Help us out at Snallygaster!

Arcadia is looking for help at Snallygaster, an enormous celebration of craft beer! The event is on Saturday, October 13 from 1-5pm at The Yards Park (located at 3rd and Water St. SE) and feature the finest beer and food from the Neighborhood Restaurant Group. All the proceeds will benefit Arcadia.

We need your help! We're looking for volunteers to help out at the kid's tent and the admission tent. BONUS! All volunteers receive an awesome Snallygaster t-shirt. Plus, it will be Farmer Mo's last day with Arcadia, so help send her out!

If you are interested, email volunteer@arcadiafood.org and let us know:

• TIME you would like to volunteer (9-1, 1-6 or ALL DAY) and
  
• which station you are interested in (Tickets or Kids Area).
  

It's going to be awesome! Hope to see you there. Can't make it to the event, but want to support Arcadia? Head to our website for more information.

Strawberries & Salad Greens 2012

“Our students always look forward to this day! We had a great time. One first grader said that this was the best lunch he’d ever had!” – Teacher, Hearst Elementary School

Every child in D.C. Public Schools and in dozens of public charter schools across the city enjoyed fresh, locally-grown strawberries and salad greens in their school lunch on Wednesday May 23rd! Strawberries & Salad Greens Day was a huge success, reaching students in over 150 cafeterias with farm-fresh school meals, and coordinating food education stations in over 50 school lunchrooms. 

The D.C. Farm to School Network at Arcadia, in conjunction with the Office of the State Superintendent of Education, D.C. Public Schools, and Whole Foods Markets coordinated the event. Let me walk you through the event, with the help of some great pictures:

Farmers in the mid-Atlantic region grew berries and greens for D.C. schools. Produce for the event came from farms such as Spring Valley Farm in West Virginia, River View Farm in Pennsylvania, Barajas Farm in Virginia, and Kilmer’s Farm in West Virginia. Schools also worked with Sam Ullery, School Garden Specialist, to plant their own berries and greens in their school gardens as well!

D.C. Public Schools hosted a kick-off event at Maury Elementary School in Ward 6. Councilmembers Tommy Wells and Mary Cheh were among the many dignitaries who came to celebrate. Students at Maury made strawberry parfaits with Whole Foods Markets, tried colorful salads with Sweetgreen, tasted a home-made strawberry vinaigrette with Chartwells, and learn about root vegetables with Chef Indigo. See a slide-show of pictures from the great event here.

The D.C. Farm to School Network coordinated over 30 volunteers to help out with “Where Food Comes From” tables in school cafeterias. These educational displays included plants, seasonality charts, stickers, and more to remind students of the farm-to-table process. Thanks to Whole Foods, volunteers had awesome t-shirts and banners to hang! In total, over 50 schools in all 8 wards hosted “Where Food Comes From” tables in their cafeterias.

And of course, students enjoyed the fresh, locally-grown strawberries and salad in their school meals! Most D.C. Public Schools served theirs with all-muscle chicken, corn on the cob, a whole wheat roll – a great meal to mark the start of warm weather.  Many thanks to D.C. Public Schools and their foodservice vendors (Chartwells, Revolution Foods and DC Central Kitchen), as well as the charter schools and their participating vendors.  See a full list of participating schools and vendors on the Strawberries & Salad Greens website.  The produce was a hit –

“We encouraged students to try tasting the lettuce and most really enjoyed it. One student actually ran around telling others, “you HAVE to try this!”  – Volunteer, Ludlow-Taylor Elementary School

Photo credits: Kathy Brown, Sam Ullery, and D.C. Public Schools

Save the Date for Arcadia Farm Camp!

We're glad to announce the dates of Arcadia Farm Camp's pilot sessions! Over the past few weeks, we've been moving forward with planning a truly awesome summer camp program. We had help from some fantastic parents at our focus groups in January, and we'll use their feedback as we develop camp policies and procedures.

