King County Department of Natural Resources and Parks Blog
“I want to see small gardens all over the city,” says Victoria Plumage, coordinator at Sovereignty Farm. The farm launched this year with the goals of providing a space for Native American residents of King County to grow culturally significant foods and employing several members of the Chief Seattle Club as apprentices.Continue readingSovereignty Farm’s Victoria Plumage reflects on the project’s first year
As many farmers markets across King County wind down until next summer, the Local Food Initiative team wanted to share another way you can source fresh, local produce, and even have it delivered to your doorstep. We spoke with Chris Teeny, co-owner of Pacific Coast Harvest (PCH) and Farmstand Local Foods, about what these brands are doing to make it easy for individuals – and for larger customers such as restaurants – to support local growers.Continue readingPacific Coast Harvest and Farmstand Local Foods: Sending out and scaling up local food
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
Have you ever wondered how food banks access local farm fresh produce in King County?
Harvest Against Hunger, formerly Rotary First Harvest, works with farmers, truckers, volunteers and others to bring valuable skills and resources into hunger relief efforts in communities across Washington state and beyond. The Harvest Against Hunger (HAH) Farmers Share Program helps increase access to healthy fresh foods in high need populations by developing direct purchasing agreements between farmers and food banks. This new program is funded through the Regional Food System Grant from the King Conservation District.
The Local Food Team spoke with David Bobanick, HAH Executive Director, and Gayle Lautenschlager, HAH Farmer’s Share Americorps VISTA, about the Farmer’s Share program and how they are cultivating relationships with and between farmers and food banks.Continue readingFarmer’s Share Program provides hunger relief and agricultural development opportunities in King County