Local food in the news

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• Don’t forget to vote for the Sitka Local Foods Network in the 50 States for Good contest

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Did you vote today? Please help the Sitka Local Foods Network win a $10,000 grant to continue its work on food security and local foods issues in Sitka, Alaska, by voting for us in the fifth annual Tom’s of Maine 50 States for Good contest.

There is one finalist per state (we are Alaska’s representative), and the top 15 vote-getters each get $10,000 to continue their work. But we need to be in the top 15 to win anything. If we win, we will use the money to expand community gardens, improve the Sitka Farmers Market, and support other local foods projects right here in Sitka.

You can vote by going to http://www.50statesforgood.com/ and following the instructions (we’re listed under Alaska). You can vote once per day, and voting goes from Sept. 16 through Oct. 15. Please share this with your friends, so they can vote too. Thanks.‪ #‎50statesforgood‬ ‪#‎sitkalocalfoodsnetwork‬ ‪#‎sitka‬ ‪#‎alaska‬

For more information, go to https://sitkalocalfoodsnetwork.org/2013/09/16/%E2%80%A2-sitka-local-foods-network-named-alaskas-lone-finalist-in-50-states-for-good-contest/

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• Oktoberfest celebrates locally brewed beer, local foods

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Baranof Island Brewing Company, Sitka’s local brewery, will host an Oktoberfest celebration from 3-8 p.m. on Saturday, Sept. 28, at the BIBCO brewery at 201 Smith St. in Sitka.

The highlight of the event will be the 3 p.m. tapping of a special release Kristallweizen beer by Sitka Mayor Mim McConnell. There will be brewery tours from 3-5 p.m., as well as games, prizes and polka music. Baranof Island Brewing Company does make a root beer for people wanting a locally produced non-alcoholic libation. People are encouraged to wear liederhosen or dirndls to get in the Oktoberfest spirit. Oktoberfest t-shirts will be available for sale.

This event also will feature pulled pork sandwiches, smoked turkey legs and all-beef smoked sausages slathered in Sitka-produced Crackcorn Tysor’s BBQ, Sauces and Rubs. There also will be Alaska-produced reindeer meat hot dogs, Polish dogs, buffalo brats, and more from Sitka-owned Reindeer Redhots.

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• Sitka Local Foods Network named Alaska’s lone finalist in 50 States for Good contest

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The Sitka Local Foods Network has been selected as the Alaska representative in the fifth annual 50 States for Good contest, where one representative nonprofit organization from each state and the District of Columbia compete for a chance to win $10,000 from Tom’s of Maine.

Supporters of the Sitka Local Foods Network can take part in a public vote to help the organization share in $150,000 total grants from Tom’s of Maine (15 awards of $10,000 each). Voting is simple, just go to http://www.50statesforgood.com/, and follow the instructions. People can vote once per day for one nonprofit finalist during the period from 8 a.m. Alaska time (noon Eastern) on Monday, Sept. 16, through 4 p.m. Alaska time (8 p.m. Eastern) on Tuesday, Oct. 15. A free Facebook account is required for voting, and people who do not already have an account can go to https://www.facebook.com/ to create one.

The 50 States for Good program was created to help uncover local nonprofit groups that address a variety of community needs and engage volunteers to get the work done. This year’s finalists offer a diverse range of community services, such as improving access to local foods, working with people who have autism, helping street teens, supporting the needs of low-income residents, providing food and hygiene products to the homeless, building playgrounds, and more.

The Sitka Local Foods Network works on a variety of food-oriented projects in Sitka, a community of 9,000 people on Baranof Island in Southeast Alaska. Even though there is no commercial agriculture on the island, the Sitka Local Foods Network created the Sitka Farmers Market, which sells produce grown at the organization’s St. Peter’s Fellowship Farm communal garden and from family backyard gardens. The Sitka Local Foods Network also is trying to build the Sitka Community Greenhouse and Education Center, which will be a commercial greenhouse providing local produce and bedding plants for residents, and an education center teaching local students about gardening. Education is another focus of the network, which hosts the annual Let’s Grow Sitka garden exhibition in March and brings nationally known speakers to town to teach about gardening, seeds and greenhouses.

“We are honored to be chosen to represent Alaska in the 50 States for Good competition,” said Lisa Sadleir-Hart, president of the Sitka Local Foods Network board of directors. “If we are successful, we hope to further food production in Sitka using a host of strategies, such as creating an additional community garden, offering seed money to the community greenhouse and education center working group, or helping the school district jump start a school-based garden program. An award of $10,000 from Tom’s of Maine can really help Sitka make strides in improving its local food system.”

