Month: February 2022

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Sitka Kitch to offer three classes for National Nutrition Month in March

JessicaFalafelSaladLettuce

March is National Nutrition Month, and the Sitka Kitch is offering three classes to help celebrate the month and healthy eating habits. These classes will be offered virtually using Zoom.

Jessica Holland, a registered dietitian nutritionist and certified diabetes educator specialist from the SouthEast Alaska Regional Health Consortium (SEARHC) in Sitka will teach the first and last of the three classes. Audra Henderson will teach the middle class. She is a functional nutritional therapy practitioner, a certified personal trainer, and a nutrition educator who works with the University of Alaska Fairbanks Cooperative Extension Service in Juneau.

Both teachers have private practices, and you can learn more about Jessica at https://www.realnutritionrd.com/ and more about Audra at https://www.audrawellness.com/.

The three classes and their basic details are as follows:

  • Class No. 1 — Falafel Salad, 5:30-7 p.m., Friday, March 11, taught by Jessica Holland, $40. Learn how to make deep-fried or pan-seared falafel balls with ground chickpeas, herbs, spices, and onions, then add them to a salad. Ingredients provided (pick up from 4-6 p.m. on Thursday, March 10, at the SEARHC Health Promotion table at the regional basketball tournament at Mount Edgecumbe High School). Registration deadline 11:30 p.m. on Tuesday, March 8, class limited to eight students. Eligible for Sitka Food Co-op discount (see details below).
  • Class No. 2 — Celebrate Making A Change, 5-6 p.m., Sunday, March 20, taught by Audra Henderson, Free. Want to make a healthy change? This is your first step! In this class we will focus on eating a nutrient dense, properly prepared diet, safe and fun ways to move our body, and healthy habit formation. Registration deadline 11:30 p.m. on Thursday, March 17, class limited to 20 students. Even though the class is free, please register online so we can send you the Zoom link.
  • Class No. 3 — Alaska Bounty Salad, 5:30-7 p.m. on Friday, March 25, taught by Jessica Holland, $40. Learn how to celebrate your Alaska harvest by making a salad with halibut (or salmon) and veggies you can grow or harvest locally. Ingredients provided (pick up from 4-6 p.m. on Thursday, March 24, at Beak Restaurant). Registration deadline 11:30 p.m. on Tuesday, March 22. Class limited to eight students. Eligible for Sitka Food Co-op discount (see details below).

The class cost is $40 for both of Jessica’s classes (Audra’s class is free). There is limit on the class size, and ingredients for Jessica’s classes will be provided at the location mentioned in the bulleted list. A link to the Zoom event also will be sent at the end of the registration period. Please connect online at least 10 minutes before the class starts.

Current (paid) members of the Sitka Food Co-op are now able to attend Jessica’s online classes for $30 each (the co-op will cover the other $10 of your class fee). Please use the Sitka Food Co-op ticket when you register and send an email to sitkafoodcoop@gmail.com letting them know you’re in the class. (NOTE, Only one person per Co-op household may use the Co-op discount per class. Please name that person when you register so the name can be checked against the Co-op membership list.)

The registration deadline is 11:30 p.m. two days before each class. Space is limited, so register early to secure your place in the class. Even though Audra’s class is free, please register online so we can send you the Zoom link. You can register and pre-pay using credit/debit cards or PayPal on the Sitka Kitch EventSmart online registration page, http://sitkakitch.eventsmart.com (click on class title). For those wanting to pre-pay with cash or check, please call Chandler O’Connell or Kylee Jones at Sitka Conservation Society (747-7509) to arrange a payment.

For more information about the class, contact Jasmine Shaw at 747-9440. We occasionally offer one scholarship spot per class for people with limited incomes, provided we have enough students registered to make the class happen. Contact Chandler or Kylee at SCS for more details about the scholarship.

The Sitka Kitch is supported in partnership by Sitka Conservation Society with UAF Cooperative Extension Service. These classes are fundraisers for the Sitka Kitch community rental commercial kitchen.

