Agenda - 11-17-2009 - 4g - Laserfiche WebLink

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54 1 should regularly communicate with media about achievements reached under this 2 plan. 3 e. Improve Communication and Networking within the Farm Community. 4 5 2. Develop Stronger Connections Between Schools and Local Farms. 6 Schools ofFer an excellent opportunity to educate students and their parents about the 7 importance of local farms. The school cafeteria system also provides a substantial market 8 for locally grown products. 9 a. The County should continue to pursue all opportunities to teach students about 10 agriculture-the value of locally grown goods to their health and the local economy. 11 Instruction should include hands-on training from field to table-growing vegetables 12 from assigned garden plots, harvest techniques, food storage (canning) and 13 preparation. 14 b. The County should also continue to pursue efforts to serve locally grown products in 15 cafeterias. New school buildings should be designed with commercial kitchens capable 16 of cooking food from scratch. The Small Farms/School Meals Initiative was started in 17 1997 by the USDA as a model to get locally grown products into public school 18 cafeterias, Orange County needs to study this model and determine the best way to 19 incorporate a similar program into its public school system. The creation of brokering 20 systems and/or cooperative frameworks for use in one institutional setting will be 21 easily assimilated into another creating a series of win-win spin-offs. 22 23 24 Pursue New Initiatives to Address Increasing Energy Costs and Alternative 25 Energy Needs 26 1. County residents must begin to develop a more holistic view of agriculture and a better 27 understanding of the global implications of their lifestyle decisions, particularly as 28 consumers. 29 In an effort to address increasing petroleum demands and increasing oil prices, farmers and 30 non-farmers should reconsider their energy usage-building and vehicle needs (cars and 31 farm machinery). 32 33 2. Local farmers should be encouraged to explore the potential for growing crops suitable for 34 the production of alternative fuels, and the potential to process alternative fuels. 35 "Growing Green" or alternative energy production is a growing industry and one that is well 36 suited to the farming community.31 What makes green industries particularly attractive for 37 farmers is the number of options available. Some of these new commodities include: 38 a. Sequestered Carbon. Energy companies are beginning to pay farmers for "credits" to 39 help mitigate climate change. Growing grasses, trees or using no-till planting practices 40 that leave the soil relatively undisturbed trap carbon rather than releasing it into the 41 atmosphere. Properly managed forestry programs can provide a sustainable source of 42 lumber while offsetting carbon dioxide emissions. Forestry has great potential for 43 Orange County farmers, but cutting trees is part of the operation. Forestry and 44 agricultural support staff will have to help educate the non-farm community so that 31 The American Farmland Trust dedicated the Winter 2008 issue of its magazine, American Farmland, to climate change and green opportunities for farmers. More information on this topic is available on their website http://www.farmland.org~. Draft 11!09/2009 Action Steps to Ensure a Viable Agricultural Community 43