The 51 finalists (one from each state plus the District of Columbia) were selected from a pool of about 1,100 nominated nonprofit organizations by an independent panel of judges that included Huffington Post columnist Lisa M. Dietlin, Cool People Care president Sam Davidson, assistant features editor covering social good for Mashable.com Matt Petronzio, and The Vampire Diaries star and nonprofit founder Ian Somerhalder.

“A desire to do more for a favorite can often be hindered by a lack of time to volunteer or the financial means to make a donation,” said Susan Dewhirst, goodness programs manager at Tom’s of Maine. “The 50 States for Good program makes it easy for anyone to have an impact and directly help organizations that are bringing goodness to communities in a variety of creative and inspiring ways.”

For several decades, Tom’s of Maine, a natural products company focused on oral and personal care products, has donated 10 percent of its profits back to the community and encourages its employees to use 5 percent (12 days) of their paid time off to volunteer every year. For more information, visit http://www.tomsofmaine.com/ or like the Facebook page at https://www.facebook.com/TomsofMaine. Voting information will be at both links.

To learn more about the Sitka Local Foods Network and some of its community projects, go to http://www.sitkalocalfoodsnetwork.org/ or like the organization’s new Facebook page at  https://www.facebook.com/SitkaLocalFoodsNetwork.

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• Sitka shows off its gardens to International Master Garden Conference cruise

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InternationalMasterGardenersConferenceLogoSome 1,100 participants in the 2013 International Master Gardeners Conference were in Sitka on Wednesday, Sept. 11, when the Holland America Lines cruise ship Westerdam docked in town.

As part of the visit, the Sitka District office of the University of Alaska Fairbanks Cooperative Extension Service prepared a walking tour for the conference participants to show off local gardens and other highlights. The walking tour was a unique opportunity to showcase the challenges and methods used to garden in Sitka as well as interact with Master Gardeners from various locales. In addition to visiting Sitka, the Sept. 7-14 cruise took the conference from Seattle to Juneau, Glacier Bay, Sitka, Ketchikan, Victoria (British Columbia) and back to Seattle.

The Sitka walking tour started at Harrigan Centennial Hall and included a stop to look at apple trees by KCAW-Raven Radio, a stop at the Sitka Pioneer Home to look at the roses and other gardens, a stop at the Russian Bishop’s House (where kindergarten students from nearby Baranof Elementary School plant vegetables in the spring and harvest them in the fall when they return as first-graders). From there the walking tour went to St. Peter’s Fellowship Farm (where the Sitka Local Foods Network grows veggies to sell at the Sitka Farmers Markets), then it was on to the Sheldon Jackson Museum and on to Sitka National Historical Park. The final two stops were at a garden on the Sheldon Jackson Campus (between the Yaw Art Center and Hames Athletic and Wellness Center), and on to the US Geological Survey Geomagnetic Station and UAF Cooperative Extension Service demonstration plots (at the site of the original USDA Sitka Experimental Farm (Page 7), which was the first in Alaska and had more than 100 acres of crops from 1898-1931).

Also at Harrigan Centennial Hall, Sitka filmmaker Ellen Frankenstein hosted a couple of showings of her movie “Eating Alaska,” which examines the food choices one makes, especially when they live in Alaska where produce can be marginal but fish and game are widely available.

UAFMasterGardenerProgramLogoThe Master Gardener (MG) program started in Seattle in the 1970s as a way to extend the horticulture resources of Washington State’s land grant university  to the urban horticulture public in Seattle. The Master Gardeners receive 40 hours of training, similar to a basic three-credit-semester-hour, college-level horticulture class.

In return for this low-cost education the MG participants provide 40 hours of service to their community using Cooperative Extension information resources from their home states. The MG service may be in food gardening, pest management, youth gardening, tree and landscape care, public gardens, etc. Since the initial Seattle project, Master Gardener programs now exist in every state in the U.S., as well as Canada, Australia, New Zealand, and other countries. A Master Gardener course was taught in Sitka in April at the University of Alaska Southeast Sitka Campus.

• Sitka garden walking tour map for 2013 International Master Gardeners Conference

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• Sitka gears up for cruise visit from International Master Gardeners Conference on Wednesday, Sept. 11

InternationalMasterGardenersConferenceLogoSitka will be host to 1,100 participants in the International Master Gardeners Conference when the Holland cruise ship Westerdam arrives in port on Wednesday, Sept. 11. The ship is due in port from 7 a.m. to 3 p.m.