We're hosting two one-week sessions: July 16-20, 2012 and July 23-27, 2012. We're planning to open registration in late February or early March. For more details, head over to our website. If you still have questions, don't hesitate to email liz@arcadiafood.org for more information. You can also sign up for future summer camp updates here.

We're excited to welcome your child to Arcadia Farm Camp this summer.

What I learned at the Food Project's Winter Institute

I was lucky enough to spend two days last week at the Food Project's Winter Institute with a group of insightful, inspiring food activists from around the country. The Institute showcases the Food Project's work empowering teens to make change through sustainable agriculture.

Since Arcadia is a young organization, I'm grateful I had the opportunity to learn from folks who've been working for food justice for 20 years. I learned a whole lot, but here are some of the most memorable parts:

• Bridging divides has amazing transformative power. The Food Project brings youth of totally different backgrounds together to work on farms in both urban and rural areas. Arcadia's work connecting small farmers with city dwellers and young people to the source of their food has similar potential.
  
• From Eron at Collective Roots in East Palo Alto, CA to Ryan and Kayla at Farm Fresh Rhode Island, the Institute brought together a group of really down-to-earth folks working on similar issues. Although it seemed that we're all often overwhelmed with the injustice we see around us, we are each really passionate about working with young people to help create a more sustainable and fair food system.
  
• The Food Project teens are awesome! I was so impressed by their knowledge of the food system, their emotional intelligence and their communication skills. A solid portion of the 2.5 day institute was actually led by the teens themselves, including a stellar set of workshops about food systems.
  
• Fun is super important! At the Institute, we learned some of the great games that the Food Project staff uses with their youth teams and I can't wait to play some of them out at Arcadia Farm this year.
  

If you haven't already, make your way over to the Food Project's toolbox - it's chock full of (free!) useful materials for folks who are working on sustainable agriculture issues and youth empowerment.

Farm to Table Family Day

We're excited to be participating in the National Portrait Gallery's Kogod Courtyard for a Farm to Table Family Fun Day!  Join us on Sunday January 22nd from 11:30am to 3:00pm for some hands-on food & farming activities, give-aways, entertainment and more.  Find more details on the flyer here.

We'll be joined by some of the best D.C. area nonprofits, like our friends at City Blossoms, the Washington Youth Garden, and the Capital Area Food Bank.  We've got all sorts of fun, hands-on activities planned, like veggie stamping, produce matching, and "find the real food" challenges.  It's all free, so don't miss out!

Support our friends @ 'An Evening of Carnivory'

Looking to celebrate the New Year with meat? Our friend, Andrew, at Farmrun, is screening his new documentary, 'On the Anatomy of Thrift' at Big Bear Cafe on January 1. Movie to be followed by a delicious meal by Clementina Russo, (chef extraordinaire and supporter of Arcadia!!)

Check out the Big Bear website for more information and hope to meat you there.

Screening of 'American Meat' and panel discussion with Farmer Mo

What: The new documentary American Meat chronicles America’s grassroots revolution in sustainable meat production. The film, an official selection of Food Day 2011, explains our current industrial meat system, and shows the feedlots and confinement operations, not through hidden cameras but through the eyes of the farmers who live and work there. The film then shifts to the burgeoning sustainable, local-food movement made up farmers, food advocates, chefs and everyday folks who could change everything about the way meat reaches the American table.

Who: After the film, at 8:30 p.m., a panel discussion will be held with New York City filmmaker Graham Meriwether and Susan Prolman, executive director of the National Sustainable Agriculture Coalition (NSAC), and an advocate for sustainable agriculture for more than a decade; Phil Petrilli, Regional Manager, Chipotle Mexican Grill Restaurants, who helped set up the company’s purchase and distribution of grass-fed pork for its restaurants; Maureen Moodie, farm director of the Arcadia Center for Sustainable Food & Agriculture, Fairfax County, Va.

Where: E Street Theater, 555 11th St. NW, Washington, D.C. (E Street entrance between 10th and 11th Streets NW)

When: 7 p.m., Thurs., Dec. 1. 8:30 p.m. panel discussion.

