Athens.LocallyGrown.net

Athens Locally Grown

How to contact us:
Our Website: athens.locallygrown.net
On Twitter: @athlocallygrown
On Facebook: www.facebook.com/athenslocallygrown
On Thursdays: Here’s a map.

Market News

There are a number of events coming up, so I’ll devote this weeks mailing to them.

First up, “Building Nourishing Traditions”, a full-day workshop from the Weston Price Foundation, hosted my ALG member farm Rancho Allegra. You can find all the details here: http://buildingnt2013.eventbrite.com Come learn about nourishing, traditional foods, and receive practical guidance for implementing a nutrient-dense diet! The full-day conference will include speakers on many important topics, and the afternoon is full of practical workshops will include expert presentations teaching how to make nutrient-dense foods including Bone broth, Cultured dairy (yogurt, kefir), Preparations of grains, Vegetable ferments (sauerkraut, ginger carrots, beets), Cultured beverages (water kefir, kombucha), and more!

Local edible landscape experts Hungry Gnome is offering a variety of events throughout the year, but now is the time to get a jump of thinking about growing your own veggies this year. To that end, they offer a variety of individual Vegetable Support programs. You can find more details here: http://www.hungrygnome.org/hungrygnome/Garden_Support_by_Hungry_Gnome.html. They are also looking for two interns for the season. If you’re a student looking to get into landscaping, permaculture, garden design, and related careers, this is for you. More info here: http://www.hungrygnome.org/hungrygnome/Internships_with_Hungry_Gnome.html.

The South Carolina Organic Growing conference is being held on March 2nd in Columbia, SC. Even though it’s one day, it looks like a dense conference with lots of learning opportunity. Full details can be found here: http://www.scorganicliving.com/2013_Conference.html.

And of course the Georgia Organics conference is coming right up, February 22-23 in Atlanta. This conference is always well worth attending, and is close to selling out. Information is here: http://georgiaorganics.org/conference/

Our local cooperative extension agents are coordinating a series of workshops you may find interesting: Program Series for Small Organic and Naturally Grown Farms. Northeast Georgia is home to many small farms that are using direct marketing and alternative production practices to market to local consumers, retailers, and restaurants. University of Georgia Cooperative Extension is hosting a series of programs to provide the latest research-based information to these producers. These programs are designed for small farm producers that are implementing organic or sustainably grown practices (not necessarily “certified” organic or naturally grown) on their farms. All programs will be held at the J. Phil Campbell Research and Education Center in Watkinsville and will start with a meal at 5:30 PM. Cost for registration is $15 per session.

February 12 – Food Safety for Small Farms (Register by Feb. 4th)
February 19 – Small Farm Grazing Management (Register by Feb. 11th)
March 5 – Profitable Marketing for Small Farms (Register by Feb. 25th)
To register, contact the Oconee County Extension Office at 706-769-3946.

I think that’s all of my list of events. Even though we just had our coldest night of the winter so far this week, it’s time to start thinking of waking up the garden, and all of these will help you do just that.

Thanks so much for your support of Athens Locally Grown, all of our growers, local food, and our rights to eat it. You all are part of what makes Athens such a great area in which to live. We’ll see you on Thursday at Ben’s Bikes at the corner of Pope and Broad Streets from 4:30 to 8pm!

Other Area Farmers Markets

The Athens Farmers Market has closed for the winter. You can watch for news during the offseason on their website. Most of the other area markets are also all closed for the season too. The Washington-Wilkes Farmer’s Market in Washington is open every Saturday 9-12 behind the Washington Courthouse, and several ALG vendors also sell there.

Please support your local farmers and food producers, where ever you’re able to do so!

We thank you for your interest and support of our efforts to bring you the healthiest, the freshest and the most delicious locally-produced foods possible!

Athens Locally Grown

How to contact us:
Our Website: athens.locallygrown.net
On Twitter: @athlocallygrown
On Facebook: www.facebook.com/athenslocallygrown
On Thursdays: Here’s a map.

Market News

I’ve been focused most of this week getting things ready for a week-long trip to Little Rock, Arkansas for the annual conference of the Southern Sustainable Agriculture Working Group (SSAWG). About 1300 growers from across the country will be gathering to share knowledge and bring new ideas back home with them. I’m on the conference staff, and they keep me hopping, but I always look forward to going. It’s also exciting for me that it’s being held in Little Rock. Many, many online markets have popped up throughout Arkansas using our Athens Locally Grown system, and I’m looking forward to seeing some of them and the people behind them first hand. I’ve left our Thursday market here in the hands of our many capable regular volunteers, so I’d imagine you’ll never even notice I’m not there. There are a few things they can’t do, such as looking up account history and resolving old payment issues, so you can send those queries to me via email or wait until the following week.

