the great grape & bean pairing

Saturday!

http://vermontbeancrafters.com/

farm business class

Registration is now open for the Vermont New Farmer Project farm business class Growing Places.

This Summer:
Growing Places for aspiring and start-up farmers
Location: Vital Communities offices, White River Junction, VT
Time: 5:30 – 8:30 pm
Dates: June 24, July 8, July 22, & August 5
Fess: $100-$135
Registration Deadline: June 10; early discounts available for registrations by May 31.

This four session course introduces new and aspiring farmers to important topics, resources and services integral to getting their farm started off right.  Participants will learn about the cornerstones of farm business development—goal setting and decision making, accessing capital and financial management, exploring markets, and learning about the resources and services available to support beginning farmers. 

vermonters – take action!

Several important bills are coming right up.  Much more info available at ruralvermont.org

GMO Food Labeling Bill – H.112
Tues 5/7 – House Judiciary Committee PASSED the GMO Labeling bill 7-4. We now expect that the GMO Labeling Bill, H.112, will come to the floor of the House for a vote on Thurs. and Friday of this week. VT could lead the way on giving citizens the right to know and make informed decisions about the food they eat and feed their families. ***ACTION NEEDED: Please call your Representatives (you can look them up here) on WED. and THURS. and ask them to VOTE YES on H.112.*** Vermonters’ health and our environment are priceless. Call the Sergeant-At-Arms office at 828-2228 and leave a very brief message for your Representative with your name, town and phone number. For additional updates, visit the Vermont Right to Know GMOs page. You can also follow the action on the VTRTK Facebook page.

Hemp Bill - S.157
The Hemp bill is back on track and expected to reach the House floor for a final vote by the end of the week. For more information contact Robb[at]ruralvermont.org

VT events with greenhorns artist in residence

The Vermont Sail Freight Project (VSFP), sponsored by the Willowell Foundation, is a sail-powered food trading adventure linking the farms and forests of Lake Champlain with the Lower Hudson Valley.  During two upcoming Weds evening workshops, mariner Christin Ripley will teach knot tying useful in sailing.  Prospective VSFP volunteers are especially encouraged to attend.  Sponsored by Willowell; $10 suggested donation.  The first workshop is at VUHS, the second at Boundbrook farm in Ferrisburgh.  Space is limited!  RSVP

Weds, April 10: Basic Knot Tying
6:30-8 PM
- Learn about the resources that make cordage, occupational applications of cordage, and the difference between a knot, hitch and
bend. Followed by demonstration and knot tying.

Weds, April 17: Whipping, Splicing, and Fancywork
6-8 PM
-Learn how to stop a line from fraying by whipping the ends. Learn how to make a rope longer or create a permanent loop by splicing. And, learn how to make decorative and functional fancywork: turkshead, grafting, pointing, and hitching.

*Join us at 5 PM at Erik’s farm for brick-oven pizza. RSVP for details.

About the instructor:  

Christin Ripley is a sculptor and mariner based in New York City. She has cooked and crewed on several Sail Training Vessels and currently teaches sailing lessons and marine ecology in NY Harbor. For the month of April, she is living and teaching in Essex, NY through the Greenhorns, a grassroots non-profit for young farmers.

vermont cheesemaking workshops

2013 is Peter Dixon’s 15th year of Cheesemaking Workshops near his home in Westminster, Vermont.  In our third year at Westminster Artisan Cheesemaking and our first year at the Parish Hill Creamery, the lineup is better than ever! 

This year’s series is comprised of two and three day sessions on the fundamentals of making and aging cheese and operating a small-scale, farmstead or artisanal cheese business.   Workshops are tailored to the needs and interests of aspiring cheesemakers as well as experienced manufacturers looking to improve and/or expand their cheese production.    Topics include:

• Hands-on Cheesemaking;
• HACCP and Food Safety;
  
• Technical Information on Milk Chemistry, Cheesemaking Processes, Affinage, Sanitation; and
  
• Practical Approaches to Construction of Cheesemaking and Aging Facilities. 