Cost: Free seating and free coupons for burritos, sponsored by the Chipotle Company.

Why: Sustainable farming is expanding exponentially as Americans learn more and more about their food and how they can connect with local farmers who raise their animals outdoors. Here is a film that celebrates these farmers, and all farmers, in an unbiased way that allows all farmers and food advocates to sit down and discuss solutions to their common challenges. Perhaps most importantly, the film provokes a spirited but constructive conversation about one of the most important subjects in our lives -- our food.

For further information on community screenings, please visit AmericanMeatFilm.com.

One Amazing Evening - the Vices that Made Virginia

On Saturday November 5, a crowd of nearly 700 guests gathered on the grounds of the Historic Woodlawn estate in Alexandria, VA, home of Arcadia's two acre sustainable farm and educational hub.  The occasion?  The Vices That Made Virginia, our biggest fundraiser of the year to benefit Arcadia and Woodlawn, a National Historic Trust Site.  The monies raised on this unforgettable night will fund the continued growth of our farm, educational programming, and the launch of our Mobile Market.  We sincerely thank the guests and generous local sponsors who came to support us!

Woodlawn looked magical as the sun set over the crisp, fall evening, and spotlights lit up the estate and grounds.  Local chefs and artisans prepared a spread of the season's finest meats, cheeses, oysters, vegetables and other prepared dishes.  After the guests sampled the evening's finest foods and featured wines, whiskeys and beers, they could listen to the bluegrass music, take a snapshot the photo-booth, or watch a cigar-rolling demonstration.  The air was full of laughter, great tunes, and merriment.

Arcadia's Mobile Market made its debut at Vices.  The awesome, bright green school bus attracted guests who stopped by to pay a visit with the team and learn more about the program - even take a tour.  Fully stocked with fresh produce from local farms, it was a sight to see.  We can't wait to get it on the road!

Many thanks to all of the volunteers, staff, partners, sponsors and attendees who made the event a huge success.  Be sure to sign up for our mailing list to be the first to hear about upcoming events and other Arcadia news!
Photo credits: Samer Farha

D.C. Farm to School Week Recap!

The students at Cleveland Elementary with Chef Lauren say it loud and clear - third annual D.C. Farm to School Week was a huge success!  About 5,000 students engaged in farm-to-table activities and over 200 school cafeterias featured seasonal, local food. Farmers, chefs, food service staff, parents, teachers, and volunteers came together to connect students with where food comes from. October 3-7, 2011 was a week full of excitement, fun, and discovery!

The week began with a kick-off event, which also marked the start of National Farm to School Month in October. Four local chefs and their student assistants competed to make the tastiest seasonal salads for a panel of judges. Using only school garden produce and healthy ingredients from Whole Foods, chef Lauren Von Der Pool won the judges over with her tangy kale salad. White House Pastry Chef Bill Yosses, D.C. Councilmember Mary Cheh, State Superintendent of Education Hosanna Mahaley, and other V.I.P.’s and community members joined in the celebration at Thurgood Marshall Academy.

During the week, schools in all 8 wards of the District featured seasonal, local produce in their school meals. Just a few examples - Chartwells served roasted local butternut squash and local bok choi in a vegetable stir fry. D.C. Central Kitchen’s Fresh Start Catering cooked up roasted local broccoli and baked local sweet potato fries. Revolution Foods served fresh local pears and braised local collard greens with their BBQ chicken. My mouth is watering just thinking about it!

45 schools engaged approximately 5,000 children in hands-on food, farm and nutrition education during the week. 41 schools were visited by local chefs from around the area for interactive cooking demonstrations. For example, Thomas Marr from Pete’s New Haven Style Apizza made roasted squash and grilled apple salad with 5th graders at Janney Elementary. 19 schools were visited by local farmers, who taught students about what it’s like to work on a farm. Polly from the Acokeek Foundation even brought chickens in to visit Garfield Elementary students! 10 schools went on field trips to nearby farms. For example, Cleveland Elementary’s 3rd graders planted garlic, weeded the herbs, and made morning glory crowns at Common Good City Farm. A handful of other schools coordinated activities such as farmers’ market visits, film screenings with families of “What’s On Your Plate” for parents and families, and veggie taste tests. We even sent volunteers into school cafeterias dressed as giant carrots and peapods to encourage kids to eat their veggies.