The Sitka Kitch also has a new class cancelation policy. If you register for a class, then find out you can’t attend, please email us at sitkakitch@sitkawild.org and we may be able to help fill your slot through our waiting list. If you cancel from the class at least five days in advance (eg, by Wednesday the week before for a Monday class), you are eligible for a partial refund of your class fee, minus $5 for processing (in this case, $35 or $25, depending on if you are paying full price or getting the Sitka Food Co-op discount). If you need to cancel with fewer than five days advance notice, there is no refund.

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Southeast Alaska Master Gardeners Association to host Weedy Wednesdays in March

The Southeast Alaska Master Gardeners Association will host a series of Zoom classes on gardening in Southeast Alaska starting in March.

The Weedy Wednesdays classes will be taught online from noon to 1 p.m., and will be archived for people who missed them. A brief presentation will be given, followed by a panel of Master Gardeners available to answer questions related to the presentation or general gardening.

The class dates and their topics are:

  • March 16 — Spuds 101
  • March 23 — Seed Starting
  • March 30 — Prepping a New Garden
  • April 6 — Transplanting

Please submit questions ahead of time to info@seak-mastergardeners.org. Please make any accommodation requests related to a disability seven business days in advance. To register, please visit https://bit.ly/3LV4ioE.

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Thanks to all who participated in the Sitka community food asset-mapping workshop

The Sitka Local Foods Network wants to thank everybody who participated in the Sitka community food system asset-mapping workshop held Saturday afternoon (Feb. 19).

Thanks to Lisa Trocchia for facilitating the workshop, as well as the other local/regional asset-mapping sessions taking place this winter across Alaska. This is part of an 18-month USDA Regional Food System Partnership planning grant coordinated by the Alaska Food Policy Council. The next step will be part of an implementation grant to take the results of all of of the local/regional asset-mapping sessions and use them to build a 10-year state food security plan.

In Sitka, we hope to use some of the information and connections gathered in today’s workshop to improve our local food security. We also hope to use the information to possibly update the 2014 Sitka Community Food Assessment Indicators Report, which gave us a lot of baseline planning data that now is nearly a decade old.

For those who weren’t able to attend, please watch for a survey link that will be posted in the next few weeks to gather more information. Also, the recorded Zoom meeting and the asset-mapping Google document are linked in the Documents section of this website, under food security.

If you are interested in helping improve Sitka’s food security, contact Sitka Local Foods Network board president Charles Bingham at sitkalocalfoodsnetwork@gmail.com or 907-623-7660. The next SLFN board meeting is at 6 p.m. on Wednesday, March 30, by Zoom, and these meetings are open to the public.

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Division of Agriculture offers micro-grants to improve food security in Alaska

PALMER, Alaska – As part of a continuing effort to improve food security for Alaskans, the Alaska Division of Agriculture is offering $2 million in micro-grants to individuals and organizations who want to grow and preserve their own food.

The grants are being offered through the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Micro-Grants for Food Security Program (MGFSP). This is the second year the grants have been offered in Alaska. In 2021, the Division of Agriculture received more than 1,000 proposals for funding and awarded more than $1.6 million to 234 grantees (Including several in Sitka). 

“The last two years have taught Alaskans the importance of increasing local production of food and storage capabilities,” Alaska Division of Agriculture Director David W. Schade said, referring to supply chain issues related to the COVID-19 pandemic. “We are fortunate to offer another opportunity to apply for the micro-grants in 2022. We have worked with USDA to simplify the process and expand the opportunity for more Alaskans to receive funding.” 

The grant application period opened on Monday, Feb. 14, and closes at 5 p.m. on Wednesday, March 30. 

Individuals can apply for up to $5,000 and qualifying organizations can apply for up to $10,000. The grants are for one year and can be for anything from building a greenhouse to growing a garden to buying a freezer to fencing in livestock. Preference is given to individuals and groups in Alaska’s most vulnerable areas in terms of food security. 

“We will prioritize funding of grants for projects that affect our most food-insecure areas and increase local food production and storage.” Schade said. 

