I want to use this post to share a new update in my ever-evolving, food-project-focused life. It began with this blog. Then the menu consulting (which is beginning a second start.) Then the cooking class at Floyd Light Middle School. And now an opportunity to teach the “food literacy and cooking skills” class at an alternative high school, called Fir Ridge (also in the David Douglas school district.) From this grows the most exciting detail in this action-packed tale…
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Cooking Class Takes New Direction
Poultry Pages: Introductions
Introductions…
My name is Doug.
I am a poultry farmer.
I am a freshly-minted, small-scale, unlikely poultry farmer who was lucky enough to have settled in one of the most beautiful spots on the eastern seaboard, Martha’s Vineyard’s Tisbury Great Pond.
“The Portland Meat Collective” (or) The Grass-Fed Manifesto (part 4)
I never thought I could be so excited about meat. Ever since the 100-mile diet and the discovery of grass-fed/pasture-raised meat, I have sworn myself to advocating for thoughtful carnivorous activity. As you may have read in previous posts: here, here and here, my knowledge and commitment to eating animals is thoughtful and compassionate (in my biased opinion.) To further my involvement in the local food movement and strengthen my knowledge of eating animals, I am excited to join the Portland Meat Collective!
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Urban farming – a world of possibility
Urban Agriculture: the practice of cultivating, processing and distributing food in, or around (peri-urban), a village, town or city. (This definition was taken from Wikipedia, and the source for this definition is from the article “From Brownfields to Greenfields: Producing Food in North American Cities,” from Community Food Security News written by M. Bailkey and J. Nasr.) Since “farming” is the action of developing agriculture, for this post I will substitute the terms.
Urban farming – what are its forms? Is it a reasonable means of food production? How is the individual and society at large affected by this growing agricultural movement? These are some of the questions to consider when we examine this trend in the local food movement and its roots in urban communities.
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Living off the grid
Nowadays when people say they want to “live off the grid,” I think it’s safe to say they are referring to the energy grid – i.e. fossil fuels, ”public” utilities, etc. As someone who does not own a home, I think the possibility of living off of the energy grid is slim. As a tenant, I have little control over where my water, electricity or gas comes from. I could attempt to persuade my landlord to pursue alternative energy sources, but realistically I cannot rely on the environmental consciousness of my landlord to live by these ideals. That said, I do think it’s possible to live off the “food grid.” This is one of my goals as a “food activist” (or wannabe activist) and this evening I found another means to this end.
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