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Make it a local holiday season!
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Cranston's Tree Farm, Ashfield
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Planning to put up a Christmas tree, wreath, or other holiday greenery? Support a local farm when you do!
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As you eat, drink, and celebrate your way through the winter holidays, we encourage you to think local for your gifts, holiday decorations, and feasts.
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CISA swag makes great gifts! Pick up one of CISA's excellent, limited-edition t-shirts designed by local artists Catherine Weiss and Maggie Nowinski for everyone on your list!
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HIP update: program extended through February!
The Healthy Incentive Program (HIP) will run through February 28th! If you are shopping with SNAP, you can keep earning an instant rebate when you buy produce directly from participating local farmers!
For a list of HIP locations and program updates, visit the HIP - Healthy Incentives Program, Pioneer Valley Facebook page.
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You are about local farms. Keep them strong.
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Pine Hill Orchards, Colrain
Elizabeth Solaka photo
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You are the 'Community' in our name. It is thanks to you that each day we work to strengthen local farms. With your financial gifts, we help hundreds of farms in the Pioneer Valley. Please make a donation to help us meet our goal of raising $250,000 to expand our impact. We are so grateful for your support!
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Climate change, local farms, and this summer's impacts
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Scott Streble photo
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"Climate change, once considered an issue for a distant future, has moved firmly into the present." This is the opening statement of the federal government's new Fourth National Climate Assessment. Farmers have been and will continue to be among the first in our region to face the challenges of a changing climate.
Read all about what climate change means for local agriculture in CISA's column in the Daily Hampshire Gazette.
Reporter Greta Jochem talked to local farmers about how this season's weather has impacted them. Read her reporting in the Daily Hampshire Gazette. CISA opened its Emergency Farm Fund this October in response to this season's extreme weather. So far this year, the Fund has distributed $55,000 in no-interest, quick-turnaround loans to six farms.
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Local Hero profile: Jay's Wicket Gourmet Sauces
What started with a love of food and a refrigerator full of homemade experiments turned into a full-fledged line of barbecue and hot sauces. "People liked it so much that they wanted bottles of the sauce -- I said we should start doing something with this!" recalls, Shannon Green, one half of the duo behind Jay's Wicked Gourmet Sauces.
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2018 Farm Bill Update
Yesterday, Congress moved a bipartisan Farm Bill forward, and it is now awaiting the President's signature. The National Sustainable Agriculture Coalition has analysis of the ups and downs of this hard-won bill.
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CISA's Winter Workshop Series: Branding, Marketing, and Reaching New Customers
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Photo by Elizabeth Solaka
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Farmers, sign up now for CISA's 2019 Winter Workshop Series! Identify what sets your business apart and learn how to cut through the noise to reach new consumers. Come to one or all!
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Quick Links
Check out our press page for news stories about local farms and local agriculture, along with our weekly interview series on WRSI, monthly column in the Daily Hampshire Gazette, and more! Go to press pageFarm tours, film screenings, workshops, special local meals -- there's always something happening in the Valley! Go to events listingJob opportunities, land, equipment. Go to classifieds |
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Please do not take images or content to use on your own site or project without CISA's explicit permission. Please feel free to link to our newsletter. Archives can be found at buylocalfood.org.
Community Involved in Sustaining Agriculture is an equal opportunity provider and employer.
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