Blog 3 - Take Action!

 

1A:

            According to our textbook, critical attributes are “A teaching strategy that focuses on transmitting the procedural knowledge of identifying the essential elements of a concept so that students do not form inaccurate concepts and ultimately inadequate ideas and insufficient beliefs that are necessary to be affirmative citizens” (42).  Critical attributes in the curriculum can connect the students to their local community as well as the global community. The students can use today’s technology to collaborate on interdisciplinary projects, which helps them to become better citizens for the future. 

            In order for someone to know why he/she should support local agriculture and the local farmer, they need to know the who, what, where’s of the matter.  For instance, what are the local crops in the area; what and when are the harvesting times; the economic impact of supporting the local farmer and the global climate benefits in supporting your local farmer.  Since most produce is packed up to a week before hitting the shelves at the supermarket and are shipped thousands of miles.  Consider that local produce taste better; buying local supports the local farmer and the local economy; there are fewer pesticides in local produce and fewer emissions into the atmosphere. 

Some information you may find helpful:

Local Farms:

Farm	Town	Web Site
Connors Farm	Danvers	http://www.connorsfarm.com/
Green Meadow Farm	Hamilton	http://www.gmfarm.com/
Russell Orchards	Ipswich	http://www.russellorchard.com/
Smolak Farms	North Andover	http://www.smolakfarms.com/

Local Farmers Markets:

City/Town	Location	Day	Time
Andover	Andover Historical Society	Saturdays	12:30-3:30
Middleton	Angelica's Restaurant Parking Lot	Wednesdays	3:00-7:00
Peabody	Behind the Courthouse	Tuesdays	1:00-6:00
Salem	Derby Square	Thursdays	3:00-7:00

Local Crops:

There is a multitude of options when you consider buying local.  Here are a few options.  Please visit FarmFresh.org for a complete listing. 

Farm Fresh

Crop	Harvesting Times
Apples	September 10-End of October
Blueberries	July-August 30
Pumpkins	September 10-End of October
Raspberries	July-September 30
Squash	September 10-End of October
Strawberries	Mid June-July
Tomatoes	August 1-Septmeber 30

            How can we teach this?  One way to showcase this idea would be to compare and contrast three apples from different locations.  One apple is from a farm on the North Shore, another apple is from a farm in Washington State and the third apple is from a farm in Chile.  We could analyze what it takes to grow, ship and transport these apples to your table.  We could also analyze the growing methods and processes used for each crop to determine any potential health risks.  We would compare and contrast the cost, environmental impact and health benefits of the local apple to the other two apples.  This comparison would also include information on each farm, growing practices, how the crops are produced and type of farm.

1B:
Service Learning Projects

1. Write a letter to Senators and House of Representatives with a possible Facebook petition with links.

2. Go to a Farmers Market and Interview local farmers

3. Create a Facebook page with info on local farms, farmer markets etc.

1C:

Christine:

             Busa Farm is located in Lexington.  In 2009, the town purchased the farm under the Community Preservation Act and created an ad hoc committee to determine the best use for the nearly 8 acres of land.  Currently, there is debate in Lexington whether to use the land for recreational purposes (sports field, playground, etc) or for a community farm.  There is a group of residents circulating a petition supporting a plan for a community farm.  Although I am not a resident of Lexington, they are fairly close to my hometown and I decided to sign the online petition.  Considering the issue we have chosen, I felt this petition would support our cause.  Given the difficulty to start up a small local farm, a community-supported effort would help improve the quality of life for the citizens and help contribute to a better community.


Erika:

I’ve decided to take a different approach to the take action part of the blog. Instead of constantly telling people we should support our local farmers, I’m going to give the cold hard facts about what is in our grocery stores and how little information we know about the foods in there. With these facts I hope to open the minds of the consumer so that they can make the right choice to support local farmers. As part of the take action part, I signed a petition to fight the corporate companies that are making a monopoly of our food industries.

Here are some interesting facts taken from the Fight Big Food website, “Just four companies control more than: 84% of our nation’s beef, 66% of our pork, and 58% of our chicken. In the past 70 years, nearly 5 million chicken farmers have lost their jobs. The surviving 30,000 poultry growers live a life of unfair contracts, a cycle of debt, and intimidation if they speak out.”

Leo:

                For taking action in our topic I tried doing a few different things. I went online and did some research about the local farms in the area. I found a few interesting websites but there was one that stood out to me the most. FarmAid.org is a website that strives on strengthening local farming support. The website boasts a variety of interesting facts and details regarding local farms compared to other sources of food.  There is a take action section right on the website that states “Spurred on by a wide variety of health concerns, communities are working to bring healthy, fresh, and nutritious foods to institutions all over the country. Here are a few examples of communities that have worked hard to protect their food and source more food from family farms.” It gets to talking about people who are affiliated in the local issues and how it has made changes in their lives.

                There is a link on the website that says “Join in Take Action” and the first thing you see when you click the link is the board members include Willie Nelson, John Mellencamp, Dave Mathews and Neil Young, yes the celebrities. It states how they have provided countless hours supporting the importance of local farmers and the need to keep them in business. I signed up for the account and there are countless links and blogs about local farming issues all around the country. There is even a source to try and get local farming products into school versus the everyday school lunches. I found that this was very interesting to read about.

“There's a new food movement sweeping the country and Farm Aid is doing all we can to promote that movement.”
– Willie Nelson


Links to Take Action:

Farm Aid
Busa Farm
Massachusetts Farmers Markets
Fight Big Food