ANOTHER NAIL IN THE ETHANOL COFFIN

A secret report by the World Bank finds biofuels are contributing way more to the current world food crisis than has ever been suggested before!

Read more.....

(Also see my article, "Bursting the Ethanol Bubble" by scrolling way down to older posts.)
L.P.

THANKS FOR SUPPORTING "EARTH DAY, TOO"

Thanks to all who turned out to support our "Earth Day Too," end-of-season farmers market and celebration in Roblin, Manitoba, Canada on Labour Day weekend!








While the crowds were perhaps not all we had hoped for, those who did attend clearly appreciated the produce, crafts, information, tea party put on by our host, the Life & Art Centre, and the live music.

Enthusiasts of local food production and marketing and the so-called "eat local" movement are well aware that many in our community grow their own gardens and share their bounty, free-of-charge, with their friends and neighbours। This is a time-honoured tradition and is as it should be.

It is a culture that is well-entrenched and understandable, given the convenience factor.
Come to think of it, this practise surely is as central to the "eat local" movement as any other element - another pillar in a structure we know as "food security."
The consumers we are "targeting" are the ones who continues to buy exotic produce in the store, when the same is available locally!
We propose to help you break that habit by making local food equally "convenient" to attain.
You can read all about my pitch in support of eating local, below.
Just scroll down to "Earth Day Too Returns."
It should be mentioned also that there is no attempt here to put our local food retailers out of business!
We believe that more shelf-space dedicated to local food in these outlets is the way of the future.
Our biggest challenge now is to attract more producers, since the demand for local food, at least in urban centres, is exploding, beyond our capacity to keep up.
My next appeal would be to those who might be interested in organizing similar events in future years.
Help is urgently needed.
Once again, thanks to all who made our event a success, including customers, vendors, organizers performers, the Art Centre and the Manitoba Food Charter.
You are appreciated!
L.P.

LEARNING ORGANICS "DIRTY" SECRETS

Martin Entz, pictured above, is a professor at the University of Manitoba's Department of Plant Science. In 1992 Martin Entz started growing crops in an un-Western way to prove to himself that it couldn’t be done. But after nearly 17 years of comparing organic and conventional agricultural practices at research farms around Winnipeg the plant scientist delightfully notes his assumptions were wrong. The Glenlea long-term organic/conventional crop rotation study is Canada’s oldest and it’s providing valuable insights into natural farming systems. A major finding pertains to soil health, specifically, the microorganisms living in it. (To re-cap from a first-year Biology course, over 95 per cent of vascular plants have fungi in their roots and this association benefits the plants in numerous ways.) In Year 13, graduate student Cathy Welsh, working with Entz and soil sciences’ Mario Tenuta, compared the plots’ fungal spore density and diversity – a hallmark of soil health, and indirectly and to some degree, plant health. In short, the organic system was a metropolis compared to the conventional plot. “It shouldn’t have been a surprise to find this, but it was,” said Entz, a University of Manitoba professor in plant science. This has many implications, one of which pertains to fungal resignation. Soil in conventional systems is obese with fertilizer-derived nutrients. This causes the plant, specifically those mycorrhizal fungi, to become lazy, which is a shame since they are superb micronutrient extractors. But in such systems they sit back and wait for fertilizers to bring the goods to them. They fail to extend their hyphae and the plant, as a result, ends up having a lower micronutrient density when compared to plants in organic plots. So organic food not only has fewer pesticides on its exterior, but its interior hosts a gala of zinc, iron and the like. What’s more, when the plant is left to fend for itself its immune and other systems become more robust. Flax samples Entz took from his 1995 to 1999 crop years confirm this and a current project is further investigating it, as well as things like mill quality. Another drawback to conventional farming is how much energy (read oil) it takes to cram nitrogen into fertilizer. Indeed, since about one-half of the energy on our dinner plate came from nitrogen, we are essentially eating oil, Entz notes. To rectify this, he is experimenting with “green manure” – plants, like legumes, that extract nitrogen from the atmosphere. These plants then get mashed into the soil by way of a tractor add-on Entz’s lab created. The legumes soon decompose and cycle nitrogen into the soil. All this sounds great, but everything seems to have a downside. A major flaw critics point to in organic systems concerns yields: you can’t, the argument goes, feed the world on organic. “But that’s a premature debate,” Entz said, noting that less than one per cent of Canada’s land is now under organic cultivation. “The real debate needs to be on how we can achieve sustainable agriculture because our current system is not sustainable. Also, we need to keep in mind that much of the world currently feeds itself using what are essentially organic methods”. Besides, Entz notes, the gap in yields should close with further research. Currently, organic plots produce up to 85 per cent of the calories a similar conventional field can, but it takes 30% less energy to do so. And as Entz and others work with farmers to breed crops specifically for organic systems the yields will increase. “Our current agricultural model is getting tired. It had a good run, but it’s time to adapt – that’s how civilizations move forward. What Glenlea offers us is a laboratory that lets us explore what these natural processes offer humanity. And what we learned is that they offer a ton.”