Also available, Peter’s HACCP-BASED PROGRAM HANDBOOK: A Guide for Farmstead and Small-Scale Artisan Cheesemakers Who Make Cheese by Hand in Small Batches from Raw and Pasteurized Milk  This handbook provides a framework for cheesemakers to construct food safety programs using the principles of the FDA/National Committee of Interstate Milk Shippers Dairy Products HACCP program.

vermonters – consider dry beans!

Facebook Event HERE
NOFA-VT site HERE

vermont sail freight on gothamist

16 days to go on their kickstarter campaign!

Vermont Farmer Building Sailboat To Transport Produce To NYC
by Neil Casey for Gothamist

The city has lots of rooftop farms and greenmarkets for feeding your crippling ramps addiction, but a Vermont farmer wants to add produce-via-sailboat to the mix. Rice farmer Erik Andrus has begun a Kickstarter campaign to raise $15,000 to build a sailboat that would transport goods from the Green Mountain State down the Hudson River into New York City and the Lower Hudson. “We’re looking to provide things into the urban marketplace that can’t be officially produced there because they take up too much space,” Andrus told WPTZ. “Here in rural New England, we have the space but we don’t have the markets.”

upcoming conference on ecological economics

The U.S. Society for Ecological Economics (USSEE) will hold its 2013 Conference on June 9-12 at the University of Vermont (UVM) in Burlington, Vermont hosted by the Gund Institute for Ecological Economics. Our 7th meeting is organized around the theme of “Building Local, Scaling Global: Implementing Solutions for Sustainability” and will aim to research and catalog sustainability lessons learned at local, regional, and state levels and identifying solutions that can be scaled up … and what better place to connect local action to global problems than Vermont.

In the spirit of “getting on with sustainability already”, this year’s meeting will be organized around an emerging optimism that local solutions are bubbling up everywhere, and 2013 is the year to synergize and strategize. Proposals for paper, panel, poster, and workshop submissions are currently welcome, especially as they relate to the conference themes.

Please visit the Call for Papers page to submit your presentation ideas using our online form. Abstracts are due by February 15, 2013. For questions, please contact conference organizers at ussee13@uvm.edu or call UVM’s Rubenstein School of Environment and Natural Resources at (802) 656-1353. Abstracts will be reviewed by the Scientific Committee, chaired by John Gowdy, former president of both the USSEE and ISEE. The Organizing Committee encourages you to spread the word about USSEE 2013, and we look forward to seeing you in Vermont this June!

calling all vermonters

Your tiny state is about to take on the wrath of monsanto.
Courage! Solidarity! Get out the vote!

Rural Vermont – ACTION ALERT & Legislative Update
Now is the time for Citizen Action on Labeling Genetically Engineered Foods
PLEASE JOIN US AT A GRASSROOTS ACTION FORUM!  Montpelier tonight, Burlington and Middlebury tomorrow.

With one week to go before the Legislature takes its annual break for Town Meeting Week, momentum is building for H.112, the bill which will require that genetically engineered food sold in Vermont be labeled.

The House Agriculture Committee has once again taken hours of testimony from a wide variety of witnesses and the Committee’s Chair, Rep. Carolyn Partridge, has indicated that the Committee will vote on the bill by the end of this week.

vermont farm seeks vegetable grower

MR Harvest Farm, a sustainable/organic mixed vegetable farm in Grand Isle, VT seeks an experienced vegetable grower to join our team.

This is a full-time, year-around position available immediately.

In addition to being a reliable, hands-on individual; candidates must possess knowledge/skills in an Organic commercial setting:

-Minimum 5 years’ experience working with Organic Mixed Vegetables in a commercial growing operation.
-Leadership skills in building and managing a productive farm team
-Crop planning and scheduling
-Ability to meet harvest schedules

apiary position

French Hill Apiaries, begun in 1974 and located in the northern Champlain Valley of Vermont and New York, is one of the largest and most successful beekeeping operations in New England.