The D.C. Farm to School Network at Arcadia and the Office of the State Superintendent of Education coordinated D.C. Farm to School Week, in conjunction with the Restaurant Association of Metropolitan Washington, Chipotle, Whole Foods, USDA Forest Service, Lululemon, the Capital Area Food Bank, school partners, farmers, chefs, school food service professionals and tons of dedicated volunteers. We send a HUGE thank you to all who were so critical at making D.C. Farm to School Week a success! We also thank our sponsors DC Hunger Solutions, Dan Schiff, and WGirls DC for their contributions.

This quote from a DCPS teacher sums up how the week's activities complemented her classroom instruction:

 "I really appreciate...the experience! It's so great when I am in the middle of a lesson and my scholars make a connection from their experience with D.C. Farm to School Week ('like when Chef Jerry did...' or 'when Farmer Mary Ellen did...') with a new lesson that I am teaching them. What a great feeling for a teacher; not only does it show that the students were well engaged in the previous lesson activity but it shows they are engaged in the new lesson when they make that connection... a priceless moment in teaching!"

D.C. Farm to School Week Kick-off Event!

Beets, carrots, kale and apples - those were the seasonal ingredients used by the four competing chefs to make salads at the D.C. Farm to School Week Kick-off Event on Monday October 4th!  Over 150 students, community members, local and national leaders joined us for a fun and delicious afternoon.  White House Executive Pastry Chef Bill Yosses emcee'd the chef demonstration, while Pat Dombroski, Administrator of the USDA Food & Nutrition Service Mid Atlantic Regional Office, State Superintendent of Education Hosana Mahaley and National Farm to School Network Director Anupama Joshi also spoke to the importance of healthy eating, supporting local farmers, and engaging students in the farm-to-table process.

The event took place at Thurgood Marshall Academy Public Charter High School, a high-performing law themed high school in Southeast Washington, DC.  Special guest, White House Executive Pastry Chef Bill Yosses, emcee'd the chef competition!  Once Chef Bill started the timer, chefs and their student assistants whipped up salads for the judges using school garden produce, a "pantry" of items from Whole Foods, and their special seasonal ingredients.

Chef Lauren Von Der Pool, the "Queen of Green" and her student assistant won over the judges' taste buds with their tangy kale dish.  Chef Kyle Bailey from Birch & Barley mixed up a kickin' beet salad (using beets from Arcadia Farms!); Chef Will Artley from the Evening Star Cafe put together a colorful carrot salad; and Chef Todd Wiss from Radius Pizza whipped up a great apple dish.  The event concluded with student-led tours of Thurgood Marshall Academy and neighboring Savoy Elementary's shared school garden.  

The kick-off event marked the start of D.C. Farm to School Week October 3-7, 2011 - a celebration of seasonal, local food in Washington, DC schools.  October is also National Farm to School Month!  Many thanks to all of the wonderful staff and volunteers who helped make the event a success, and to the D.C. Farm to School Network at Arcadia, the Office of the State Superintendent of Education and Whole Foods Markets for coordinating the kick-off.

Photos by Sarah Bernardi

D.C. Farm to School Week Kick-Off Event!

All are welcome to the third annual D.C. Farm to School Week kick-off celebration!  It will be an exciting event featuring four local chefs battling to create the tastiest seasonal salad for a panel of esteemed judges. Chefs will use D.C. school garden produce and a pantry of items furnished by Whole Foods to make “top-chef” style salads, engaging an audience of over 200 students and community leaders.  There should be enough for students and attendees to taste, as well!  Student-led tours of the school’s Great Garden of Anacostia will follow.

