Public Interest Groups Get it Wrong on Egg Recall

By Kimberly Hartke | Published: August 31, 2010

fresh eggs at the portland market
Creative Commons License photo credit: kthread

Local Foods are the Answer Not Government Agencies

by Alyce Ortuzar

It is obvious from this egg recall that neither the FDA nor the USDA
has any understanding of nutrition or food safety. So they should not
be telling Americans what to eat, what is nutritious, or what is safe.

The industrial farm operations with one million chickens where the
contaminated eggs come from would never pass an inspection, nor should
they. So the idea that any additional laws would protect the public,
short of shutting these inhumane, toxic waste dumpsites down, borders
on the absurd. Read More »

Posted in Food Politics | Tagged , , , | 7 Comments

Joshua’s Farm vs. The Commonwealth of Massachusetts

By Kimberly Hartke | Published: August 27, 2010
brigitte-stanchions

Will this small farm thrive or barely survive?

Dairy Herdshare Told to Cease Operations by Massachusetts Dept. of Agriculture

Former 1st Assistant Attorney General Takes the Case

by Kimberly Hartke

Brigitte Ruthman is 50 years old, a career journalist who now lives on a small 36 acre farm near the Sandisfield State Forest in Massachusetts. As a young girl she became fascinated with farm life, she begged her father to allow her to work on a number of farms in Connecticut, and Vermont. The lessons she learned as a teenage farm hand stayed with her.  As she describes, the farm work “stung her with an infection she couldn’t ignore–a love for cows.”

Brigitte worked as a reporter for 30 years, even served as a bureau chief, and still works as a journalist today, while farming part-time in Sandisfield, population 800. On her farm she produces and sells eggs from a flock of 80 heirloom hens, Auracanas, Bantams and Barred Rocks. She raises a few pigs and has several cows.

Brigitte senses that in Massachusetts, demand for raw milk is exploding, and so is the persecution and bullying of small farmers. Read More »

Posted in Food Politics, Raw Milk | Tagged , , | 9 Comments

Small Farmer Speaks Out about Raw Milk Access in Massachusetts

By Kimberly Hartke | Published: August 27, 2010
brigitte-ruthman

Brigitte Ruthman nursing her young calf, Ruby Mae

My Testimony before the Massachusetts Department of Agriculture and Natural Resources, May 10, 2010

By Brigitte Ruthman, Joshua’s Farm

These are the remarks I prepared for the hearing, my actual oral testimony may vary slightly from this text.

I own a small farm in Sandisfield, a small Berkshire County town which once had dozens of dairy farms. There are no others dairy cows here or in any neighboring town. People bring their children here to show them what a cow looks like.
I might be the only person in The Commonwealth to have launched a dairy enterprise in the current mine filled landscape. I brought back land that hadn’t been farmed in years, and am negotiating for the use of adjoining pastureland which is for sale as house lots. It is beautiful, historic high ground the state has rejected for protection because the soil type isn’t a priority.

My personal investment in this business is now over $60,000. I am nurturing a small herd of milking shorthorn cattle on pasture. Read More »

Posted in Food Politics | Tagged , , , | 1 Comment

Hedgebrook Farm Announces New Artisan Cheese

By Kimberly Hartke | Published: August 25, 2010

Jersey-Milk-Raw-Cheese

New Artisan Cheeses, with Raw Milk Sourced from Hedgebrook Farm

Start Up Cheesemakers Source Ingredients from Traditional Dairy Farm

Virginia farmer Kitty Nicholas, owner of  Hedgebrook Farm, is now embarking on a new endeavor, marketing raw cheese made with milk from her dairy herd, for new artisan cheesemakers in West Virginia.

Penny-and-Jurgen

Penny and Jurgen plucking a chicken

Penny Sagawa and her boyfriend Jurgen Schelzik both had jobs at a downtown D.C. trade association. Wanting a weekend getaway, they started to look for rural property.  They purchased a 32 acre farm in a far flung part of West Virginia. One thing led to another, and they decided to make a permanent getaway from their professional careers to farm life. Read More »

Posted in Sustainable Farming | Tagged , , , | Leave a comment

Massachusetts Scene of a Modern Day Rebellion

By Kimberly Hartke | Published: August 23, 2010
teat=party

Teat Party Held by Raw Milk Network

Teat Party Raw Milk Fund Raiser

by Joseph Heckman, PhD

On Thursday, August 12, 2010, I had the pleasure of attending the Massachusetts Teat Party, a fundraiser for the NOFA/Massachusetts Raw Milk Network. It was held at the Cook Farm in Hadley, which sells raw milk from its farm store, just a few miles away from the University of Massachusetts where NOFA was holding its summer conference. Read More »

Posted in Food Politics | Tagged , , | 1 Comment

Young Cheesemaker Says Goodbye to Wisconsin

By Kimberly Hartke | Published: August 19, 2010
Scott-Trautman-Bill-Anderson

Scott Trautman and Bill Anderson

My Farewell Speech to Wisconsin Department of Agriculture, Trade and Consumer Protection

by Bill Anderson

Thank you for the opportunity to speak today.