Now, in the past few weeks I’ve talked about the legal organization and considerations behind our market and then the financial operation that keeps everything running. I’ll wrap up my yearly primer on Athens Locally Grown this week with a few words about our growers and other market vendors.

First and foremost, let me preface everything by saying the decision to let a new grower into the market is always made by me alone. I know many farmers markets often get some press regarding one vendor or another feeling left out of the market and complaining that the committee running that market was a little too closed. Well, my efforts to run ALG in a cooperative manner aside, the responsibility here comes back to me. There’s no committee, and no formal application process. I’ve had some potential vendors that I’ve rejected get upset with me and complain that ALG is a “closed” market, and they’re right. It is a closed market in that it’s not open to just anyone to sell through. That doesn’t mean we have arbitrary standards, of course, and actually I think I’ve set the bar pretty high. A good number of our growers also go above and beyond to only bring “the best of the best”, and that pushes the standards even higher. Here’s a summary of what it takes to be able to sell through Athens Locally Grown:

• All growers must use sustainable practices and never use synthetic fertilizers or pesticides. I’ll come back to this later.
• All growers can only sell what they themselves have grown, made, or otherwise produced
• All growers must be from the greater Athens area. Right now, this means within about 75 miles
• All growers must be willing to be part of our ALG community, and not think of us as just a dumping off point.
• All animals raised for meat or eggs must be pastured or sustainably wild-caught
• Handicrafts must be made primarily from items produced or gathered on the farm
• Prepared foods must use organic ingredients if at all possible, and locally grown ingredients if at all possible
• All proper licenses, when required by law, must be obtained

That about covers everything, I think. When I’ve turned down requests to sell through ALG (and I turn down several monthly), the items clearly broke one or more of those standards. There are a few edge cases that I take on a case by case basis. Coffee is one. 1000 Faces was our first coffee vendor, and they offered direct trade coffees (they purchas directly from the coffee growers with no distributor or middle man) and did all the roasting and packaging themselves and to order. That set the standard, and other coffee vendors (such as GranCoffee Roasting Co.) have to match it. Mills Farm was a founding ALG member, but they buy in organic grains for their mill. We now have Sylvan Falls Mill in Rabun Gap as a vendor, and they primarily buy their grains from local (to them) organic growers. From now on, all future millers wanting to sell through ALG will have to meet that standard. And so on.

Let me get back to that first requirement: “sustainable practices”. There’s no set definition of that, and there’s really a sliding scale. For example, I sometimes use a gasoline-powered rototiller, and our no-till growers and the no-hydrocarbon growers would frown upon that. There is a generally accepted definition of what is “conventional” agriculture, and that includes the use of synthetic fertilizers and pesticides, and confined and grain-fed animals. Those are easy to exclude. At the other end, there is the USDA Organic Certification and Certified Naturally Grown certification. Few small diversified growers can meet the expense of USDA certification, but a good number of our growers are CNG certified. This program uses the USDA rules as a starting point, made a few things more strict, and uses a system of growers certifying other growers to keep things honest. My farm had been CNG certified for nine years (though I dropped my certification last year simply because my garden got really, really small), and many others area farms have followed since then. If a new grower does not have a certification, then I talk to them, get information about them, and visit their farm in person when necessary. A good number of our growers were ALG customers long before growing for market themselves, so I’ve gotten to know the people and the decision to let them in was easy.

In short: the growers have satisfied my standards, and I personally have approved them for inclusion in ALG. However, I want you to not just take my word for it. We have monthly farm tours during the warm seasons so you can go on-site yourself and see the farms in action. We have a semi-regular “meet the grower” table at the Thursday pickups so you can talk with the growers yourself face-to-face. We encourage them to take photos for their online photo album, to describe their practices, and to take care with their product listings. We want to facilitate communication between you and them, so when you place an order, they see your name and email address in case they need to clarify a request or offer a substitution, and likewise for most of our growers you can see their contact info when you view their grower profile (while logged into the site) so you can get clarification from them when needed.