The Micro-Grants for Food Security program is part of the 2018 Farm Bill that created a special program for Alaska, Hawaii and the U.S. Territories for improvements to food security. The program helps individuals and organizations increase the quantity and quality of locally grown food in food insecure communities through small-scale, agricultural-related projects. Qualifying projects may include small-scale gardening, small-scale herding and livestock operations, and/or expanding access to food, safe food storage, and knowledge of food security. 

The program has undergone several changes, which will increase the opportunities for more Alaskans to participate and reduce the challenges of the reimbursement process and reporting for those receiving grants. 

“I am pleased that the USDA Agriculture Marketing Service has approved Alaska’s new streamlined, simple process for grant projects, as many grant programs are difficult for many of our rural residents to use,” Gov. Mike Dunleavy said. “Food security is a high priority of my administration and support of this program continues my administration’s efforts to move Alaska toward greater food independence”. 

More detailed information on the micro-grants can be accessed at the Division of Agriculture website. For questions not addressed on the website refer to the Alaska Grown Facebook LIve events. You may also submit questions with Micro-grants 2022 in the subject line to dnr.ag.grants@Alaska.gov. 

Applications must be submitted electronically via the Division of Agriculture SmartSimple application portal. Instructional videos for how to submit the application can be found at Alaska Grown – YouTube. 

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Southeast Alaska Farmers Summit to host virtual farm tours on Feb. 26

The 2022 Southeast Alaska Farmers Summit may have been postponed until 2023, due to Covid-19, but there’s still a way for Southeast growers to connect this month. The Southeast Alaska Farmers Summit will host virtual farm tours from 9 a.m. to just past noon on Saturday, Feb,. 26, via Zoom. This will be a relaxed and informal event.

“Whether you are a farmer, gardener, agricultural industry professional, or local food enthusiast, this event is for you,” event organizers Bo Varsano and Marja Smets of Farragut Farm near Petersburg wrote in an email. “Everyone is welcome to ‘Zoom in’ on a snapshot of what agriculture looks like in Southeast Alaska today. Three regional farmers — Ivy Patch Produce in Wrangell, Foundroot in Haines and St. Peter’s Fellowship Farm in Sitka — will be sharing photos and stories of their farming operations, with plenty of time allotted for questions from the audience.”

After a welcome and introduction from 9-9:30 a.m., Katherine Ivy of Ivy Patch Produce in Wrangell will give a talk and show photos of her operation from 9:30-10:15 a.m. Leah Wagner and Nick Schlosstein of Foundroot in Haines will present from 10:15-11 a.m. After a short break from 11-11:10 a.m., Laura Schmidt of St. Peter’s Fellowship Farm (operated by the Sitka Local Foods Network) will speak from 11:10-11:55 a.m. There will be closing remarks at noon.

“The 2022 Southeast Alaska Farmers Summit has been postponed until February 2023,” Bo and Marja wrote. “If you were planning on attending that event, this is a great opportunity to touch base and make connections in the meantime.”

To register and get the Zoom link, click this link. To learn more about the Southeast Alaska Farmers Summit, click this link.

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White E awards Sitka Local Foods Network 2022 grant to match SNAP/WIC produce sales

Sitka White Elephant Shop volunteers Carole Knuth, left, and Sue Fleming, right, present Sitka Local Foods Network board president Charles Bingham with a grant check to match SNAP/WIC produce sales at the Sitka Farmers Market this summer.

The Sitka White Elephant Shop (aka, the White E thrift shop) awarded the Sitka Local Foods Network with a $1,000 grant during its 2022 grant cycle. In 2018, the White E awarded the Sitka Local Foods Network $1,000. The amount was increased to $1,500 in 2019 and 2020, and we didn’t apply for a grant in 2021 because of the pandemic.

