College Protests & Urban Farming

College Protests & Urban Farming

College Protests & Urban Farming plus Food Forethought. I’m Greg Martin with today’s Northwest Report.

Quite a number of years ago, John Travolta starred in the very popular movie, Urban Cowboy which sparked a minor resurgence of western wear and music but what about urban farming. The concept isn’t new, it’s just more people are expressing interest in the concept. Mary Seton Corboy of Greensgrow Farms in Philadelphia talks about her operation.

CORBOY: What we’re able to do is create green jobs, good green jobs. We’re able to do that and to take what was once a blighted city block and if you saw this place on Saturday afternoon, you know hundreds and hundreds of people in here milling around, meeting each other, having coffee, getting their plants, talking about what they’re going to do with their garden, getting good sensible advice and they love it. It’s become a community meeting place.

Protests were held yesterday at a number of Washington State colleges over possible cuts at community colleges. Faculty positions could be cut and tuition at community colleges could go up as lawmakers work to close a $9 billion budget gap. The American Federation of Teachers has been circulating petitions, protesting the likely cuts to community and technical colleges. They say those cuts would increase class size, raise tuition and close the door completely on thousands of would-be students.

Now with today’s Food Forethought, here’s Lacy Gray.

The suffering economy has affected everything from small business to major corporations, but recent reports show an encouraging and continual upward climb for organic agriculture. Sales from organic produce are up an incredible forty-eight percent since 2006. Across the nation organic farms are popping up at what seems like an overnight rate. Organic farmers do have to be certified for production, but that hasn’t seemed to deter the growing number of people who want to become certified growers. While organic vegetables and fruits have been the main focus of organic farming, organic wine and tea production has begun to take off across the country. The future of organic farming is looking quite bright indeed with ample opportunity for farms of all sizes to be included in the organic farming community. It only reiterates that today’s consumers are informed buyers who are showing a true concern and regard for what they and their families are eating.  Organic farming is no longer just a “trend”, it is quickly becoming mainstream.

Thanks Lacy. That’s today’s Northwest Report. I’m Greg Martin on the Northwest Ag Information Network.

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