Chef Lauren hands out samples to students at last year's event -
she'll be back for the competition this year! 
Photo: Christiana Aretta Photography

The kick-off event will take place on Monday October 3, 2011 at 2 p.m. at the Thurgood Marshall Academy Public Charter High School and Savoy Elementary School shared gymnasium, located at 2427 Martin Luther King Jr. Avenue in Southeast Washington, DC.

The event will also commemorate and kick off nationwide celebrations for the first ever National Farm to School Month, designated by a House Resolution passed in November 2010. White House Executive Pastry Chef Bill Yosses will emcee the event and the list of other V.I.P. guests and speakers will be announced as the event nears.

View the kick-off event invitation here, and the press advisory here, with information about how to RSVP.  For more information about D.C. Farm to School Week, please visit www.dcfarmtoschoolweek.org. View pictures and quotes from D.C. Farm to School Week 2010 at www.storiography.com/50voices.

Let them eat cake (in the shape of a school bus)!

Last night, during my weekly volunteer shift at Brainfood, we learned about cake decorating. Since there were enough cakes for volunteers, too, I had a chance to design one of my very own. And what did mine look like? Well, a school bus, of course! It's true, I'm obsessed. And I'll be bringing it with me to tomorrow evening's happy hour at Lounge 201.

Come and laugh at my pitiful first attempt at working with fondant and enjoy a slice of the tasty-but-not-overly-large school bus cake. If you arrive on the later side, there will still be tasty, free appetizers featuring beef from White House Meats and a cash bar with seasonal cocktails, but I can't promise there will be any cake left....

So get there early (and bring a credit card to make a secure online donation).

a PSA from Arcadia fans at Georgetown

Excitement about what Arcadia is up to seems to be spreading!

A number of folks came up to me to ask for more information on the mobile market after I gave a little talk following a screening of The Economics of Happiness (part of the DC Environmental Film Festival) on Saturday evening. The little stash of school bus pins on the information table probably didn't hurt.

I went to the doctor yesterday -- I seem to have sprained my back (what am I, 83 years old??) -- and after he handed me a prescription for muscle relaxers the head of Internal Medicine walked out of the exam room with a school bus pin in his lapel and an assignment to get in touch with the local health outreach coordinator to see if we just might figure out some kind of partnership at a healthy eating event.

Then, just today, I heard back from a student at Georgetown University with the final product of her group's class project... check out their PSA that promotes healthier food options in DC Wards 7 and 8 through the mobile market.



Love it! Come on, folks, we've just about $7500 left to raise by April 22! Tell your friends! Tell your neighbors! Tell your PTA! Tell your church congregation! This is a community effort, with food for the people and by the people, and we need your help to get this bus on the road!

An Irresistible Fleet of Young Agrarians to Cycle Through DC

“The Greenhorns” Documentary Film Premieres in the Nation’s Capital

WASHINGTON DC (March 2011) - The Greenhorns, a national nonprofit organization led by a raucous posse of America’s next generation of sustainable farmers, will host a tour of urban farms and gardens in Washington, DC on Saturday, April 16. A broad spectrum of farmers, gardeners, cyclists, and citizen supporters from throughout the DC Metro area will be in attendance.

The Greenhorns DC Urban Farm Bike Tour is a grassroots-organized, multi-purpose event for networking and knowledge sharing among growers and eaters, both rural and urban. Over the course of the ride, participants will attend a series of workshops and skill-shares in farming, food, and activism. Activities begin at the Mamie D. Lee Community Garden, followed by the Washington Youth Garden and Common Good Community Farm. Session topics will include beekeeping, rain gardens, preparation of ‘seed bombs,’ and how to start a community garden. Up to 90 attendees will later gather at the Letelier Theater for the Washington DC premiere of “The Greenhorns” documentary film about America's young farmer movement. A courtyard reception will follow with local, farm-fresh food and live music by The Second String Band.

