Local Economies Project

03/31/2017

"Farmers should be surrounded by beauty, because they are the ones feeding us and tending the earth. They should be able to come home to a beautiful place."

The Hawthorne Valley Association has been a pillar of the sustainable farming community in the Hudson Valley since 1972. LEP has proudly provided grant funding to the Association since 2012.

http://localeconomiesproject.org/grantee-profile-hawthorne-valley-associations-martin-ping-art-agriculture-education/

Since 1972, the Hawthorne Valley Association has been a pillar of the sustainable farming community in the Hudson Valley. Today, the Association operates the Hawthorne Valley Farm, a 700-acre biodynamic farm in Columbia County comprised of an on-site creamery, bakery, and fermentation cellar provi...

03/15/2017

At LEP we continue to be inspired by our many partner organizations and their collaborative work in the regional food system. Among them are: Wild Earth and its mission to transform the way young people interact with nature, farmers working with food pantries to donate produce for those in need, and local groups ensuring that the public is informed about the potential impacts of the proposed Pilgrim Pipelines.

Read more about our partners and our recent work in our winter newsletter...

Developed by The Land Institute, Kernza is described by some as a “super wheat” because of its deep, dense root system and its potential to improve soil health.This year, the Farm Hub is testing how Kernza performs in the Hudson Valley.

02/13/2017

LEP is pleased to announce a planning grant to New York City-based The Doe Fund to transform the former Beacon Correctional Facility into a food processing, training, and storage campus. By providing space and equipment for food and beverage manufacturers, the campus promises to significantly boost the Hudson Valley’s food and agriculture economy.

http://localeconomiesproject.org/new-lease-life-doe-fund-proposes-repurpose-beacon-correctional-facility/

Could an abandoned prison become a driving force in the Hudson Valley’s food economy? If the Doe Fund, a New York City-based not-for-profit, is successful, the Hudson Valley could reap the rewards of the Mid-Hudson Food Enterprise and Training Center.

02/03/2017

LEP congratulates KingstonCitizens.org for hosting last Saturday’s public educational forum on the proposed Pilgrim Pipelines. LEP and the Hudson Valley Farm Hub were among the co-sponsors of the event, and we were pleased to see hundreds of community members in attendance.

LEP Associate Director of Community Relations Brooke Pickering-Cole spoke on the proposed project’s potential impacts to agriculture. For more information about the pipelines and their potential impacts in Ulster County and surrounding communities:
http://localeconomiesproject.org/local-economies-project-co-sponsors-public-education-forum-impacts-proposed-pilgrim-pipelines/

On January 28, KingstonCitizens.org hosted a public forum at Kingston City Hall on the potential impact of the proposed Pilgrim Pipelines in Ulster County.

02/01/2017

"The feedback that we’ve received from parents is that when their kids got out of our program, they felt different. They were establishing character, qualities, and competencies that they weren’t really getting elsewhere. They were more helpful. They were appropriately tired and hungry. This experience is helping to regenerate a healthy community culture."

http://localeconomiesproject.org/grantee-profile-wild-earth-transformative-power-wilderness/
Wild Earth

In his 2008 book Last Child in the Woods, Richard Louv identified what he calls nature-deficit disorder. “By the 1990s,” he writes, “the radius around the home where children were allowed to roam on their own had shrunk to a ninth of what it had...

01/18/2017

The food and beverage manufacturing sector already provides over 1,300 jobs to workers in Ulster County. With growing entities like The Farm Bridge and Hudson Valley Harvest working to aggregate, process, and distribute farm products, the County is poised to become a vibrant hub for local food.

http://localeconomiesproject.org/ulster-county-celebrates-thriving-food-beverage-cluster/

Just a few years ago, if local farmers and food entrepreneurs needed assistance getting their products into the hands of consumers, there were few local businesses or organizations to turn to. Today, with growing entities like Farm Bridge and Hudson Valley Harvest working to aggregate, process, and…

12/19/2016

On the last day of November, staff members from the RVGA Rondout Valley Growers Association, Family of Woodstock Inc, and UlsterCorps, together with Glean Team volunteers, completed their final food processing of the season. The Farm to Food Pantry Program collected over 66,000 pounds of produce from sixteen farms, and processed nearly 2,000 quarts of vegetable stock that will be distributed to food pantries and shelters over the winter months. We congratulate all the wonderful partners and volunteers who helped make the program’s eighth season a success!

Photo courtesy of RVGA.

12/14/2016

New York schools spend $850 million on food purchasing each year. By buying more locally sourced ingredients, schools can support local agriculture and provide more nutritious food to our children. One of the leaders in helping schools change their purchasing practices is Farm to Institution NYS (FINY), a partnership of agricultural, health, and economic development interests launched by American Farmland Trust with support from LEP in 2013.

As FINYS Coordinator Glenda Neff writes in an Albany Times Union oped, “Let’s commit ourselves to making New York a national leader in putting the bounty of our local farms on school cafeteria menus.”

http://www.timesunion.com/tuplus-opinion/article/A-bounty-to-share-in-schools-10784088.php

12/09/2016

Agriculture is the basis of culture and how we form our societies. Yet, as Ken Greene of the Hudson Valley Seed Company explains, we’ve lost much of our agricultural genetic diversity, and with it, our cultural heritage. Projects like our Native American Seed Sanctuary at the Hudson Valley Magazine highlight the importance of seed saving to the preservation of language, ceremony, song, creation stories, and foodways.

Ken Greene, director of the Hudson Valley Seed Library, discusses the values that underpin the creation of the Native American Seed Sanctuary. The Hudson Val...

11/22/2016

As our director Bob Dandrew explains, we established the Seed Sanctuary at the Hudson Valley Farm Hub to help preserve the rich agricultural heritage of the Native American people. We are honored to be learning so much about the sacred process of seed saving from our partners at the St. Regis Mohawk/Akwesasne Tribe and the Hudson Valley Seed Company.
https://youtu.be/HAxw2yhFLm8

Bob Dandrew, director of the Local Economies Project, discusses the creation of the Native American Seed Sanctuary at the Hudson Valley Farm Hub. The Hudson ...

11/16/2016

The December issue of National Geographic magazine will recognize Ulster County for its environmental stewardship. As part of a full-color map called “Dreaming Big,” the magazine will highlight many of the organizations and projects that, together, make the county a leader in environmental conservation, alternative energy, and outdoor recreation. We’re proud that our Hudson Valley Farm Hub will be featured in the spread.

http://ulstercountyny.gov/news/business-services-economic-development-executive-press-releases/national-geographic-magazine

Ulster County Recognized For Extensive Environmental Results