The grant will be used to provide matching funds for SNAP and WIC beneficiaries who purchase produce at the Sitka Farmers Market and other events where the SLFN sells produce. The Sitka Local Foods Network began providing SNAP matching dollars for the first $20 of produce purchases at the markets several years ago when there was a state grant, but in 2017 those state grant funds ran out and we used our Sitka Local Foods Network general fund to match the produce purchases.

The White E grants, starting in 2018, have helped us continue the matching program. We also started matching the $5 WIC farmers market produce coupons in 2017, using our general fund (in 2019, we were the only farmers market in the state authorized to match WIC coupons). If the senior farmers market coupons are finally distributed in Southeast Alaska in 2022, our intention is to match those as well.

We grow most of the produce sold at the Sitka Farmers Market locally at St. Peter’s Fellowship Farm communal garden, and our satellite gardens around town. St. Peter’s Fellowship holds a Certified Naturally Grown designation, which means we follow healthy and sustainable practices while growing our produce, including limited use of chemical fertilizers. The Sitka Farmers Market also is on the Certified Naturally Grown’s Guide To Exceptional Markets.

“Our mission is to increase the amount of locally produced and harvested food in the diets of Southeast Alaskans, but buying local produce can be difficult for people on food assistance programs,” Sitka Local Foods Network board president Charles Bingham said. “Local produce can be fresher and tastier than barged-in produce from the Lower 48, and it doesn’t lose its nutritional value during transit. Our matching funds help get more healthy local produce into the diets of lower-income residents of Sitka. A lot of people don’t realize how much income inequality there is in Sitka, and according to the Sitka Community Food Assessment Indicators Report released in 2014, there were 1,410 people and 766 families receiving SNAP benefits in Sitka during 2013. That’s about one out of six Sitka residents who need extra access to this healthy local produce.”

The White E made several grants during the 2022 grant cycle, but a complete list wasn’t available. The Sitka Local Foods Network thanks the White E for its support. The White E noted that the amount of money it’s been able to donate to local nonprofits has decreased in recent years, starting even before the pandemic hit and closed the store for several months. The White E is encouraging people to donate quality used clothes, toys, and other items to sell so it can raise the amount of contributions it makes to local nonprofits again next year.

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Gov. Mike Dunleavy establishes Alaska Food Security and Independence Task Force

The first of four pages of Administrative Order 331, which creates the task force.

Today (Feb. 9, 2022), Gov. Mike Dunleavy issued Administrative Order 331  (downloads the full four-page document as PDF) establishing the Alaska Food Security and Independence Task Force.

Alaska currently imports 95 percent of its food supplies at a cost of $2 billion per year. The global pandemic triggered supply chain disruptions on the West Coast of the United States that continue to impact the regular delivery of food and other essential goods to Alaska. The 18-member task force will be responsible for recommendations on how to increase all types of food production and harvesting in Alaska, and to identify any statutory or regulatory barriers preventing our state from achieving greater food security.   

“Over the past two years Alaskans have walked into grocery stores and been greeted by row after row of empty shelves,” Gov. Dunleavy said. “One of the lessons the pandemic taught us is how vulnerable Alaska could be if the regularly scheduled shipments of food shipped up from Seattle were to suddenly stop – even a few days. The good news is Alaska has tremendous potential to grow, harvest and catch more nutritious food for in-state consumption. The recommendations from the task force will draw a roadmap for my administration, legislators and Alaska’s food producers to make Alaska more food secure the next time the supply chain is disrupted.”

The task force will have 10 main duties and responsibilities:

  • Provide recommendations that increase the procurement and use of Alaska-sourced foods within state and local agencies, institutions, and schools, including any administrative and statutory changes that are required.
  • Identify barriers that farmers, stock growers, fishermen, mariculture professionals, and others engaged in the growing, harvesting, or raising of food, face when starting a business or getting their products in to the Alaska market. Provide recommendations on how the state can address those obstacles, including through administrative or statutory changes.
  • Assess the levels of wild game and fish harvests in Alaska. Suggest measures that would increase the abundance and harvest of wild game, fish, and food by Alaskans.
  • Recommend a program to assist communities and households impacted by fishery shortfalls and disasters.
  • Identify factors, including regulatory or statutory burdens, that might discourage or prevent locally harvested and produced food from being purchased by federal, state, and local agencies, institutions, and schools.
  • Identify research needed to support and encourage increased consumption and production of Alaska-sourced food within the state.
  • Engage with the public to seek additional input on ways to promote the above listed goals.
  • Assess the need for disaster food caches within the state; and how the caches can be developed utilizing Alaskan-sourced foods.
  • Provide a report and summary of findings and recommendations, including what administrative and statutory changes would be needed to accomplish the recommendations of the task force.
  • The chair of the task force shall report regularly to the office of the governor on activities conducted and issues that arise under this order.

The task force will be made up of 16 voting members. Twelve Alaskans representing a cross section of the state’s farming, mariculture and seafood industries and four state commissioners (Natural Resources, Fish and Game, Environmental Conservation, Military and Veterans Affairs) or their designees will serve on the board. Two ex-officio members from the Alaska House of Representatives and the Alaska State Senate are to be appointed by the Senate President and the Speaker of the House.

The administrative order requests, but does not require, the two legislators be current members of the Alaska Grown Legislative Caucus.

The Task Force will issue a report on its findings and recommendations on or before September 1, 2022.

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UAF Cooperative Extension Service to host a hybrid Alaska Master Gardener class for Southeast Alaska communities

The University of Alaska Fairbanks Cooperative Extension Service this spring will offer a “hybrid” Alaska Master Gardener course to every community in Southeast Alaska.

This class will be taught by Southeast Alaska’s Cooperative Extension agriculture and horticulture agent, Darren Snyder (based in Juneau), along with other state and local experts. They will provide in-depth training for experienced Alaska gardeners on a wide range of topics on how to design, plant and maintain successful gardens in Southeast Alaska’s cool, wet, northwest coastal conditions.

The class takes place from 6-8:30 p.m. on Monday evenings, Feb. 21 to May 9. In addition, there will be two Saturday classes (dates TBD).

In addition to participating in the course, Master Gardener trainees agree, and will be provided opportunities, to share your skills with the community through various service projects and other means.

What makes this class a hybrid? This course will be delivered by engaging and accessible means in a combination of: synchronous (live) and asynchronous (watch recording) videoconferenced sessions, self-paced readings and resources accessed through shared drives, online interaction through blogs and other electronic formats, plus face-to-face, in-person, workshops and activities.*

Why the * asterisk * regarding face-to-face? 

We are forming community hubs with Master Gardener Liaison point people in communities to be our “eyes on the ground” to help to organize, host, arrange and generally make good gardening happen in your community in Southeast Alaska. In order to have guaranteed face to face opportunities, a Master Gardener Liaison will need to be established in your community. Are you that person? If not, do you know who it can be? Please let Darren know.

The registration fee is $300, which includes a deposit of $150 to be refunded — plus an additional $50 refund from the Southeast Master Gardener Association — when 40 hours of volunteer service are completed within a year. (Note, contact Charles Bingham of the Sitka Local Foods Network, 623-7660, if you’re interested in teaching free gardening classes in Sitka as part of your volunteer service.) A fee reduction/waiver available, as needed, by contacting darren.snyder@alaska.edu. The service goal is to share your gardening skills and knowledge through educational community projects. The fee includes an electronic version of the Alaska Master Gardener manual. Registration and more information available at https://bit.ly/3gsKAly.

Please make any accommodation requests related to a disability seven business days in advance. For this or any further questions, contact Darren Snyder at darren.snyder@alaska.edu.

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Sitka Public Library launches new Sitka Seed Library

Photo from Sitka Public Library page on Facebook

The Sitka Seed Library, located at Sitka Public Library, is now open to the public.

Photo by Robert Woolsey of KCAW-Raven Radio

You can check out all kinds of seeds to bring home and grow in your own garden. The Sitka Seed Library also accepts donations of saved or purchased seed to share with the community. No library card is required. Just come to the library, fill out a registration form, and start growing.

