects our health and economic development.
HCCA is simultaneously conducting a Food Hub feasibility study to assess the supply of local foods and the demand for them by retailers and institutions to determine if a Food Hub is needed in southern Kennebec County. Traditional Food Hubs serve as aggregation, processing, and distribution sites for local foods. HCCA's vision of a Food Hub would also encompass a teaching kitchen and include classroom and meeting space. The study being conducted in collaboration with WKEDA (Western Kennebec Economic Development Alliance) by Dyer Associates is still under way and results will be shared soon.
HCCA will convene stakeholders again to share findings and move forward with next steps to improve the local food system. For more information or if you are interested in incorporating food and agriculture in your community's comprehensive plan, contact Renee Page at 207.588.5020 or rpage@mcd.org.
HCCA received support for the forums from the Broadreach Foundation, the Fund for a Healthy Maine, and the Maine Network of Community Food Councils (see Upcoming Events for the first Community Food Councils Summit).
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Maine Farm to School Network
| | MF2SN Updates
 The Maine Farm to School Network (MF2SN) works to increase capacity for farm to school (F2S) efforts across the state through public health district representatives. The MF2SN aims to build communication and coordination within schools and communities, which are the foundation of this very special local foods movement. Farm to School programs support building and tending school gardens, delivering agriculturally-based nutrition education, and developing local food procurement systems to increase agricultural awareness, improve health, and support the local economy. The MF2SN is organized with a State Coordinator and District Representatives in each of the 8 Public Health Districts in Maine. In its inaugural year, the MF2SN conducted a baseline assessment of F2S activities across the state to identify strengths and needs related to school gardens, food and agriculture curriculum implementation, and local food procurement by school food service. The first annual MF2SN Conference, held on May 12, 2012 at Mt. View High School in Thorndike, brought together Farm to School champions from across the state for workshops and networking opportunities. District level meetings across the state are ongoing.
Save the Date for the second annual MF2SN Conference on Saturday, October 19, 2013 at Portland Public Schools featuring speakers, panels, and work shops on school gardens, food and farm education, and school nutrition. A local lunch will be served and tours given of Portland Schools' new processing kitchen facility.
Contact your MF2SN Representative to learn more.
Maine Farm to School Network RepresentativesState Coordinator: Ken Morse
Community Food Strategies kenmorse@mac.com 207.393.0134 Aroostook District: John Chartier
Aroostook County
Healthy Aroostook jchartier@mofga.org 207.521.1200 Central District: Renee PageKennebec & Somerset Counties
Healthy Communities of the Capital Area rpage@mcd.org 207.588.5020 Cumberland District: Blair CurrierCumberland County |
Maine-ly Beans & Greens Work Shops
| | Hands on Work Shops a Huge Success!
 | | Beans & Greens Work Shop |
The Maine Farm to School Network in Collaboration with the Maine School Nutrition Association and Farm to Institution New England offered free work shops for school food service staff to improve their skills in sourcing local foods for school lunch programs and developing recipes using fresh Maine foods with a focus on beans and greens. The 2010 Healthy Hunger Free Kids Act requires schools that participate in the National School Lunch Program to increase the number of servings of beans and greens, among other foods. Some districts have struggled with how best to meet the requirements with foods that are well-received by students.
MF2SN Representatives across the state partnered with local chefs and FoodCorps Service Members to deliver the work shops. Locally, Renee Page, Maine Farm to School Network Central District Representative; Lily Joslin, FoodCorps Service Member serving at HCCA; and Mark LaCasse, Chef and Co-owner of The Maine Meal led a work shop hosted by Jeff Bridges and Maranacook Schools. Participants prepared several kid-friendly recipes and shared ideas about how to better incorporate fresh, local ingredients.
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| SNAP-Ed | | Nutrition Education for low-income families and individuals
 Local Healthy Maine Partnerships (HMPs) across the state now deliver SNAP-Ed (Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program Education) to low-income populations. HMPs offer
- Hands-on Cooking Classes
- Grocery Store Tours
- Cooking Demonstrations & Taste Tests
- Nutrition Education Classes
Please contact Jacqui Wainoris, SNAP-Ed Coordinator at jwainoris@mcd.org or 208.588.5081 for information about upcoming events or to schedule one in your community.
Look for us at a local farmers' market and other community events!
Visit HCCA's SNAP-Ed webpage at: www.healthycommunitiesme.org/snap-ed.html
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| Farewell, Lily |
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FoodCorps Service Member Lily Joslin Completes Year of Service
 | | Lily Joslin, HCCA's FoodCorps Service Member |
Healthy Communities of the Capital Area's FoodCorps Service Member, Lily Joslin, worked closely with Augusta and Gardiner schools to deliver agriculturally-based nutrition education, build and tend school gardens, and increase capacity for Farm to School programming in the two districts. Her year of service has flown by and we will miss her but wish her well in her future endeavors.
FoodCorps is a national AmeriCorps program that places service members in high needs school districts across the country to increase access to local foods, engage children and community volunteers, and increase knowledge about what healthy food is to address childhood obesity.
To wrap up her service term, Lily will be partnering with HCCA's SNAP-Ed Coordinator, Jacqui Wainoris, to deliver a week-long Kids Cooking Camp at River View Community School in Gardiner. Click on the link to learn more www.healthycommunitiesme.org
HCCA will be welcoming new FoodCorps Service Member Andrea Snow in September. FoodCorps' local success depends on volunteers and local fundraising efforts. If you would like to learn more about how you can help, contact Renee Page at 207.588.5020 or rpage@mcd.org.
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| What's Renee Reading? | | Seafood Sustainability
 | | Four Fish by Paul Greenberg |
This look at seafood sustainability is a great read for anyone who is concerned about from where our food comes and its long-term sustainability, is connected to the fishing industry, or just plain enjoys fishing. Paul Greenberg examines the four most commonly eaten fish, how the methods for procuring them have changed over the years, and makes us think about how we can make them available into the future. If you eat fish, read this book.
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I hope you enjoyed learning more about Farm to School in Maine and make the effort to reach out to your Maine Farm to School Network Representative.
In Health,
Renee Page,
Central District Maine Farm to School Network Representative |
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| Healthy Communities of the Capital Area (HCCA) is a coalition of local people who work locally to improve the health and quality of life in our communities. HCCA hosts the Central District Maine Farm to School Network Representative.
HCCA's mission is to convene people, organizations, and communities to collaborate on quality of life and public health issues.
HCCA serves the southern Kennebec County towns of Augusta, Chelsea, Farmingdale, Fayette, Gardiner, Hallowell, Litchfield, Manchester, Monmouth, Mount Vernon, Pittston, Randolph, Readfield, Vienna, West Gardiner, Wayne, Windsor, Winthrop, and Richmond in Sagadahoc County. |
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