Tag: Buy local

Cat Links Local Food News

Horseneck Farm: Preserved for agriculture, now increasing access for diverse growers

Posted on kcdnrp

Rows of kale, eggplant, corn, and other late summer vegetables extend for nearly 5 acres across one corner of Horseneck Farm in early September, located just a few miles south of downtown Kent. On a clear day, Mt. Rainier towers behind the trees in the distance. This setting – a small, green retreat within a hub of manufacturing – is just one of five King County-owned farms leased to area farmers through its Farmland Leasing Program.  The goal is for marginalized and beginning farmers to have land access to grow their agricultural businesses despite increasingly expensive property prices across the county.Continue readingHorseneck Farm: Preserved for agriculture, now increasing access for diverse growers

Cat Links Local Food News

Rainy Day Bees partners with local farms, other hive hosts, in creative approach to local honey production

Posted on kcdnrp

epartment of Agriculture. While beekeeping is often done in rural areas, with some hives being transported farm to farm to foster pollination, a small company is supporting local farms and bottling honey produced in the Seattle metro area through a network of beehive hosts.Continue readingRainy Day Bees partners with local farms, other hive hosts, in creative approach to local honey production

Cat Links Local Food News

King County joins West Coast states and cities to reduce food waste

Posted on kcdnrp

According to the nonprofit ReFED, over a third of food products in the U.S. went to waste in 2019. From crops that are unharvested, to grocery stores that stock excess inventory, to shoppers who buy more than they can use, food waste propels climate change and harms the budgets of key players in our food system.Continue readingKing County joins West Coast states and cities to reduce food waste

Cat Links Local Food News

South Delridge Farmers Market launches with special focus on BIPOC communities

Posted on kcdnrp

A new farmers market opened earlier this month with a special purpose: to provide culturally relevant, locally sourced food for the African Diaspora and immigrant community, and to uplift BIPOC farms and food businesses. It takes place the second Saturday of each month from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m., June to November, at the Hope Academy in South Delridge.Continue readingSouth Delridge Farmers Market launches with special focus on BIPOC communities

Cat Links Local Food News

WA Meat Up Leadership Summit sizzles with new ideas for strengthening the local meat economy

Posted on kcdnrp

Are you a consumer who cares about where your meat comes from? Do you know what King County and other agencies and organizations are doing to promote locally produced meats?

The WA Meat Up Leadership Summit created an alliance for further enhancing a strong local meat economy. WA Meat Up is a diverse group of collaborators and entrepreneurs along every link of the niche meat supply chain who support strengthening the local meat economy in Washington State.

In late August, staff members from King County’s Agricultural Program, Washington State University (WSU), Washington State Department of Agriculture (WSDA), and Salumi Artisan Cured Meats worked together to create the WA Meat Up Leadership Summit to provide a space for producers, processors and policy makers to facilitate conversations and create a dialogue about the local meat economy in King County.Continue readingWA Meat Up Leadership Summit sizzles with new ideas for strengthening the local meat economy

Cat Links Local Food News

Eating local in Enumclaw: How one woman and her farming community created Enumclaw Plateau Farmers’ Market

Posted on kcdnrp

Enumclaw Plateau Farmers’ Market opened on June 6, 2019, providing plateau area residents with farm fresh, local products for the first time in over 20 years. The Local Food team spoke with Liz Clark, Enumclaw Plateau Farmers Market manager, about how the market was created and the successes and challenges her and her team of volunteers have experienced along the way.Continue readingEating local in Enumclaw: How one woman and her farming community created Enumclaw Plateau Farmers’ Market

Cat Links Local Food News

Making meat local: King County helps develop USDA meat processing in Carnation

Posted on kcdnrp

In recent years, consumer demand for local food, including local meat and poultry, has risen. One of the barriers for livestock producers interested in meeting this demand has been the lack of processing facilities in King County that can safely prepare these products.

“USDA processing allows producers to sell sausages, steaks, burger patties, and a wide variety of other small cuts that are in high demand in King County,” said Darron Marzolf, butcher at Marzolf Meats. “The USDA mobile meat processing unit provides this service close to home for local livestock operators.”Continue readingMaking meat local: King County helps develop USDA meat processing in Carnation