Buy Local Food In Kitsap

Good News For Kitsap Farms

Visitors to this blog are usually people searching for something specific online, using search terms like “local food” or “kitsap csa” or something to do with local food in Kitsap. In fact, our site now shows up as number 1 or in the top eight search results on Google, Yahoo and MSN for a surprising number of search terms. But the question is “Does anyone really need a site like this or an organization like the Kitsap Community and Agricultural Alliance?”

Diane Fish, a pretty active locavore and Kitsap farmer sends me stuff from time to time. Today she sent me a link to an article about a young farmer in Clark County and the story of his struggle to build a farm and a livliehood. The article contains a lot of the down in the trenches reasons that every county needs an organization like the KCAA. It tells a story about what there is to admire about local farmers and a  lot of what needs to be different if we are ever able to create an environment where they thrive.

Consumers need to awaken to the reality of the condition of our food security and nutritional health. Social, business and government leaders need to wake up and recognize the critical importance of smaller community farms and farmers.

We need to do more than just wake up or be educated about these issues. We need to take concrete steps to preserve farmland, support young farmers that want to farm and return land to productive use growing healthy food. The article contains a lot of good information about many of the formidable barriers that prevent this but it doesn’t offer many good ideas about how to fix it.

That’s what we do. We aren’t the only group concerned about local farming and local food but we are one the few building our capacities to make it better. As a volunteer, member based organization we have the freedom to choose to do things that will really matter and we can choose to dig in to help specific individuals, one farmer at a time if we need to. The KCAA board and officers are cooking up an ambitious recipe for improving the lives of farmers, consumers and all those who care about them.
We all hear a lot about the poor economy, job losses, financial failures, bailouts, stimulus packages, etc. Working with the KCAA gives you the opportunity to do something about all that for your community and yourself. You have a choice to do something about your food and financial future besides waiting around for someone else to do it for you. Think of the work of the KCAA as your own stimulus plan.
If that sounds like a group that you would like to join, we would like to talk to you. You can read more about membership here. If you want to find out more now our next meeting will be the place to be. From 6:00 pm to 7:00 pm, one hour before the general meeting in February, we will be hosting a short discussion with several people whom have been specially invited to hear about our plans for the coming year and how we will be further ahead in helping Kitsap farms and consumers. We have some big surprise announcements.

If you want to be a part of this special group here is the meeting information and contact information to get your personal invitation:

Tuesday, February 10, 2009
7:00 – 9:00 PM
Norm Dicks Center
345 6th Street, Civic Meeting Room, Main Floor
Bremerton, WA

For your personal invitation contact kitsapag@gmail.com

Speak soon.