Appalachian
Sustainable Agriculture
Project
306 West Haywood Street
Asheville, NC 28801
Voice: 828-236-1282
Fax: 828-236-1280 Email
Us
Appalachian Sustainable Agriculture Project is
a
501(c)(3) nonprofit
organization.
e-Connections: January 2010
January 2010
Get Listed in the Local Food Guide
If you own a local family farm or a business that uses local farm products, now's the time register for the Local Food Guide.
If you've registered in the past, please update your information for
the ninth annual addition. Only new and renewed listings are published
each year.
The Local Food Guide is a free print and online directory to farms, farmers
tailgate markets, wineries, grocers, restaurants, caterers and
bakers, farm stores and stands, farms to visit, B&Bs and farm
lodging, apple farms, u-pick farms, CSAs, and distributors. Over 90,000
copies will be distributed to over 400 locations, so getting listed is
a great opportunity to make your business known.
During the easy registration process, you
can opt to include your farms and business in two other publications,
in addition to the Local Food Guide. Sign up for the Hayride (follow this link to a PDF), a farm
field trip guide, if you're interested in hosting school groups. Sign up for the Mixing Bowl, a business to business directory, if you want to
supply larger buyers such as restaurants and cafeterias.
ASAP is relocating. We're looking for office space in Buncombe County with
the following requirements:
· Large enough to contain 13 work stations , plus 2-3
smaller stations.
· A conference room or shared meeting space large enough to
seat 15 or so folks.
· A kitchen.
· Parking capacity for 15 daily but occasionally up to 20.
· Preferably within 10-15 minutes of downtown Asheville.
· Prefer a building with character.
Contact Charmaine at
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or 236-1282 with suggestions.
Thanks.
Farm to School is Always in Season: Winter Field Trips, Cooking Demos, and Garden Planning Farm Field Trips Imagine exploring a greenhouse where plump tomatoes grow
in the dead of winter. Or milking a goat and sampling fresh goat cheese.
Teachers can give their students these experiences--and more--by taking
a
field trip to one of Southern Appalachia's family farms. Winter, when
the pace of work is slower, is the ideal time to visit some farms.
To
help teachers find farms that accommodate student groups, ASAP has
created a farm field trip directory, the Hayride. It details
important logistical information. (Is there room for a school bus to
turn around, handicap access, lunch available?) The guide also includes
activity ideas, and ways to connect
the farm visit with the standard course of study. Download the free PDF here.
ASAP is also able to provide funding for farm field trips
through a donation received from Posana Café, a restaurant in
Asheville. If you would like to learn more about farm field trips
please contact
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Cooking Demos
Give students a taste of local food and
farms without leaving the classroom by contacting ASAP to arrange
a local food cooking demo. Experiential nutrition education is a great
way to instill healthy eating habits in children. No child is too young
to cook with an adult; ASAP organizes cooking demos for children as
young as three and four. If you are a teacher who would like to have
someone cook with your class, or if you are a chef who would like to
cook with children, please contact
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.
School Gardens
January is the time to start planning your school
garden. You'll need to plant your spring garden in March or April so it
will be ready to harvest before summer break. From deciding what to
plant
to finding the tools to make it happen, it helps to start early so
you're
not scrambling come spring time. ASAP has seeds and a pool
of volunteers eager to work with your students. Contact
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for more details.
Farm to Business Directory Focuses on High Country
ASAP is producing a special High Country edition of the Mixing Bowl,
our farm to business directory. Farmers and food service professionals
offering and seeking local, wholesale, farm products are encouraged to
register.
The High Country's edition of the Mixing Bowl will be
printed soon, so register now. Registration is part of the same easy
process as submitting your listing for the Local Food Guide. Just visit www.buyappalachian.org
and click "Get in the Guide." High Country local food supporters also
have the option of contacting Ashe County based project coordinator
Hollis Wild at
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.
If
you know farmers, restaurant, or retailers in the High Country who
deserve to be a more visible part of the local food movement, please
let them know about ASAP and our publications.
Register for Marketing Opportunities for Farmers
ASAP's
Marketing
Opportunities for Farmers conference is next month--don't forget to
register. A special early registration rate is available now. The
conference has sold out in the past, so reserve your spot soon.
The conference will be Saturday, February 27, 2010 at Warren Wilson College in
Swannanoa, NC.
New ASAP Publication Connects Farms, Tourism, and Economic Development
ASAP
is proud to offer a new publication: Farm Promotion and Support: Ideas
and Tools for Economic Development and Tourism Development Authorities.
Farms create jobs, increase our communities' tax revenue, attract
visitors, and can help keep some of the 370 billion dollars tourists
spend on food and drink in our local economies. That's why we've
created this guide, to help regional leaders capitalize on farms as
resources.
Farm Promotion and Support explains how farms,
economic development, and tourism development are connected, and
includes best practices, case studies, and more information. Download a free copy here (PDF).
The publication was created with funding from the Blue Ridge National Heritage Area.
Looking for the weekly Fresh at Farmers Markets update? Find it at FromHere.org, ASAP's new community website, along with other news, photos, local food and farm events, and more. While you're there, join the conversation!
Curious about the difference your donation can make? Here are some examples of what ASAP can accomplish with your support:
-$1,000 helps farmers access new markets
-$500 brings a class of school children to a local farm
-$100 funds a cooking demo on how to prepare fresh foods
-$50 trains a farmer in new skills -$25 provides seeds and resources for school gardens
Click here to give your gift to ASAP today. Or, give on behalf of a loved one and tell the recipient about the good work that will be done in his or her name.