Volunteers are needed to assist with local, non-commercial activities related to the conference‘s Sitka stop. Those who have completed a Master Gardener course are especially encouraged to participate. This is a unique opportunity to showcase the challenges and methods used to garden in Sitka as well as interact with Master Gardeners from various locales.

The Master Gardener (MG) program started in Seattle in the 1970s as a way to extend the horticulture resources of Washington State’s land grant university  to the urban horticulture public in Seattle. The Master Gardeners receive 40 hours of training, similar to a basic three-credit-semester-hour, college-level horticulture class.

In return for this low-cost education the MG participants provide 40 hours of service to their community using Cooperative Extension information resources. The MG service may be in food gardening, pest management, youth gardening, tree and landscape care, public gardens, etc. Since the initial Seattle project, Master Gardener programs now exist in every state in the U.S., as well as Canada, Australia, New Zealand, and other countries. A Master Gardener course was taught in Sitka in April

For more information or to sign up for a volunteer time slot, please contact the University of Alaska Fairbanks Cooperative Extension Service Sitka District office at 747-9440 .

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• Daily Sitka Sentinel features Keith Nyitray with his winning cabbage from the Sitka ‘state’ Fair

BIG PRODUCE – Sitka gardener Keith Nyitray arranges the leaves on his 17-pound cabbage Sunday during the second annual Sitka “State” Fair at Harrigan Centennial Hall. The cabbage earned a blue ribbon at the fair, which had categories for vegetables, jams, hobbies, crafts, photography and spam hors d’oeuvres, among others. The event included music by the SitNiks and performances by Celtic dancers. (Daily Sitka Sentinel Photo by James Poulson)

BIG PRODUCE – Sitka gardener Keith Nyitray arranges the leaves on his 17-pound cabbage Sunday during the second annual Sitka “State” Fair at Harrigan Centennial Hall. The cabbage earned a blue ribbon at the fair, which had categories for vegetables, jams, hobbies, crafts, photography and Spam hors d’oeuvres, among others. The event included music by the SitNiks and performances by Celtic dancers. (Daily Sitka Sentinel Photo by James Poulson)

The Monday, Aug. 12, 2013, edition of the Daily Sitka Sentinel included a photo of local gardener Keith Nyitray with his winning cabbage from the Sitka “state” Fair held Sunday, Aug. 11, at Harrigan Centennial Hall.

The second annual Sitka “state” Fair was hosted by the Greater Sitka Arts Council. More details about the event and some of its contests can be found here.

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• Fourth annual Sitka Seafood Festival takes place on Aug. 1-4

SSF Event Calendar

ChefLouisaChuDo you love Sitka’s wild Alaska seafood? Help celebrate our salmon, halibut, rockfish, crab and other seafood species during the fourth annual Sitka Seafood Festival on Aug. 1-4 at various locations around Sitka.

The Sitka Seafood Festival (SSF) was formed in 2010 by a small group of volunteers as a culinary-based festival established to celebrate our local seafood and one of Sitkaʼs greatest resources. The festival has grown very quickly and we have had some national attention, including from the popular culinary magazines “Relish” and “The Lucky Peach,” as well as drawing the interest of multiple well -known chefs. We feel the festival only has room to grow from here, and is a tool to start attracting the independent traveler to boost Sitka’s tourism, as well as a way to educate others about our industry. For a quick taste of the festival, check out the 2012 promotional video.

In the past three years the festival has grown from a small, two-day festival for the locals, into a multiple-day celebration not just for our community but also for travelers visiting Sitka from Juneau to Florida. The festival opens on Thursday with films showcasing Alaska’s salmon, the well-received “Poet Sea” poetry contest, a sunset pasta cruise aboard an Allen Marine vessel, as well as endless educational and entertainment activities for all ages, and of course, some amazing food.

FishHeadBobbingCatchOne of our most popular events is a five-course seafood extravaganza on Friday night at Harrigan Centennial Hal, which sells out each year. It is a formal dinner striving to use all local seafood and products. This event is prepared by many local chefs, as well as our three guest chefs,  including returning chefs Robert Kinneen and Seth Caswell, and introducing our executive chef Mickey Neely who was recently voted “Best New Up and Coming Chef of Chicago.” The evening is complete with a silent auction, live music, entertainment, and, of course, the best food around. Other Friday events include hatchery tours and a book signing.

