globalbriefs
Self-Suffi ciency America’s Best Community Garden Cities
We don’t have to live in a rural area or even the suburbs to be a farmer these days. According to the Trust for Public Land, the 10 best cities for homegrown veggies from urban gardens are Seattle, Washington (a P-Patch program provides 68 gardens for residents throughout the city); Portland, Oregon (its Produce for People program donates
fresh produce to local hunger agencies); Long Beach, California (growing anything from sugar cane and lemongrass to sunfl owers and tomatoes); St. Paul, Minnesota (17 community gardens—half run by nonprofi ts and half open to rent); Honolulu, Hawaii (1,254 plots for public use); San Jose, California (19 community gardens on 35 acres); Baltimore, Maryland (community gardens cover 11 acres throughout the city); Washington, D.C. (a Master Peace Farm program tends area gardens and mentors budding veggie growers at an adjoining middle school); Anchorage, Alaska (a city goal is enabling residents to work together in harmony); and Louisville, Kentucky (Brightside’s community garden program, established 19 years ago, currently manages 10 of Louisville’s 16 gardens). These gardens not only extol the virtues of fresh, local and often organic foods, they also bring communities together. Some produce food for those in need, others have youth programs and some have even been credited with reducing local crime rates. Many community gardens accept new members in the fall; visit
acga.LocalHarvest.org to fi nd one nearby and reserve a space.
Source:
TheDailyGreen.com
Farm Relief FDA Wakens to Local Needs
Small farms, farmers’ markets, local food processors and community food banks have been given a reprieve, because on December 19, the U.S.
Food and Drug Administration (FDA) decided to take a second look at proposed new laws that would have put many of them out of business. The new rules, proposed under the Food Safety and Modernization Act (FSMA), came under fi re from consumers, farmers and others with voices that were heard. The FDA said its “thinking has evolved,”
and “…signifi cant changes will be needed in key provisions of the two proposed rules affecting small and large farmers. These provisions include water quality standards and testing, standards for using raw manure and compost, certain provisions affecting mixed-use facilities and procedures for withdrawing the qualifi ed exemption for certain farms.”
Source:
TheDailyGreen.com
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Central Florida natural awakenings
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