Greenhorns events for young and aspiring farmers are crucial in a nation where the average age of farmers is 57. The overall numbers of new entrants in agriculture is steadily declining while the general population of eaters continues to rise. Young, aspiring, and early career farmers need and deserve support as they boldly step forward to serve their country food. There is good reason to be hopeful for their success, particularly in the District, where Secretary of Agriculture Tom Vilsack recently called for 100,000 new farmers. USDA statistics show that while the nation’s farmers are indeed aging overall, the number of all farmers under 25 grew between 2002 and 2007. Events such as the Greenhorns DC Urban Farm Bike Tour demonstrate that the crises of aging and attrition in American agriculture are being met by a movement of tenacious newcomers. This is a party with purpose.

Event partners include the Arcadia Center for Sustainable Food & Agriculture, D.C. Guerilla Gardeners, City Blossoms, Common Good City Farm, the Washington Youth Garden, Neighborhood Farm Initiative, Beet Street Gardens, Mt. Rainier Bike Coop, and the Letelier Theater. Sponsors include the Neighborhood Restaurant Group, GLUT Food Coop, The Takoma Park Food Co-op, Metro Green Markets, Whole Foods, Flying Dog Brewery, and EcoFriendly Foods. The two local organizers are greenhorns Maureen Moody (farm director) and Ibti Vincent (mobile market manager) of the Arcadia Center for Sustainable Food & Agriculture.

WHO: The Greenhorns and YOU!

WHAT: Washington DC Urban Farm Bike Tour

WHEN: Saturday, April 16th, 2011
 (Bike tour/workshops from 1:00-6:00pm
; Film screening and reception from 6:30-9:00pm)

WHERE: Meet at Mamie D. Lee Community Garden, 100 Gallatin St., NE (Fort Totten)
Screening at the Letelier Theater, 3251 Prospect Street, NW, Upper Courtyard (Georgetown)

CONTACT:
Greenhorns: Patrick Kiley, Greenhorns Outreach Director, (517) 242-5684,
film@thegreenhorns.net
DC urban farm information: Maureen Moodie, Arcadia Center Farm Director,
maureen@arcadiafood.org
DC urban farm bike tour: Ibti Vincent, Arcadia Center Mobile Market Manager,
ibti@arcadiafood.org

ABOUT THE GREENHORNS: The Greenhorns is a farm-based, grassroots national nonprofit group founded in 2007, with the mission to recruit, promote and support America’s young farmers. Visit www.thegreenhorns.net for more information.

Let's reach 201 pledges at Lounge 201 this Thursday!

I just checked our Kickstarter page and thanks to Arcadia supporters, we've raised nearly half of the $15K goal so far. Woo hoo! Thanks to all who have contributed, whether through a direct financial contribution or by helping us spread the word about this exciting project -- keep up the great work!

For those who may have missed the kickoff event at Churchkey earlier this month, please come join the Arcadia team at Lounge 201....

WHAT: Happy hour to benefit DC’s first mobile farmers’ market

WHEN: Thursday, 31 March from 5-8pm

WHERE: Lounge 201 (201 Massachusetts Avenue, NE), near Union Station

ON TAP: Complimentary appetizers featuring local, sustainable beef from Arcadia’s friends at White House Meats. Special cocktails made with local spirits.

Come and learn about Arcadia’s Mobile Market, bring your friends, and don’t forget a credit card to make a secure online donation to our Kickstarter campaign on one of the on-site laptops. Lounge 201 has generously agreed to donate a percentage of sales to support the mobile market.

We need the community to pledge $15,000 on Kickstarter by April 22.
If this doesn't happen, we get none of the money raised on Kickstarter and it gets a lot harder for us to bring healthy, local food to folks who need it. (And nobody wants that to happen.)

Here's a link to the facebook event posting (if you're into that kind of thing).

Bus + Beer Bash: Help us get the Mobile Market on the road!