My name is Bill Anderson.  I am 25 years old.  I was born and raised in Wisconsin, and have lived here for my entire life.  Though I grew up in the suburbs of Milwaukee, I just completed the entire Wisconsin cheese maker licensing program, and passed the final exam yesterday.  I should also mention that my mother grew up on a diversified family-run dairy farm in central Wisconsin.

However, this week I am making the biggest move of my life.  I am moving to Athens, Ohio, to start an artisanal cheese program for Snowville Creamery, in the foothills of the Appalachian Mountains. Read More »

Posted in Food Politics | 10 Comments

For Family Fun Tour a Raw Dairy Farm

By Kimberly Hartke | Published: August 18, 2010
Touring-Shank-Dairy

Admiring the Heifers on a Tour of Dairy Farm

Raw Milk Road Trip

by Guest Blogger Joseph Heckman, PhD

In the spirit of “Know Your Farmer, Know Your Food” my family and a few friends set out on a road trip to take a tour of a farm that produces raw milk. The Family Cow is one of several Pennsylvania farms where many of us New Jersey raw milk drinkers are sourcing food. Sure we would prefer eating local, but ironically eating local is not always legal in the Garden State! This farm in south central Pennsylvania maintains several distribution sites within the Keystone State. This service helps to make access to raw milk more convenient for outsiders. Read More »

Posted in Animal Husbandry, Raw Milk | Tagged , , , , , | 4 Comments

Cheeseslave Blogger Offers Sustainable Meat and Fish Cooking Class

By Kimberly Hartke | Published: August 17, 2010
Ann-Marie-Michaels

Ann Marie

“When I was 25, I was diagnosed with rheumatoid arthritis, chronic fatigue syndrome, adrenal exhaustion, and chronic respiratory allergies and sinus infections. I was young, but I felt like an 90-year-old woman. Getting out of bed was a challenge; I was constantly getting sick. I was exhausted and miserable.”

“By changing my diet, I was able to reverse all my symptoms. Instead of ending up in a wheelchair, I get to enjoy my life.”

–Ann Marie Michaels, Cheeseslave.com blog

I am reading a book right now called Dangerous Grains. It came out in 2002. I am shocked to see the numbers of health issues caused by grains, and then I find out today that Ann Marie Michaels regained her health on a gluten free diet. Here is my recent interview with her about her upcoming cooking e-class.

Interview with Ann Marie Michaels

Kimberly: How did you come to choose Surf and Turf for your first e-course?

Ann Marie: I wanted to teach people about organ meats, Sally Fallon Morell of the Weston A. Price Foundation is always talking about the importance of eating them. But then, I also realized that seafood, specifically shellfish has loads of nutrients, and people need to be eating more of that also.

I also got feed back from readers saying they didn’t know how to cook fish.

From a health standpoint, eating seafood once or twice a week can lower your chance of dying from heart disease by 36%. Read More »

Posted in Cooking | Tagged , , , | Leave a comment

Loudoun Farm Buying Club Helps Preserve Historic Farms

By Kimberly Hartke | Published: August 11, 2010
smith-meadows-farm-free-range-grass-fed

Smith Meadows, One of the Loudoun Flavor Farms

Join our Club to Keep Loudoun Countryside Green, Promote Farming as a Career

by Laura Davimes, Guest Blogger

I spent 7 years traveling VA doing Farm Markets before my heart landed on Loudoun County as a home for my family. Then it took me 3 more years to rearrange my life to get here. The soil and climate are fantastic for growing all kinds of things and there is so much pristine, untouched land here which makes for the healthiest kind of food.

I really want Loudoun to be seen as a place where the highest quality and “cleanest” food comes from. Read More »

Posted in Local Food | 1 Comment

Interview with Mark McAfee, Raw Dairy Farmer

By Kimberly Hartke | Published: August 2, 2010

Baby, I Like it Raw from Sickly Cat Network on Vimeo.

John Byrd III Interviews Mark McAfee, California Dairyman

Mark McAfee owner of Organic Pastures Dairy is articulate, passionate and wild. He wore a kilt to give a keynote address at the raw milk symposium!

He is definitely a braveheart when it comes to promoting his product, and belief in sustainable dairy farming. I am proud to introduce him to you today if you haven’t met him yet. Read More »

Posted in Heroes of Sustainable Agriculture, Raw Milk | Tagged , | 2 Comments

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    Kimberly Hartke is a homemaker, not a health professional. She also serves as the publicist for a nutrition education non-profit, the Weston A. Price Foundation.

    This information is designed to amuse, challenge, even provoke you to explore beyond the conventional food and health system.

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