I’m often wrestle with some of those edge cases. Doug’s Wild Alaska Salmon was one such case. The salmon and halibut they sell was caught in Alaska, but Doug and his family live here (well, just over the line in South Carolina). They own their own small boats, and catch the fish themselves. Their practices are certified sustainable by a reputable organization up there, and their products are high quality. They’ve worked out the logistics of getting fish to you every week (by keeping a supply at my house in a freezer they own). I have in the past talked with sugar cane growers from South Georgia, fisherman from Savannah, olive growers from Savannah, citrus producers from Florida, and other people making items we just can’t get from growers located right here. Often, the logistics of getting their items from there to here on a regular and timely basis is what breaks down, but I hope that over time we’ll be able to expand the items at our market without compromising our community of growers located right here.

Hopefully that explains how our growers get into ALG, what standards they have to meet, and so on. It’s a very important topic, perhaps the most important one for our market, but much of it goes on behind the scenes. I know you’ve put your trust in me, and I take that very seriously, If you’d like to talk with me in person about this or any other aspects of ALG, I’d love to do so. Just pull me aside when you come by to pick up your order.

Thanks so much for your support of Athens Locally Grown, all of our growers, local food, and our rights to eat it. You all are part of what makes Athens such a great area in which to live. We’ll see you on Thursday at Ben’s Bikes at the corner of Pope and Broad Streets from 4:30 to 8pm!

Other Area Farmers Markets

The Athens Farmers Market has closed for the winter. You can watch for news during the offseason on their website. Most of the other area markets are also all closed for the season too. The Washington-Wilkes Farmer’s Market in Washington is open every Saturday 9-12 behind the Washington Courthouse, and several ALG vendors also sell there.

Please support your local farmers and food producers, where ever you’re able to do so!

We thank you for your interest and support of our efforts to bring you the healthiest, the freshest and the most delicious locally-produced foods possible!

Athens Locally Grown

How to contact us:
Our Website: athens.locallygrown.net
On Twitter: @athlocallygrown
On Facebook: www.facebook.com/athenslocallygrown
On Thursdays: Here’s a map.

Market News

I’m devoting the newsletter these first few weeks of the year to documenting in detail just how ALG works. I’ll spend some time next week talking about how growers get allowed in the market, and what standards they have to meet. But first, last week I promised I’d get into the details of how the market sustains itself financially. Many of you ask about that from time to time, and I’m happy to oblige.

First off, we’re legally a sole proprietorship, and the market is just an extension of my wife’s and my small farm. We file a Schedule F in addition to our regular tax forms. When the market started in 2002, it was named “Locally Grown Cooperative”, but it was never legally organized as a co-op. Dan & Kris Miller, the founders from Heirloom Organics farm in Watkinsville, were always sure to run things in a cooperative spirit, and since they handed the business to my wife and I in 2004, we’ve tried to do the same thing. I’ve renamed it to “Athens Locally Grown”, but you’ll still hear a number of people refer to us as “the co-op”.

We’re not a non-profit, either, but we’ve structured things so that over time the market can just cover its own expenses. Just like all of our member farms are sustainable growers, the market itself needs to be sustainable. So how does the market cover its expenses? One small way is through the memberships you pay. The $25 a year you give to the market is enough (to put it bluntly) to cover the costs of having you as a customer: banking fees from depositing your checks, paper and ink for printing, web hosting fees, and that sort of thing. What’s left over goes to helping fund farm tours, food donations to like-minded area groups and events, etc. We currently have 484 paid members out of the 3743 active accounts on the website.

By far the bulk of our funding comes from the growers themselves. They generally pay a 10% commission on their sales through the site. This money covers the many coolers we use, the tables and shelves used to spread out and organize your orders, the truck we bought at the end of 2007, gasoline, the food allowance we offer our volunteers, rent and utilities at Ben’s Bikes, etc. During the slow parts of the year, the sales are usually not enough to cover our weekly costs, but in the busy times (late fall and early spring, for us) there is extra. If we plan things out well, it pretty much all evens out in the end.

Last year, the total sales and memberships combined through the market amounted to $359,442. This is actually a very small decline from 2010, but the continual rise of so many other markets in the area is the biggest reason for that. (We used to be the largest farmers market in this part of the state, but only because the others were so small.) About 90% went straight to our growers, and the rest went to a food allowance for our volunteers ($400 to $500 a week), rent ($200/month), tables & shelves ($1000), our farm tours (about $750 total), web hosting, and transportation. The “profit” gets counted as personal income on our tax forms, and comes out to roughly $2000. I haven’t yet calculated milage allowances and other minor expenses, and I expect that the profit total will pretty much come out to zero when I do.

