Value-added ag in Missouri

This information is from the 2002 U.S. Census of Agriculture. Data from the 2007 Ag Census will be available in February 2009. Expect big changes - a Missouri count found nearly 140 farmers' markets across the state in 2008.

VALUE-ADDED AGRICULTURE IN MISSOURI

Number of Organic Farms	112		U.S. Rank	29
Market Value of Organic Agriculture	$641,604		Share of National Organic Market	<1%
Number of Direct Market Producers	3,937		U.S. Rank	10
Market Value of Direct Market Goods	$14,712,000		U.S. Rank	19
Number of Farmer's Markets	77		U.S. Rank	14

Community Food Systems newsletter

View the MU Extension Community Food Systems and Sustainable Agriculture program August newsletter online at http://agebb.missouri.edu/sustain/news/index.htm

Newsletter topics include:
· Research on what makes farmers’ markets successful
· Diversifying our agricultural programming
· Salesmanship
· Starting and Operating a Farmers’ Market
· City Seeds in St. Louis
· Upcoming Events

Saturday's Featured Vendor: Akers Produce

We are busy at the farmers' market! Stop by and visit with Akers Produce for the pick of the season's produce, including cucumbers, peppers, tomatoes, zucchini, and eggplant. The market is open Saturdays through Labor Day, 7:30-noon.

Mint Springs Farm feature article in Salem News!

The recent issue of The Salem News featured an article about Salem Farmers' Market vendor Lori Sommer of Mint Springs Farm. View the article at http://www.thesalemnewsonline.com/index.html

Extension Cookout and Promotion Event - Tuesday August 5th!

Dent County Extension will host a cookout and promotion event at the Salem Farmers’ Market on Tuesday, August 5 from 3-6 p.m. This event is an opportunity for the public to meet and visit with the Dent County Extension staff and council members and learn about the programs offered in Dent County – from agriculture, nutrition, community development, 4-H and more. View program exhibits, 4-H demonstrations and projects, and enter to win great prizes. The new regional agronomy and horticulture specialists will be available to answer your farm and garden questions.

SACBA Cookout - Saturday!

Stop by the market for a cookout sponsored by Salem Area Community Betterment Association. Now's the time to buy fresh peaches, watermelons, tomatoes, peppers, and much more!

"Eat food. Not too much. Mostly plants."

So Michael Pollan writes in his new book In Defense of Food: An Eater's Manifesto. The book is about why we need to think about eating as something more than just providing nutrition, why the more we worry about healthy eating, the more unhealthy we've become. He suggests, "We forget that, historically, people have eaten for a great many reasons other than biological necessity. Food is also about pleasure, about community, about family and spirituality, about our relationship to the natural world, and about expressing our identity. As long as humans have been taking meals together, eating has been as much about culture as it has been about biology."

A visit to a farmers' market is one path to happy eating: fresh, local food grown without chemicals, a chance to know the farmer who grows it, support for local businesses, and time to visit with friends at the market.