“The original idea came after speaking to a friend who thought we needed a seed library in Sitka,” Sitka Public Library Adult Services Librarian Margot O’Connell wrote in an email. “After doing some research, I found it would be an easy project to start and would accomplish a lot of our programming goals.”

The Sitka Seed Library is a community seed project dedicated to feeding our community, sharing knowledge, and building resiliency. We offer free seeds to all participants and encourage donations of both purchased and saved seeds. All are welcome to participate. Members are encouraged to learn basic gardening and seed saving techniques, and to help us grow the project into the future.

“Folks are encouraged to return seeds, but it isn’t required because I want it to be as accessible as possible,” O’Connell wrote. “I have a feeling that the folks who donate will make up for those who don’t.”

Several public libraries have started seed libraries in recent months, following the model of the Growing Ester’s Biodiversity program at the John Trigg Ester Library in Ester, located just outside Fairbanks and one of the oldest public-library-based seed libraries in Alaska. Other seed libraries are in Dillingham, Homer, Soldotna, and other communities. In 2018, the Alaska Legislature passed a bill that removed several barriers to sharing seeds in the state.

On Tuesday, Feb. 8, 2022, O’Connell was a guest on the Morning Interview show on KCAW-Raven Radio, where she gave more details about Sitka’s new seed library.

For more information, please call Margot O’Connell at 747-4020 or email margot.oconnell@cityofsitka.org.

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Sitka Kitch to host Cooking With Culture class on making heart jam thumbprint cookies with Nalani James (fundraiser for SAFV)

heart-thumbprint-cookies-plate
Learn how to make heart jam thumbprint cookies for Valentine’s Day and support the Sitkans Against Family Violence (SAFV) shelter during the next Cooking With Culture class with the Sitka Kitch and Nalani James.

This online class takes place from 6-7:30 p.m. on Saturday, Feb. 12, using Zoom. All proceeds from the class fees will be donated to the SAFV shelter. Students also are asked to share some of their cookies with Sitka foster children households by dropping off cookies from 2-3 p.m. on Sunday, Feb. 13, at the Southeast Alaska Career Center, 205 Baranof Street (behind Pacific High School).

Nalani has offered many Sitka Kitch classes in Sitka and has been successfully teaching to the community special dishes to her soul.

The class cost is $20, and we need at least eight people registered to make the class happen. Ingredients are not provided; however a list of ingredients and equipment needed will be sent to all who are registered. A link to the Zoom event also will be sent at that time. Please connect at least 10 minutes before the class starts.

Since this class is a fundraiser for SAFV, the usual Sitka Food Co-op member discount will not be available for the class.

The registration deadline is 11:30 p.m. on Friday, Feb. 11. Space is limited, so register early to secure your place in the class. You can register and pre-pay using credit/debit cards or PayPal on the Sitka Kitch EventSmart online registration page, http://sitkakitch.eventsmart.com (click on class title). For those wanting to pre-pay with cash or check, please call Chandler O’Connell or Kylee Jones at Sitka Conservation Society (747-7509) to arrange a payment.

For more information about the class, contact Jasmine Shaw at 747-9440. We occasionally offer one scholarship spot per class for people with limited incomes, provided we have enough students registered to make the class happen. Contact Chandler or Kylee at SCS for more details about the scholarship.

The Sitka Kitch is supported in partnership by Sitka Conservation Society with UAF Cooperative Extension Service. Normally our classes are fundraisers for the Sitka Kitch community rental commercial kitchen.

The Sitka Kitch also has a new class cancelation policy. If you register for a class, then find out you can’t attend, please email us at sitkakitch@sitkawild.org and we may be able to help fill your slot through our waiting list. If you cancel from the class at least five days in advance (eg, by Wednesday the week before for a Monday class), you are eligible for a partial refund of your class fee, minus $5 for processing (in this case, $15 or $5, depending on if you are paying full price or getting the Sitka Food Co-op discount). If you need to cancel with less than five days advance notice, there is no refund.