The growers get paid out of the shared cashbox when they drop off their sales, during the hour before we open the market. Then, you arrive and pay into the cashbox for your order. We used to then rush to the bank to deposit the money to cover the checks we just wrote to the growers, but now the growers get paid the following week (money you pay via credit cards takes several days to reach our account). As explained elsewhere on the website, you are really ordering directly from and paying the growers yourself, but our shared cashbox system makes things convenient for you and them. (Imagine if you ordered from ten growers having to write ten checks when you picked up your items!) This shared cashbox system has so far satisfied the tax man, but it does mean that if you place an order and then never arrive to pick it up, we’re left holding the bag. For that reason, you are responsible for paying for orders not picked up, and that amount is automatically added on to your next order for your convenience. On the books right now (going back to 2007) is about $2672 of produce ordered but never picked up and so far never paid for at all (or picked up but paid for with bad checks). That might seem like a lot (and it is), but considering that the market’s sales total, that’s not so bad. In fact, it’s about a fifth of the US retail industry’s “shrinkage” rate, and almost all of it is owed by only ten people. Only $600 came from this last year. On the flip side, $5241 has been pre-paid into the cash box by people who pay online via credit card or who write large checks in person, and then draw down on that balance over time.

There were 9749 orders placed last year, so that averages to $36.87 spent per order. There are no good studies on this number, but I’ve seen a few surveys conducted by the USDA indicate that the average customer spends $25 per trip to a farmers market. We continue to far exceed that average, which I think says a lot about the advantages ALG offers over the traditional market. And to your dedication to supporting our growers.

So, in probably far too much detail, that’s how we operate financially. Our market might be more expensive to run than a traditional “booths and tables” farmers market, but that price buys a system that’s simple, time-saving, flexible, and in my opinion, just better. There’s no money in the bank, but the market is paying for itself and that’s my primary financial goal. If you’d like to talk with me in person about this or any other aspects of ALG, I’d love to do so. Just pull me aside when you come by to pick up your order.

One administrative note: next week I’ll be in Little Rock for the annual Southern Sustainable Agriculture Working Group’s annual conference. Since Doug’s Salmon keeps his fish at my house, it will not be available to purchase next week. If you want some for then, order it now! It’ll return the week after.

Thanks so much for your support of Athens Locally Grown, all of our growers, local food, and our rights to eat it. You all are part of what makes Athens such a great area in which to live. We’ll see you on Thursday at Ben’s Bikes at the corner of Pope and Broad Streets from 4:30 to 8pm!

Other Area Farmers Markets

The Athens Farmers Market has closed for the winter. You can watch for news during the offseason on their website. Most of the other area markets are also all closed for the season too. The Washington-Wilkes Farmer’s Market in Washington is open every Saturday 9-12 behind the Washington Courthouse, and several ALG vendors also sell there.

Please support your local farmers and food producers, where ever you’re able to do so!

We thank you for your interest and support of our efforts to bring you the healthiest, the freshest and the most delicious locally-produced foods possible!

Athens Locally Grown

How to contact us:
Our Website: athens.locallygrown.net
On Twitter: @athlocallygrown
On Facebook: www.facebook.com/athenslocallygrown
On Thursdays: Here’s a map.

Market News

Given that we’re starting a new year of Athens Locally Grown (our twelfth!), and we’re continually welcoming new members to our market, I’m be devoting the next few mailings to the behind the scenes operation of ALG. This week, I’m going to talk about the many legal issues surrounding our market. Even though many people call us “the co-op”, ALG is legally an extension of my wife’s and my tiny vegetable farm. There’s no board of directors, no shield corporation, no pot of grant money. It’s just us, and while that keeps things very simple, it also exposes my family to a ton of potential liability. It’s never been an issue (except when the whole raw milk thing erupted) but there are several things we do specifically toward that end:

• The growers list their own items and set their own prices. When you buy from them, it is from them, not from me, and not from Athens Locally Grown.
• Athens Locally Grown never takes ownership or possession of the food. The growers drop it off, and you pick it up.
• Everything at the market has a customer’s name attached to it when it arrives. ALG does not repackage any items.
• When you pay, you’re paying into a shared cash box for all of the growers. This lets you write a single check for convenience, but you are really paying all of the growers directly and individually.
• The growers give a small percentage of their sales, generally 10%, back to the market to cover the expenses of keeping the market going. I’ll cover the details of finances another week.
• ALG never buys from a grower and resells the items to you. Never.
• When a grower sells items that need licenses from either the state or the federal government, ALG verifies that the proper licenses have been obtained.