We produce high quality liquid and comb honey that is sold throughout the region. My apiary is also noted for producing exceptional, locally adapted bees and queens, used by beekeepers and universities alike. I am a well known beekeeping educator, specializing in helping beekeepers set up and managing a sustainable apiary. If you would like to see what I’m up to in the world of honeybees, google my name.

taking stock

 A UVM Extension New Farmer Project Class
For people with 5 or more years of experience operating a farm business.

Dates: March 13, 20 & 27 2013.
Locations: On farms in Chittenden County..
Time: 10 am to 3 pm.
Early registration deadline: February 20, 2013, Cost: $100.
Registration deadline: March 1, Cost: $135

Cost: $100-$135
For more information: Jessie Schmidt.

Once a farm business is established, new challenges arise. Chances are your original plan has required some adjustments along the way. Farm businesses must adjust to shifts in the market place, and to changes in the personal lives of the owners. The birth of a child, death of a loved one, the need to relocate and change business relationships are just some of the reasons to reexamine how we manage our businesses and plan for the future.

new farmer coaching

The VT New Farmer Project is offering new and aspiring farmers consultations with farm business advisers at several upcoming conferences.  These sessions will be focused on helping new farmers create action plans to start or enhance their farm businesses.  Space is limited.  Preregistration is recommended.  For more information and questions, contact Jessie Schmidt at the UVM Extension New Farmer Project, newfarmer@uvm.edu, 802-223-2389 x 203.

New Farmer Coaching Sessions at….

The Direct Marketing Conference, January 13, South Royalton, VT

• Sign up for coaching
• Register for conference

The Grazing Conference, January 19, Fairlee, VT

• Sign up for coaching
• Register for conference

The NOFA-VT Winter Conference, February 16-17, Burlington, VT 

• Sign-up for coaching
• Register for conference

rice farming apprenticeship

Apprenticeship in Rice and Duck Agriculture, with profit-share
May 2013-October 2013

Boundbrook Farm, Ferrisburgh, Vermont

Boundbrook Farm is the largest wet rice farm in the northeastern U.S., and is a regional leader in ecological rice production on a small-commercial scale.  We use ducks for weed control and use a variety of specialized equipment for irrigation, seedling propagation, transplanting, harvest, and processing.  Our rice fetches a premium price in regional markets.

We are seeking a full-time apprentice to focus on rice operations.  Strong interest and some background in rice specifically (or small grains generally) is preferred.  Must be organized and capable of self-direction, and capable of sustained physical labor.  Leadership experience helpful as we will bring in volunteers as needed.  Mechanical skills a plus.  Seasonal housing provided, shared with one other apprentice.  Work will be coordinated by the farm owner (Erik).  We offer an unparalleled education in all aspects of small scale rice production and a stipend of $300 per month.

Additionally, contingent on successful completion of the season, a profit-share arrangement is available.  Upon gauging the harvest we will agree to pay a bonus of $1.00 per lb of clean paddy rice.  In 2012 we harvested 2200 lbs.  We aim for 5000-10000 lbs in 2013, so this a significant incentive.

Please forward resume with references.

Contact:
Erik Andrus, Boundbrook Farm
erik@goodcompanionbakery.com

276 Burroughs Farm Road

Vergennes, VT 05491

802-877-1396

direct marketing clinics

UVM Extension New Farmer Project:  Direct Market Pricing Clinics for Farmers

These FREE one-day clinics will provide hands-on opportunities to learn about various cost-based pricing techniques using your own production and financial data. Participants will also explore market placement and promotion considerations related to the price points you want to achieve. Follow-up mentoring and technical assistance will be available.
Pre-registration is required!  Limited space available.