The following day is an all-day festival, starting at 7 a.m. with the addition of our Cross Trail Classic half- and full-marathons, which will finish at the festival grounds. Starting at 11 a.m. at Totem Square, come enjoy the festival parade down Lincoln Street, leading right to the Sheldon Jackson Campus and the Sitka Seafood Festival’s Marketplace. It is full of local food booths, arts and crafts, educational and informational booths, as well as many contests such as the favorite “fish-head bobbing” and “fish-head toss,” kids games, and many Alaska  dance groups and educational-based demos.

MusicRobertJacobsJBradleyHollyKeenThere also will be a free presentation by author, chef, and professor Becky Selengut of Seattle, titled “Good Fish: One Chef’s Quest to Preserve Our Ocean Resources.” The presentation will take place at noon in Sweetland Hall, on the Sheldon Jackson Campus. Starting at 12:30 p.m., the second annual Highland/Island Games will also be taking place. Come watch the best of the best from Alaska toss a log or two. There also will be a beer garden, multiple food vendors, and of course the main stage with dance performances, and live music throughout the night. This is one event you won’t want to miss. And new this year is a Sunday golf tournament at Sea Mountain Golf Course.

The Sitka Seafood Festival hopefully will continue to grow. Please mark your calendars for the fourth annual event scheduled for Aug. 1-4. WE NEED VOLUNTEERS! If you would like to get involved or have any questions, comments, or concerns, please contact Alicia Olson Haseltine at (928) 607-4845 or sitkaseafoodfestival@gmail.com, or check us out at http://www.sitkaseafoodfestival.org. And thank you Sitka.. You are what makes this festival, and so many other amazing events in our wonderful community.

• 2013 Sitka Seafood Festival events calendar

• Sitka Seafood Festival banquet poster

• 2013 Sitka Seafood Festival marketplace food vendor information

• 2013 Sitka Seafood Festival Highland Island Games info

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• Gov. Parnell signs executive order creating the Alaska Food Resource Working Group

AlaskaFoodPolicyCouncilLogoThe following is a note sent to members of the Alaska Food Policy Council listserv by Diane Peck, MPH, RD, a public health nutritionist with the Alaska Department of Health and Social Services Obesity Prevention and Control Program. Diane also is one of the lead contacts for the Alaska Food Policy Council.

Last Friday (June 28, 2013), at the Palmer Farmers Market, Gov. Sean Parnell signed Administrative Order No. 265 (http://gov.state.ak.us/admin-orders/265.html) to establish the Alaska Food Resource Working Group (AFRWG) to recommend policies and measures to increase the purchase and consumption of local wild seafood and farm products. This is a bit different than HCR 01. The AFRWG is composed of eight state agency commissioners or their designee. “The AFRWG shall collaborate with the Alaska Food Policy Council . . . and shall invite a member of the AFPC governing board to represent the AFPC at scheduled meetings.”

The goals of the group are:

  • Develop a mission statement that promotes increased use of locally grown and harvested foods within state and local agencies, institutions, and schools;
  • Identify factors that might discourage or prevent locally harvested and produced food from being purchased by federal, state and local agencies, institutions, and schools;
  • Review existing or proposed programs, policies, statutes, and regulations that impact the state’s food system and recommend to policymakers methods to improve coordination and implementation;
  • Identify research needed to support and encourage increased consumption and production of local foods within the state; and
  • Engage with the public to seek additional input on ways to promote the above-listed goals.

Lots of legislators and several commissioners were at the signing.  The governor said this elevates the group to “sub-cabinet” status.

To learn more about the Alaska Food Policy Council, go to its website or like its Facebook page. Sitka Local Foods Network board president Lisa Sadleir-Hart represents Sitka on the Alaska Food Policy Council.

• Alaska Food Policy Council press release about the executive order

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• Greater Sitka Arts Council seeks entries for Sitka “state” Fair on Aug. 11

2013 Sitka State Fair flierHave you always wanted to participate in one of the official Alaska State Fairs, but didn’t have the money or time to get to Haines, Palmer or Fairbanks? The Greater Sitka Arts Council is seeking entries, including food entries, for the second annual Sitka “state” Fair, which takes place on Sunday, Aug. 11, at Harrigan Centennial Hall.