The ownership issue is key. It’s one of the reasons why we can’t deliver, and why we usually can’t hold items for you if you aren’t able to pick up your orders. Delivery might be a good business for someone (if they could figure out all the legal requirements), but it’s not at all what I want to be into. Many food co-ops and even some farmers markets aren’t as careful with all this as I try to be, and that has gotten other groups similar to us into serious legal trouble (deserved or not). There are so many grey areas in all this, and the written regulations don’t even consider that something like Athens Locally Grown might exist. We’re so firmly in the grey areas with most everything we do that it’s just too risky for me to bring us into the areas that are clearly black.

So, these are the sorts of things that guide my thinking as Locally Grown has grown over the years. Everything we do has legal ramifications, and the state of Georgia has a reputation for being no nonsense when it comes to enforcement — with the little guy, anyway. That has became extra obvious in recent years, and the FDA is also putting pressure on groups like us too. I’m not a lawyer, but every time we enter those grey areas, I make sure we follow the intent of the laws, don’t flaunt anything, and have a good defense and a paper trail should we need it. And when that doesn’t work, the good folks at the Farm to Consumer Legal Defense Fund are behind us. They have consumer memberships, too, and I do encourage everyone who is able to become a member of the FtCLDF.

The FtCLDF was my legal counsel in the federal lawsuit against the FDA I (and one of our members) was a plaintiff on. The lawsuit was in response to the seizure and destruction of 110 gallons of South Carolina milk purchased by ALG members in October 2009. During the pre-trial phase, the FDA moved to dismiss the suit, and went so far as to claim that the milk dumping, filmed and placed on YouTube, with an FDA agent clearly identified, never happened. The judge refused to dismiss, and gave the FDA six months to give a yes or no answer to whether what we did is really considered illegal. Exactly six months later, they responded that it was illegal, but also claimed that even though an FDA agent was at my house giving direction, they had no hand in the dumping. They also went on record stating that individuals were legally free to cross state lines and buy raw milk to take home with them (something that the FDA agent at my house said, on camera, was completely illegal under all circumstances). After that, the judge dismissed the suit without fully ruling whether ALG was also free to facilitate our members collectively ordering and picking up milk across state lines. In any case, the state of Georgia still says what we were doing was illegal, so raw milk is still very hard to come by.

And there in a nutshell is the legalities behind ALG. In the following weeks, I’ll get more into the nuts and bolts of finances and other aspects of how we work.

A few other notes this week: One of our meat producers, BPH Farms, has changed their farm name to BG Farms. Their products remain the same. Also, the website has undergone a bit of a cosmetic facelift. Everything still works the same, but the colors are a bit different. As many of you know, there are several hundred markets like ours around North America using the software I wrote for ALG. One farmer in Tennessee is also a graphic designer, and is working on a set of “skins” he can offer to those other markets. I’ve installed one basic skin at our market, and may put in others to look at as he makes them. It’ll never affect how the site works, so don’t let the colors throw you off.

Thanks so much for your support of Athens Locally Grown, all of our growers, local food, and our rights to eat it. You all are part of what makes Athens such a great area in which to live. We’ll see you on Thursday at Ben’s Bikes at the corner of Pope and Broad Streets from 4:30 to 8pm!

Other Area Farmers Markets

The Athens Farmers Market has closed for the winter. You can watch for news during the offseason on their website. The other area markets are also all closed for the season too. All but Athens Locally Grown, that is.

Please support your local farmers and food producers, where ever you’re able to do so!

We thank you for your interest and support of our efforts to bring you the healthiest, the freshest and the most delicious locally-produced foods possible!

Athens Locally Grown

How to contact us:
Our Website: athens.locallygrown.net
On Twitter: @athlocallygrown
On Facebook: www.facebook.com/athenslocallygrown
On Thursdays: Here’s a map.

Market News

Hello, and happy new year! 2013 marks the start of Athens Locally Grown’s twelfth year in operation. What began as the very first internet farmers market anywhere has moved beyond Athens to hundreds of communities across the continent, and continues to spread. I’m so very pleased to be a part of it, and to have you here along with me!

