Real People Eat Local

 

Only one block from a typical urban strip in downtown Silver Spring, MD, that includes an old parking garage, a beauty parlor and an Ethiopian restaurant, Charlie Koiner, who'll be 88 in November, still has a farm. It's hard to believe, but turning east onto Easley Street off Fenton, in the course of one block, you shift from urban grime to fertile rural splendor, from the cramped seat of your hot car to a comfy lawn chair under a mature shade tree, from the usual "rodent issue" to a farm cat named Hank.

Like the proverbial turtle, slow and steady, Charlie Koiner seems to have won the race, as his lifetime of farming and gardening has propelled him from "regular guy" to local pace-setter, an icon of the "new" urban agriculture. You first realize you're at his place when, right there on the corner, you get a glimpse of his current offerings on a handmade sign - for example, "figs," "raspberries" and "tomatoes" right now in September. Then you see the whole thing: his acre....

 

For the rest of this article by Kristi Bahrenburg Janzen, which is posted on Kristi and Renee's website www.realpeopleeatlocal.com, click here.

 

Blue Mountain Farm CSA in Hedgesville, West Virginia, which has been a regular vendor at the Frederick and Hagerstown farmers markets, is opening a CSA to run from the first week of October to the last week of December. The CSA will have a drop point in Frederick and is looking for a minimum of 20 subscribers, but can accommodate more. Farmer Dave Elliott anticipates the shares will include a rotation of cool season greens including lettuces, spinach, kale, oriental mustard greens, sorrel, chives, arugula and collard greens. The contact person for subscriptions is Anne Garnett. She can be reached at 240-285-6517 or by email at a1garnett@earthlink.net.
 

Solomon, an 11-year old from Maryland, whose mother is a cookbook author and founder of a "seasonal online weekly menu planner" entitled The Six O'Clock Scramble (at www.thescramble.com), has been involved in helping improve food in public schools. Solomon has these comments on local food:

"I found that just because it's not shipped as far, and it's fresher, it tastes better. And it's better for the environment.

"I really like local fruit a lot. We actually get most of our fruit from the farmers market around here, where it's locally grown fruit. We'll buy lots of fruits and vegetables. I like plums, strawberries when they're in season, peaches, nectarines. We just got some really good cantaloupes. My family has also started buying meat only from local farms too.

"The main reason I'm concerned with this is because my mom is really into food, and locally grown food. It wouldn't necessarily be a factor if it wasn't for her. But I do like it better."

 

Folks on the local food scene in Baltimore have long known that Gaylord Clark is the go-to guy for fish and seafood, either local or sustainable. He's recently been branching out to other areas through buying clubs, including one in our town of University Park. Now, he and his wife Lee Ann are bringing their seafood as well as their farm products -- chicken, turkeys and eggs-to the Greenbelt, MD, Farmers Market, which takes place on Sundays from 10-2 in the town center. They have also changed the name of their company from Two Oceans Seafood to Two Oceans True Foods to bring their seafood and farm products all under the same umbrella. You can get their product and price list by emailing sales@tosfish.com.
 

 

It didn't take today's cool temperatures to put Thanksgiving on Renee's mind. She's been working on a story about heritage turkeys for the fall issue of Edible Chesapeake, and anticipating a tasty centerpiece her own Thanksgiving table.Start making inquiries now, if you want to reserve a local free-range turkey for the holidays. Look for the fall issue of Edible Chesapeake during the first week of October for information that can help you decide if a true heritage turkey would be right for your family.
 
Renee will also be celebrating Thanksgiving on the air -- the cable airwaves, that is -- as one of the local guests on "Emeril Green," celebrity chef Emeril Lagasse's new show on the Planet Green network. Thanks to our friends out at Clagett Farm in Upper Marlboro, Maryland, whose produce will be featured in the Thanksgiving side dishes, Renee will be cooking with Emeril and talking about our unique local food community. The show, sponsored by Whole Foods Market, has been shot on location at the store in Fairfax, Virginia (Fair Lakes) since it began. We'll let you know when the Thanksgiving episode is scheduled to air.
 

The brand new Whole Foods Market in Richmond, which opened in Short Pump last week, aims to support local farmers not only by selling their products. On September 17, the store will also launch its weekly farmers market, to be held every Wednesday through the end of October.

 

Edible Chesapeake is already available in the store, and Renee, the magazine's publisher and editor, will be on hand for the farmers market launch to meet and talk with shoppers about local foods in the Richmond area. Stop by and say "hi" anytime between 4 and 7 p.m. next Wednesday! Click here to read about Whole Foods' commitment to local farms.

 

The Virginia Organic Producers' and Consumers' Association (VOPCA) will hold its first annual "Farm & Food Expo" on Nov. 2 in Winchester, VA. Potential exhibitors still have time to sign up for the event, which will be free and open to the public. (The exhibitor fee is only $10.) The open-house style event will bring together local farmers, foodies, gardeners, vendors and distributors in an effort to help share information among "every link of the local food chain." The Expo will include live music, a grass-fed BBQ, Virginia Brewing Company beer, cooking demonstrations, kids' activities and more.

 

The Farm & Food Expo -- presented in partnership with the Virginia Brewing Company, the Virginia Cooperative Extension, the Virginia Department of Agriculture, and the Local Food Project at Airlie -- will be held on Sunday, Nov. 2, from 1 to 7 p.m. at the Virginia Brewing Company's ZeroPak Warehouse on 580 N. Cameron Street, Winchester, VA. For more information, whether you're a potential attendee or exhibitor, contact Lea Vittitow at info@vopca.org or 540-675-3947. To learn more about VOPCA, go to www.vopca.org.