For more information, contact: Sean Moore Research Communication Officer Office of the V.P. Research sean_moore@... Phone: (204) 474-7184

"EARTH DAY TOO" RETURNS TO ROBLIN

Tired of wooden tomatoes from Mexico?
Tasteless strawberries from California?
Potatoes from Texas or apples from Australia?
(All of which grow quite nicely here on our Canadian prairies, thanks very much!)
What's wrong with this picture?
Wouldn't it be better on so many levels to buy your veggies or baking, or preserves, or meat,for that matter, from a local producer rather than some faceless corporation in the supermarket?Obviously this is not always possible in the "off-season."But how about when these items are at their best,right in your own community?Does common sense not tell us;

a) local food would be fresher,safer, better-tasting and even healthier;
b) we'd save a lot in transportation costs;
c) this would be kinder to the environment (avoiding all the harmful
greenhouse gases produced when our food is trucked over long distances);
d) we'd boost the economic health of those local producers?
Keep reading and find out what folks in the Roblin area of western Manitoba are doing to correct this unsustainable situation.

__________________________
The "eat -local" movement in the Roblin area of western Manitoba will get another boost at a special event this fall!
Local Food Producers, the Roblin Life &

Art Centre, and the Manitoba Food Charter present:
SEASON'S-END CELEBRATION MARKET
(sometimes called "Earth Day Too")
August 30, 10 am. - 4 p.m.Life & Art Centre - 3rd Ave NW & Hwy 5, Roblin MB.
Join us as we celebrate local food, life, and art in

partnership with the 100th anniversary of the Life
& Art Centre building.

.Produce

.Preserves
.Pork
.Crafts
.Tea Party
•Films
.Literature
.Celebration

Contact Larry (204) 937-3055 or Tamela 937-8016 for
details.
(Scroll way down to see what our "eat-local" movement did last year.)
Also, watch this video for an excellent summary of this subject from the
Worldwatch Insitute.

____________________

See the postings immediately below for more details.

ORGANIC MEAT JUST ONE OF THE GOODIES AVAILABLE

Visitors arrive at Kate and Doug Storey's Poplar Glen Organic farm near Grandview, MB.
Kate (far r.) shows her guests some of the livestock.

In addition to pork, the Storeys will have their free-range eggs for sale at the market, too!

OTHER VENDORS:

Tamela Friesen (l.with straw hat) and partner Karen Hardy (r. pic.);(AKA,the "Famous Bicycling Chicks.")

They sell all kinds of fresh veggies and preserves.

(They also operate a bed and breakfast just north of Roblin.)
_____________________________________
Rowena and Larry Powell operate a vegetable market garden on a 6-acre parcel they call Earthkeeper Farm. It’s less than 20 kilometers northwest of Roblin.
For five years, their produce was certified organic through the Organic Producers’ Association of Manitoba.
While they no longer have their crops officially certified, their growing methods remain the same.
“We grow organically because we believe in it,” says Larry. “I think far too many chemicals are used on our food crops these days. We somehow have to find a way of 'getting our farms off drugs'and going organic!"
The Powells have marketed much of their produce at farmers’ markets in Winnipeg.
“It’s a long way to go,” Larry adds, “but that is where we had to go to find a ‘critical mass’ of people interested in organics.
“Eventually, I’m sure the market for organics, specifically, will grow to the point where smaller, urban communities will also seek it out.


“We’ll have lots of "fresh from-the-ground" stuff on sale at the Roblin market on Sat., August 30th (the Labour Day weekend). We’ll see you there!”

The Powell's will also be selling a limited quantity of their pure, homegrown maple syrup at the market.


-----------------------------------------


Local horticulturist, Hugh Skinner will sell perennial flowers - hosta, daylily, lily, peony and possibly his comprehensive and authoritative gardening books
Isabel Wendell will sell her locally-produced honey।





_______________

ARLENE ARNOTT (r.):
Knitted Items; Pot scrubbers from baler twine and dish cloths.
Crocheted; Purses, Barbie and Ken doll clothes, baby sweaters
and bonnets, dresser runners, doilies, hot-dish mats, pot holders
and kitchen towels.
------------

Brenda Neuhofer of the Inglis district will display the fine wools of "Asessippi Alpaca Products"(L), and finished goods made from the wool." These will include toques, scarves, socks and even blankets.
And, oh, by the way, don't be surprised if one or two of the animals themselves will make an appearance there!

INDIGENOUS CRAFTS WILL BE AVAILABLE.

Yvette Bouvier of Boggy Creek, north of Roblin,
will display an array of aboriginal art,
including

antler jewelery,
caribou pictures
and birch bark biting.
___________________
LATE ENTRY!
Pat Kisiloski of Lake of the Prairies, near Roblin, will be there with sweet corn and some zucchini!
____________________

Don't forget, all during the summer, every Tuesday,the Roblin Farmers Market is going strong - from 10am to 2pm - next to the Post Office on Main Street!

OTHER ATTRACTIONS: Plans are in the works for an herb demonstration, complete with recipe samples. (Those plans have yet to be finalized.)

Paul Chorney of the Manitoba Food Charter will be there with a display about his organization. Funding from Heifer International - a US-based charity which strives to achieve food security for people around the world - made available through the Food Charter, has made this event possible.

MUSICAL ENTERTAINMENT:

Pint-sized fiddling sensation Scott Cornelius will drop by the market in the morning. (Not only will he be playing, he'll have his CD, "Fiddlin' Around," available for sale!)

The Storeys from Grandview will add their own brand of celtic entertainment; Doug on bagpipes and Kate on the tin whistle.

Larry Powell will play a few tunes on his clarinet and may (if he works up the nerve),
even sing a song.

DEAD ZONES: HOW FARM FERTILIZERS ARE KILLING OUR RIVERS, LAKES AND OCEANS

Greenpeace challenges the sacred cows of modern society -farmers - and calls them to task for their considerable contribution to the degradation of our planet.