I’m still in holiday mode here. I’m not in academia myself anymore, but so many people I know are, so it seems like winter break to me. Several of our growers are still away from home or otherwise taking a break from selling, but we still have nearly 900 products to choose from this week. Happy eating!

Thanks so much for your support of Athens Locally Grown, all of our growers, and local food in general. You all are part of what makes Athens such a great area in which to live. We’ll see you on Thursday at Ben’s Bikes at the corner of Pope and Broad Streets from 4:30 to 8pm!

Athens Locally Grown

How to contact us:
Our Website: athens.locallygrown.net
On Twitter: @athlocallygrown
On Facebook: www.facebook.com/athenslocallygrown
On Thursdays: Here’s a map.

Market News

Hello, there! I’m taking some time off from wrapping presents and baking cookies to let you know that we are indeed open as usual this week. We’ll be at Ben’s Bikes on Thursday from 4:30 to 8pm as usual, and we’ll be taking orders all day Monday and Tuesday as usual. A few of our growers are taking the week off, but there are still nearly 900 products listed. I know many of you are out of town this week as well, so maybe the rest of us will have less competition over the eggs.

Usually the growers stop listing things for the week before I open the market to you all for orders. Some of them may have been distracted with family things this weekend, however, so I’m keeping their side of the market open in case they didn’t yet make it to their computers today. So, place your orders now like you do, but you may also want to check back later on Monday or even on Tuesday to see if any growers have been late to list products. We’ll combine your orders for you, no matter how many you place.

If you’re celebrating holidays this week, I hope you have very happy ones. If you celebrated yours last week, I hope they were the very best. Myself, I try to celebrate early and often. There are so many reasons to celebrate, I figure.

Thanks so much for your support of Athens Locally Grown, all of our growers, and local food in general. You all are part of what makes Athens such a great area in which to live. We’ll see you on Thursday at Ben’s Bikes at the corner of Pope and Broad Streets from 4:30 to 8pm!

Athens Locally Grown

How to contact us:
Our Website: athens.locallygrown.net
On Twitter: @athlocallygrown
On Facebook: www.facebook.com/athenslocallygrown
On Thursdays: Here’s a map.

Market News

It’ll just be a quick note this week, so you can get right to ordering. There are 1061 items listed this Christmas week. Two years ago I was excited because there was only 800, so this is fantastic. It’d be no trouble to put together a Locally Grown holiday meal using only ingredients provided by our growers, and I can’t tell you how happy that makes me. And there are even lots of gift baskets and other items suitable for giving. Sylvan Falls Mill has a gluten free almond Noel Log cake that I’m excited about, that might start a new dessert tradition at my house. And there’s so much more from all of our other growers and producers. Such a treat!

We will be operating our normal days and times this week, so we’ll be seeing you on Thursday the 20th as normal. If I get all my ducks in a row, I’ll even have some hot cider and maybe even other goodies to share. The Athens Farmers Market closed for the winter yesterday, but we’ll be going right through non-stop, even on the 27th. Our growers are still going strong, and you can even get vine-ripened tomatoes for your Holiday table!

Thanks so much for your support of Athens Locally Grown, all of our growers, and local food in general. You all are part of what makes Athens such a great area in which to live. We’ll see you on Thursday at Ben’s Bikes at the corner of Pope and Broad Streets from 4:30 to 8pm!

Athens Locally Grown

How to contact us:
Our Website: athens.locallygrown.net
On Twitter: @athlocallygrown
On Facebook: www.facebook.com/athenslocallygrown
On Thursdays: Here’s a map.

Market News

Hello! Just a few weeks before the end of the year, and we’re back up to over 1000 products listed for you at the market tonight. There are quite a few new items listed in addition to your old favorites.

We’re happy to have the “Meet the Grower” table filled this week. On Thursday when you come pick up your order, you can meet Linda Johnson of Sylvan Falls Mill. She has 21 products listed this week, including some excellent baked items made from flour that she milled using their waterwheel-powered mill. In addition to sampling her wonderful treats, you can learn about the great bed and breakfast she operates there at the mill.

I received news today that one of our vendors lost their family home in a fire, along with all their possessions. I understand the family is physically uninjured, but escaped with literally only the clothes on their backs. I’m working to confirm the details on how we can help, and will have them for you ASAP.