“The thinking was there are a lot of people in Sitka with a wide variety of interests and talents and a state fair would give them an opportunity to share them, show them off, and have some good old-fashioned, state-fair-type competition,” said Jeff Budd of the Greater Sitka Arts Council. “We also did it because it seemed like a lot of fun and meets our  stated Vision: Art is vital to a healthy vibrant community, and Mission: To increase awareness of the value of arts in Sitka through education, advocacy and programming. Also, as we were the first capital of Alaska that we deserved a state fair as much as Palmer or Haines.”

Entries will be taken for three age divisions — age 0-10, age 10-17, and age 18-older. Entry fees are $3 per item, with a maximum of nine total entries. Ribbons will be awarded for first, second and third place in each age division and category. Food contest entries should include two samples (one for the judges, one for display). Items are for display only, and no sales will be permitted.

Entries should be dropped off from 8-9 a.m. on Sunday, Aug. 11, at Harrigan Centennial Hall. They will be judged from 9 a.m. to noon, and the fair will be open to the public from noon to 5 p.m. All entries must remain on display until 5 p.m.

Categories to be judged include:

  • Cupcakes
  • Savory Pies
  • Sweet Pies
  • Savory Bread
  • Sweet Bread
  • Artisinal Bread
  • Scones
  • Muffins
  • Jams
  • Jellies
  • Canned Fruit
  • Canned Vegetables
  • Home-Grown Vegetables
  • Hobbies (Crsfts, Collections)
  • Flower Arranging
  • Spam Hors d’Oeuvres
  • Pickling
  • Chickens (Caged)
  • Bunnies (Caged)
  • Vegetable/Fruit Art
  • Canned Fish
  • Smoked Fish

In addition, there also is a “Sitka Tuf” photography contest hosted by the Harry Race Photo Department. To learn more about it, go to the Harry Race website or the Harry Race page on Facebook.

To learn more about the Sitka “state” Fair, go to the Greater Sitka Arts Council website (scroll down for details) or the group’s Facebook page. Entry forms can be downloaded below, or you can get copies at the GSAC office, Room 108 of the Yaw Building on the Sheldon Jackson Campus, or at the Harry Race Photo Department.

• 2013 Sitka State Fair entry form

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• Sitka Farmers Market among 11 farmers markets accepting Alaska Quest Cards

(The following is from a press release from the Alaska Department of Natural Resources Division of Agriculture)

EBTattheFarmersMarketPALMER, Alaska – Eleven farmers markets throughout Alaska, including the Sitka Farmers Market, are now accepting Quest Cards, enhancing the state’s efforts to make healthy, locally-grown food available to Alaska households. Six markets (including Sitka) accepted the cards in 2012, and two markets accepted them in 2011, according to the Division of Agriculture.

The Alaska Quest Card is used by households qualified through the Alaska Food Stamp Program to purchase food from farmers markets and grocery stores.

“This program improves access to fresh, local foods to community members who are struggling financially.  Additionally, the program helps increase understanding of food insecurity issues in our community and how produce and other food vendors can be part of the solution,” said Lisa Sadlier-Hart, manager of the Sitka Farmers Market (Editor’s note: A correction, Sadleir-Hart is president of the Sitka Local Foods Network board of directors, which hosts the Sitka Farmers Markets; Bridget Kauffman is the market manager).

Quest cards are accepted in the following locations:

Anchorage

  • Spenard Farmers Market; the Anchorage Farmers Market; and the South Anchorage Farmers Markets (Saturday and Wednesday)

Kenai Peninsula

  • Anchor Point Saturday Farmers Market & Swap Meet, and the Homer Farmers Market

Western Alaska

  • The Bethel Farm Stand and the Dillingham Farmers Market

Fairbanks

  • Downtown Fairbanks Market and Calypso School Garden Farm Stands

Southeast Alaska

  • Sitka Farmers Market

These markets will also host Match Days, when Quest card holders can get twice the amount of fresh, local food for the first $20 spent with their cards.   Match Days are listed below:

Anchorage and Kenai Peninsula

  • First market of the month (markets happening twice a week will have matching both days);

Western Alaska, Fairbanks and Southeast Alaska

  • Throughout the summer until funds run out.

Check the Alaska Division of Agriculture website at http://www.dnr.alaska.gov/ag/ag_FMI.htm for more information on Alaska’s farmers markets, including those that accept Quest Cards.  For more information on the Alaska Quest Card, go to http://www.akquest.alaska.gov.

See you at the market, where it’s Closer. Fresher. Better.