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Riverside’s Fox Farm Seeks to Raise Funds to Sustain Its Urban Farming Endeavors
October 16, 2015 | Robert Puro
Scott Berndt of Fox Farm in Riverside, CA
Fox Farm is an urban farm location at Hapemen Ranch, a 2.5 acre orchard with 75 various fruit tree. This farm is completely surrounded by houses and located in the heart of Riverside CA. Farmer Scott Berndt has cultivated about a 1/3 of an acre of vegetables, which he provides to local restaurants in Riverside as well as to the Riverside Unified School District through its Farm-to-School program.
Scott’s goals are to bring a full acre into production, growing various kinds of vegetables that are needed for RUSD and local restaurants. His biggest challenge is growing enough variety to supply restaurants with their entire menu of produce.
Scott’s goal is to acquire and install a walk in cooler on the farm, and grow what he can for restaurants and RUSD. He plans to source the items he does not have available from other local farms, and provide a one stop place for local chefs and restaurant owners to pick up produce rather than have to visit 2-3 farms for their needs.
Scott is currently raising funds to try to obtain a Kiva Zip loan for a walk in cooler. His funding campaign expires in just 7 days and he is 86% funded. Starting today, a benefactor has opted to match the dollars of any loan.
That means with $700 left to be funded, a minimum $25 loan from you is worth $50! Only 14 lenders at the $25 level secures the project! Only 7 lenders at $50! Be proud, this is how real change happens, at the grassroots. We can do this, you can help!
Follow this link: https://zip.kiva.org/loans/16345
Find out more about Fox Farm: http://berndtsplants.blogspot.com/
GrowRIVERSIDE Conference Focuses Local Food System Efforts in Riverside and the Region
June 16, 2015 | AJ Hughes
Photo by Robert Puro
The 2nd Annual GrowRIVERSIDE Conference: The Future of Local Food, held June 11-13 in Riverside, California, focused on production, new business creation, local food sales and community impact.
These four focuses were brought into sharp relief by numerous speakers and panelists as well as conference-goers, who discussed a wide variety of issues including local food marketplaces, developing urban farms, marketing and distribution, urban indoor farming, crop diversification, climate, farm-to-school, an update on the work of the Riverside Food Systems Alliance, compost management, water usage, and more. Read More
‘Grow Forth’ and Prosper – GrowRIVERSIDE Digs in for the Future of Local Food
June 15, 2015 | AJ Hughes
Rodney Taylor, director of Nutrition Services for Riverside Unified School District, speaks at the GrowRIVERSIDE: The Future of Local Food conference. (photo by AJ Hughes)
“We are an extraordinary city, and we get it done.”
These words were uttered by Riverside Unified School District (RUSD) Director of Nutrition Services Rodney Taylor at the beginning of his keynote address on day two of the 2nd Annual GrowRIVERSIDE Conference: The Future of Local Food.
Taylor acknowledged the extraordinary progress made since last year’s inaugural GrowRIVERSIDE conference, but pointed out that great amounts of inequity still plague the food system. Read More
GrowRIVERSIDE: A Movement Rooted in Community Seeks to Foster Hardy Local Food System in City
June 15, 2015 | AJ Hughes
At the 2nd Annual GrowRIVERSIDE Conference: The Future of Local Food, held last Thursday, June 11 through Saturday, June 13 participants from panelists to keynotes and breakout session leaders repeatedly honed in on the same key ingredient when discussing the development of robust local food systems: community.
And true to this theme, the first day of the conference ended fittingly as conveners partook of local food and beverages amidst an orange grove. Robert Egger, founder and president of L.A. Kitchen, spoke about how fresh fruits and vegetables not only build community, but change lives as well.
True community tends to grow and attract others to its orbit, and GrowRIVERSIDE is no exception, said Al Zelinka, Assistant City Manager for the City of Riverside.
“This is a movement rooted in community and entrepreneurship,” said Zelinka, noting that people came from as far away from Hawaii and east of the Mississippi to attend the event. “A small group of thoughtful and committed citizens can change the world,” he continued, paraphrasing anthropologist Margaret Mead. Read More
GrowRIVERSIDE Conference Streaming Live!
June 10, 2015 | seedstockIf for some reason you can’t make it to the GrowRIVERSIDE Future of Local Conference, which starts tomorrow, don’t fret. You can catch the entire event, streamed live right here:
http://livestream.com/accounts/6862664/events/4119530
Check it out!
We will also be recording all of the conference sessions for later viewing.
If you’re looking for more information on the 2016 3rd Annual GrowRIVERSIDE Conference: Cultivating the Future, you can find out more about the program here and register here!
Hurry! LAST Day to Register for Urban Ag-Focused GrowRIVERSIDE Conference
June 10, 2015 | Robert PuroCreating a vibrant local food system requires that cities explore how to develop new markets for their local farmers, foster entrepreneurship and innovation as it relates to the production of food and encourage responsible and sustainable farming that benefits community, economy and environment. The development of effective food policy that advances agricultural economic development and infrastructure and fosters education about food and urban farming is also essential.
Expert speakers set to participate in the 2nd Annual GrowRIVERSIDE Conference: The Future of Local Food will dive deeply into all of the above mentioned areas, and more, to come up with solutions designed to guide Riverside and cities across the country in the development of vibrant and sustainable local food systems. The conference begins in TOMORROW on June 11, 2015 at The Riverside Convention Center in Riverside, California.
Limited Tickets Remain! Register here: http://growriverside.eventbrite.com
The conference will cover a number of topics that will appeal to a diversity of audiences from growers and entrepreneurs to city planners, researchers and citizens interested in learning about how they can play a role in building their local food system. Select topics include:
Conference to Help Cities Develop Solutions to Strengthen Local Food and Urban Agriculture Infrastructure
June 5, 2015 | Iqbal PittalwalaSeveral UC Riverside researchers to attend 2nd annual GrowRIVERSIDE Conference, June 11-13
News Release – RIVERSIDE, Calif. – What does it take to develop and strengthen a city’s urban agriculture and local food infrastructure? A conference in Riverside, Calif., attracting experts in farming small plots, new business creation, local food marketplace development and community food access, will explore this question in detail June 11-13, 2015. Several University of California, Riverside researchers will attend the annual conference, now in its second year, to share their expertise on food-related issues.
Called “GrowRIVERSIDE: The Future of Local Food,” the conference will take place at the Riverside Convention Center, 3637 5th Street, downtown Riverside, and aim to offer solutions on how Riverside can become a model for other cities to emulate. A full conference program can be found here.
The UC Riverside Office of Strategic Communications is a co-sponsor of the conference; the office will provide free copies of the UCR magazine to attendees. The UC Global Food Initiative is also a co-sponsor of the conference.
Limited Tickets Available for “GrowRIVERSIDE” Conference June 11
June 1, 2015 | seedstockRiverside, CA (PRWEB) June 01, 2015 – This is the final call for registration to attend the 2nd Annual GrowRIVERSIDE Conference: The Future of Local Food, June 11 – 13 at The Riverside Convention Center. The conference will assist cities in examining and developing solutions to strengthen their local food systems and urban agriculture infrastructure.
Organized for the city of Riverside by Seedstock co-founder Robert Puro, the conference will feature a broad lineup of speakers ranging from urban agriculture entrepreneurs, USDA representatives from Marketing Services and Rural Development, startup business experts from the U.S. Small Business Administration, local food policy experts, sustainable farmers and hydroponic practitioners as well as numerous buyers and distributors of local produce. Read More
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