Thank you for your support of Athens Locally Grown, all of our growers and their hard work, local food, and our rights to eat it. You all are part of what makes Athens such a great area in which to live. We’ll see you on Thursday at Ben’s Bikes at the corner of Pope and Broad Streets from 4:30 to 8pm!

Athens Holiday Artisan Markets

Here is a list of upcoming holiday artisan markets, as printed in the Flagpole:

An outdoor patio under twinkling lights makes for a festive setting at the Big City Bread Holiday Market, held Thursday, Dec. 13 & Friday, Dec. 14 from 5–9 p.m. This toasty juried market, complete with bonfires and live music, presents the works of over 40 artists, including Lou Kregel, Normaltown Woodworks, 3 Porch Farms and Jaime Calkin, with items such as bird houses, paintings, lamps, woodwork and tiny play kitchens. Big City Bread Cafe is located at 393 N. Finley St. Find Big City Bread Holiday Market on Facebook.

#Ceramic artist group Long Road Studio will host Ceramic Arts Holiday Sales, 9 a.m.–6 p.m. on Saturday, Dec. 15 & Sunday, Dec. 16, and again on Saturday, Dec. 22 & Sunday, Dec. 23. Held at Normaltown Pottery, located at 410 King Ave., the sales include pottery and sculptures by Juana Gnecco, Laura Cooper, Nancy Green, Allya Macdonald, Melanie Sgrignoli, Kendall Steele and Caryn van Wagtendonk. Call 706-549-7007 for details.

#Part artist market, part flea market, the relatively new, once-monthly Eclectic Bazaar features a curated selection of handmade items and artwork as well as vintage clothing, records and musical instruments. Likely the last until warm weather returns in the spring, the market offers a diverse spread of interesting finds. The Eclectic Bazaar will take place at the corner of Broad and Church streets outside of Vic’s Vintage during the afternoon on Sunday, Dec. 16. For more details or to participate as a future vendor, email athenseclecticbazaar@gmail.com.

#Local art supporter Flicker Theatre & Bar opens its doors early for its own Holiday Market on Saturday, Dec. 22 from 12–5 p.m. Have the bartender mix up an afternoon cocktail to warm up with as you look over the collection of creations from Athens-area artists. Flicker is located at 263 W. Washington St. downtown. Visit www.flickertheatreandbar.com for more information.

Upcoming Gardening Events

If you enjoy working with people, digging in the dirt and talking “trash”, we want you to become a volunteer Master Composter with the Athens-Clarke County Master Composting Program! Become a home composting expert and teach your family, friends, neighbors, and fellow community members, “How to Compost”. Master Composters are an elite group of volunteers who have undergone an extensive training class in all aspects of the composting process, and then use that information to teach others how to turn their organic material into a beneficial soil amendment.

DATES: Wednesday evenings, January 30th – Wednesday, March 20, 2013 including two Saturday morning field trips as follows: Saturday, February 16 and Saturday, March 2, 2013.
TIMES: 6:00 PM – 8:00 PM
LOCATION: ACC Solid Waste Department Administration Building Training Room, 725 Hancock Industrial Way, Athens 30605
COST: $130
TO REGISTER: Contact ACC Cooperative Extension at (706) 613-3640 or for more information or an application visit: http://www.caes.uga.edu/extension/clarke/anr/index.html#compost

Other Area Farmers Markets

The Athens Farmers Market is held every Saturday morning at Bishop Park from 9am to noon for the next several weeks (The Wednesday market has closed for the winter). It’s a totally separate entity from Athens Locally Grown, but you’ll find many of the same growers at both. And of course, you can learn more about that market on their website.

Many of the ALG growers sell through more than one market. Don’t feel like you have to choose a favorite, either. We have many items here you can’t find there, and I’m sure the reverse it also true. Many people stop by the supermarket several times a week, so it’s only natural that you might wish to stop by a farmers market several times a week. Please support your local farmers and food producers, where ever you’re able to do so. We’ll see you there!

We thank you for your interest and support of our efforts to bring you the healthiest, the freshest and the most delicious locally-produced foods possible!

Athens Locally Grown

How to contact us:
Our Website: athens.locallygrown.net
On Twitter: @athlocallygrown
On Facebook: www.facebook.com/athenslocallygrown
On Thursdays: Here’s a map.

We thank you for your interest and support of our efforts to bring you the healthiest, the freshest and the most delicious locally-produced foods possible!