Canton, NY, Oct 25, 2012 — Like Governor Cuomo at his beer, wine, and liquor summit Wednesday in Albany, a pair of Canton entrepreneurs is hoping craft beer sales will provide an economic lift.

Ken and Katrina Hebb, owners of the Blackbird Cafe in Canton, are starting St. Lawrence County's first microbrewery. The St. Lawrence Brewing Company is leasing space in a new industrial building in Canton. They're ready to start moving in next week and hope to start selling beer by St. Patrick's Day.

Ken Hebb gave David Sommerstein a tour.  Go to full article

Nov 22, 2011 — Farmers, chefs and retailers gathered in Kingston, Ontario yesterday to share ideas about locally produced food. Todd Moe talks with entrepreneur Janet Campbell, who was the featured speaker at the first Great Waterway Regional Culinary Tourism Summit.

For nearly 20 years, Campbell has owned and managed Mrs. McGarrigle's Fine Mustard in historic Merrickville, Ontario. She uses locally grown ingredients, including Canadian mustard seeds, in her products. Displays in her store feature many foods - cookies, chutneys and cheeses - created by regional growers and chefs. Todd Moe toured her shop and spoke with Janet Campbell about how the localvore culture can promote tourism and local economies.  Go to full article

Potsdam, NY, Oct 28, 2011 — At a youth food summit held this week in the North Country, teenagers were encouraged to think about what they eat, and to choose healthy, local options. But some students said those efforts are undermined in their own school cafeterias.

Food service workers also got together at the summit. Many worry about the cost of local, natural ingredients, about how to process and cook them, and about whether the students will actually eat healthy meals.

Julie Grant met Cynthia Overton during the meeting's lunch time bustle. She is food service director at the South Jefferson Central Schools, and led a workshop to help others in school food service.

Overton says she started serving healthy meals in her district because she grew up on a farm, and wanted to make sure her own kids, and all the students, had homegrown food on their plates.  Go to full article

Potsdam, NY, Oct 27, 2011 — Teenagers might be known for eating a lot. But they don't always think about where that food is coming from, or whether it's healthy for them. That changed for some students who gathered in SUNY Potsdam's student union this week for the North Country Food Day Youth Summit. The summit was sponsored by GardenShare and the St. Lawrence County Health Initiative. Julie Grant attended, along with two hundred and forty high school students from 30 different schools.  Go to full article

Ferrisburgh, VT, Jul 13, 2011 — "Get big or get out" is a common wisdom in the dairy industry. And many small-scale farms have gotten out. Northern New York has half the dairy farms it did 20 years ago, and the remaining farms are generally much bigger. Some are much, much bigger.

In Vermont, the number of dairy farms dropped below 1,000 in May. But not everybody getting out of dairy is leaving farming altogether. One family operation in Ferrisburgh is repurposing the farm, and starting small. Angela Evancie has this installment of our series, Farmers Under 40.  Go to full article

Malone, NY, Jul 11, 2011 — It used to be dairy farmers in the North Country didn't think too much about marketing their product or who would be eating or drinking it at the kitchen table. A truck owned by your co-op rolled up and emptied the bulk tank. Off went your milk to be processed by someone else.

That's still the case on many dairy farms. But in today's diversified mix of organic and vegetable and pasture-raised livestock farms, things are changing. And Bernadette Logozar says young farmers are leading the way. Logozar is the regional local foods specialist for Cornell Cooperative Extension.

She told David Sommerstein farmers under 40 are using new tools like Facebook and Twitter and good old-fashioned word of mouth to market their own products.  Go to full article

Albany, NY, Jul 05, 2011 — With the legislative session wrapped up, state leaders are assessing where they've come and where they plan to go.

Agriculture commissioner Darrel Aubertine has been on the job for little more than half a year, after losing his Senate seat to Republican Patty Ritchie.

Aubertine is a lifelong farmer from Cape Vincent in Jefferson County. He's shifted from dairy farming to raising beef cows. And he tells David Sommerstein his sons are taking over.  Go to full article

Canton, NY, Jun 07, 2011 — A fun new book presents 34 men who proudly take charge of the family kitchen.
It's called A Man With a Pan, with the subtitle Culinary Adventures of Fathers Who Cook for Their Families.

According to the publisher's press release, fathers now account for nearly a third of family-cooking time. That's up from 5% in 1965.

The book is edited by John Donohue of the New Yorker magazine. He does most of the cooking for his own family, his wife and two daughters.

There are big names among his 34 contributors: chefs Mark Bittman and Mario Batali, as well as authors Stephen King, Jim Harrison and Mark Kurlansky. But the book also includes interviews with lower profile guys, regular fathers across the country.

Brett Thacher, a cooking Dad from Canton, is one of them. He was in the NCPR studios this morning to talk with Martha Foley.  Go to full article

Sackets Harbor, NY, Jun 06, 2011 — It's a challenging year, no doubt about it, for gardeners and commercial growers -- and the plants they're tending. There may be too much water in some places, but not enough in others, after a series of dry, sunny and windy days, and a couple of nights in the 30s. Cornell Cooperative extension horticulturist Amy Ivy has some reminders about garden TLC in her weekly chat with Martha Foley.
And they preview workshops on using local food, homegrown or not, starting next week in Sacket's Harbor, Canton and Plattsburgh.  Go to full article

Hardwick, VT, Apr 04, 2011 — Tonight and tomorrow, community leaders from around the region gather for the 9th Annual North Country Symposium. They'll try to learn lessons from a hardscrabble town in the Northeast Kingdom of Vermont.

About ten years ago, people in Hardwick started opening businesses related to local agriculture. Today, there are community-supported restaurants, a tofu maker, a seed company, fruit, vegetable, and meat growers, a food coop, and a not-for-profit composting agency. Hardwick's been featured on national TV, in the New York Times, and many other newspapers.

Author Ben Hewitt wrote about the Hardwick revival in his book, The Town That Food Saved. He's the keynote speaker at the Symposium.

Hewitt told David Sommerstein part of Hardwick's success is owned to a spirit of collaboration and a diversified entrepreneurial economy.  Go to full article