Looking for something to do on Mardi Gras? Come support Arcadia’s effort to bring fresh, local food all around the city via the District’s first mobile farmers’ market.

From 4-8pm on March 8, come by for complimentary small bites and a cash beer bar at Churchkey — one of DC’s newest hotspots, located at 1337 14th Street, NW, Washington, DC 20010.

While you’re there, learn about the exciting work going on at Arcadia, choose from hundreds of delicious craft beers, and make a donation to our online Kickstarter campaign to raise funds to get the mobile market on the road. Onsite laptops will be available.

Come celebrate with good food, beer, and people! You might just find yourself calling it Mardi Bus next year….

A FEW NOTES:

• Folks are welcome to check out/donate to our Kickstarter campaign, regardless of whether you are attending this event. The webpage will go live on March 7. (If you check before then for "Arcadia's Mobile Market," you won't see it.)
• A qualifying donation to Kickstarter ($25 or more) will earn a complimentary beer at the event. If you donate online before coming to the event at Churchkey, be sure to bring a printout of your donation receipt to secure a complimentary beer ticket.

Bring your friends. This is going to be AWESOME.

All that *and* a packet of seeds

I had my first brush with fame this morning at the farmers' market. I'm not going to lie: I kind of liked it.

As I wandered about the Dupont market picking up eggs and apples and chatting with farmers and Street Sense vendors, a few different groups of grinning young women approached me to say that they'd been at the demonstration I'd given at yesterday's Rooting DC forum. Some showed me greens that they'd picked up to ferment. They seemed really excited. (See? I'm not the only one who gets giddy when it comes to kim chi.) It got me thinking about the first Rooting DC event I attended exactly two years ago. It was one of my very first forays into the DC sustainable food scene, and I recall leaving at the end of the day with a heart filled with excitement and hope. (I was bummed to miss the Forum last year, but I was fighting my way through the Southwestern winter gales at the time.)

It is events like this one, put on by the Field to Fork Network, that really brings people together and gets them fired up to DO things. Garden. Cook. Compost. Build things. Fix things. Help each other. Share ideas. And load DC area food enthusiasts up with endless packets of free seeds.

This year I was proud to be among the presenters, thanks to an invitation from my friend Farmer Mo to help with a demonstration on food preservation. Here she is talking about the importance of a solid seal.



I was just tickled to see that the young woman who had first taught me to ferment foods was sitting in the audience. She was smiling, even, and didn't seem at all alarmed that I was making kim chi with swiss chard. And, happily, nobody gave me a hard time about the poetry. (Who knows, maybe they showed up to see what kind of loony writes sonnets about canning tomatoes. Me. I am that kind of loony, but I'm harmless enough.) Regardless, I would say the session -- and the Rooting DC Forum generally -- was a huge success.

For those who came to our session after I handed out the 50 copies of recipes for tomato sauce, peach preserves, and beet green kim chi -- I think there were about 15 or 20 of you -- you can find recipes here. It was great meeting you all, and please feel free to drop us a line and let us know if you try out any of our recipes. And, of course, if you EVER need tips or ideas related to fermenting foods, you know who to call. :)

"Food is not a problem, it's a solution."

It was one of a number of memorable quotes from this weekend's "Changing the Way We Eat" TEDx event. Actually, it was a line from a talk given by ECO City Farm's founder, Margaret Morgan-Hubbard. I must say that some of the brief talks given by folks from my own community at the satellite TEDx viewing party at the Letelier Theater were as good as the ones at the official event in Manhattan. And Margaret is right: by fixing our food system we can begin to address so many other social injustices, health problems, and, well, even unemployment rates. We need more healthy food. And we need more farmers to grow it. And more people choosing (and able) to eat it. And a government and communities to support it. Well, perhaps I'm putting some words in her mouth, but I think she'd agree.

Though there were a number of impressive ideas (and people) at the official New York City event, my favorite talk was actually given by a local farmer here in the DC area. Kristen, of Radix Farm (who I really hope will be a part of the supply chain for the mobile market I am developing), spoke eloquently about the need for each of us to pursue that which we most love and can thus help fix our food system, and our world more generally. Whether it's as a farmer, like the path she herself has chosen, or a school food reform advocate, or policy maker, or simply a loving parent or a more conscientious eater, the best thing each of us can do is to figure out what role best suits us and pursue it wholeheartedly. (Incidentally, Kristen also mentioned that she's looking for interns for the upcoming growing season, and I do know that our own Farmer Mo here at Arcadia continues to learn a great deal from her.) Her message rang true, and I've thought about it a great deal in the days since. We can all be a part of this change for the better.

At the end of my own little spiel on Arcadia at the DC screening event -- which, incidentally, was my first official opportunity to speak on behalf of Arcadia (aside from my excited yammering on about the educational farm during the Vices that made Virginia event last fall) -- a number of folks asked me about how they could get involved with the work we are doing. Well, there are lots of ways. Come help out on the farm: Farmer Mo will be welcoming volunteers on Saturdays and Mondays beginning in April. Come get your hands in the ground. Or donate stuff (money, tools, etc.) if that is more what you're looking to do: if so, drop a line to our director, Erin. And to plug my own project, the Mobile Market manager (yours truly) is on the lookout for both funds to get up and running and contacts with local schools and communities around the District to set up one-time as well as weekly stops beginning this June. (Stay tuned for information on the happy hour fundraising kickoff event for the mobile market coming up in a few weeks....)

THE VICES THAT MADE VIRGINIA

Saturday, November 6, 4:00 - 7:00 PM
Woodlawn, 9000 Richmond Highway, Alexandria

Celebrating a groundbreaking new partnership between Arcadia Center for Sustainable Food and Agriculture and the National Trust for Historic Preservation.

FOR TICKETS: http://vicesofvirginia.ticketleap.com/vicesofvirginia/

Join us for a sumptuous, rollicking afternoon of Oysters, Cigars, Bourbon and Bluegrass at Woodlawn, a National Historic Trust Site. Once renowned as the home of Virginia's finest federal era soirees, Woodlawn will recapture its glorious past with the help of the very vices that first made the state great. Come enjoy bluegrass music and feast on a sublime repast created by the chefs of Neighborhood Restaurant Group.

You'll feast on a Virginia pig roast compliments of Chef Nathan Anda of Red Apron Butchery, an array of locally procured oysters prepared numerous ways, traditional takes on classic Virginia recipes along with sublime autumnal dishes prepared by Tony Chittum of Vermilion, Will Artley of Evening Star Cafe, Steve Mannino of Rustico, Barry Koslow of Tallula, Kyle Bailey of Birch & Barley, Andrew Buzolich of Star Catering and Tiffany MacIsaac of Buzz Bakery.

The day will also feature tastings from A. Smith Bowman Collection of small-batch bourbons featuring Master Distiller Joe Dangler, cigars and a cigar rolling exhibition courtesy of Roberto Hand-Rolled Cigars of Yorktown along with a wide range of Virginia grown wines and regional craft beers.

A live auction, tours of the mansion and gardens and live Bluegrass music will also be featured.

All proceeds benefit Arcadia Center for Sustainable Food and Woodlawn, a National Trust Historic Site.

Happy Hour at Churchkey this Thursday, Oct 14 at 6pm

Been wondering what this "Arcadia" place is really all about? Or how you can get involved? Or do you just like delicious beer and food?

If you said yes to any of the above, have we got the event for you! We are holding an informational happy hour for Arcadia at Churchkey in DC on Thursday, Oct 14th at 6pm (that's tomorrow!)

We will have complimentary beer tastings and little bites, and you can learn more about Arcadia, our goals and mission, how to get involved, and meet the badass team putting together this amazing project (*ahem...*).

Here are the details, in short:

Arcadia Happy Hour

Churchkey bar (1337 14th St NW, DC)

6-8pm

Complimentary beer tastings and small bites

We'll see you there!

x Team Arcadia