FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:

Roger Ludlowe Middle School Garden Sass- Plant Sale

SATURDAY, MAY 22^ND, Fairfield, CT

FROM 10:00-2:00 RAIN OR SHINE

RLMS FRONT PARKING LOT 689 UNQUOWA ROAD

(IN THE EVENT OF RAIN RLMS GYM)

Heirloom Tomatoes and Vegetables, Annuals and PerenniaIs, Herbs, Fruit Trees & Ornamental Shrubs, Strawberries, Raspberries, Blueberries and Rhubarb will be available for purchase

FOOD, LIVE MUSIC, AND GARDEN SYMPOSIUM

Roger Ludlowe Middle School will be hosting their First Annual Garden Sass & Plant Sale next Saturday. A Garden Sass is a Yankee term for the home garden. Three farm vendors with ties to our community will be selling seedlings - Maple Row growers in Easton, Moorefield Herb Farm in Trumbull, and Daffodil Hill Growers in Southbury.

We will hold a Garden Symposium, provide live music and offer local fare to fortify our shoppers as they purchase the best of what Connecticut Growers have to offer. Goatboy Soap will supply gardeners with wonderful soaps to use before and after gardening.

Michelle Flashman and Amie Hall will give a tour of the RLMS Garden Square Foot Garden and answer questions. They will be selling seedlings they have grown themselves. The Operation Hope Community Garden will be also be selling vegetable seedlings and will be on hand to share the success of their garden.

CONTACT: Kate Carroll at tenlittlelines@yahoo.com

Ridgefield and Westport GVIs will be hosting an on-farm workshop (emphasis on the “work” part of workshop) for people interested in learning about organic soil care and the basics of organic garden management.  Participants will join Dina Brewster of The Hickories as she leads us through the steps involved in the readying of a spring garden plot. The Hickories is a certified organic farm under the Bay State Organic/ USDA National Organic Program located  in Ridgefield.

Topics to be covered:

• the basics of organic soil science and fertility
• seeding and the seed calendar
• pest, disease and weed management

Sunday, May 2nd.  1:30-3pm, at The Hickories, 126 Lounsbury Road, Ridgefield CT 06877

RSVP and $10 registration fee required. Click here to reserve your spot.

Fairfield Green Food Guide and CT Bites present A Honey Tasting Workshop at Red Bee ® Apiary in Weston

Join us for a Tasting Flight of Seven Artisanal Honeys with Red Bee Apiary’s own Marina Marchese.

Learn how honeybees make this liquid gold we call honey, how location and nectar source determines a honeys color, and flavor and how honey is harvested and extracted from the comb.

Marina will show us how to taste and evaluate honey using the Honey Sommelier tasting guide in her new book HONEYBEE Lessons from an Accidental Beekeeper. Each guest will receive one sample 2 oz. jar of Red Bee’s signature Wildflower Honey.

Red Bee Honey Tasting Menu

• Farmhouse comb honey
• Red Bee’s signature wildflower
• Alfalfa honey
• Goldenrod honey
• Blueberry blossom honey
• Tulip poplar honey
• Star thistle honey

Featured Bread:

Fairfield Bread Company’s “The Flaxette”, a baguette with a crisp, caramelized crust surrounding a flavorful, tender and chewy center that’s studded with ground organic flax.

The tasting will also include some locally produced cheeses and garden accompaniments.

Where: Red Bee ® Apiary and Gardens, Weston, CT MAPQUEST

When: Tuesday, May 18th, 2010 at 1:00 pm till 3:00 pm

Rain Date: Tuesday, May, 25th, 2010 at 1:00 pm till 3:00 pm(This event takes place outside in the garden apiary)Red Bee will provide samples of their own herbal bug repellent, if needed.

Cost: $15 per person
Seating is limited to 20 people so reserve your seat now via online checkout at Red Bee Honey.

Questions? Email us at info@fairfieldgreenfoodguide.com

By Eileen Weber

The Food for Thought Expo took place at Fairfield Warde High School this Saturday. A good buzz of people attended the fair to hear lectures and experience what local vendors had to share. From locally made breads and honey to fresh milk and organic gourmet take-out, this showcase had it all.

As part of a series of lectures included in the event, Analiese Paik, this site’s founder, spoke for close to an hour about getting the message out about local, organically grown food. “It’s there for the taking. It’s out there,” she said.

Paik went on to describe the opportunities consumers have at their fingertips. From CSAs to farmers’ markets to retail chains selling whole foods, there is something for everyone. The biggest joy for her, she said, is connecting the farmer to the consumer. It’s making that connection that is key to fresh food’s survival in our society.

“We need to check the box on local food. Check the box on the local economy. Check the box on farmland preservation,” she said. Paik’s point was that local, organic food should be a way of life and not something we do once in a while. With obesity and juvenile diabetes rampant in this country, the very thing that makes a difference with those two epidemics is the kind of food we put in our mouths.

In a recent press release about the event, Michelle McCabe, Chairperson for Fuel for Learning Partnership (FFLP), the expo’s organizer and sponsor, said the event was meant to remind us of what foods to avoid. “It seems almost daily that we hear or read stories about the foods we eat, many of them with bad news,” she said. “…the main goal is to help us better feed our families. With the help of cooking instructors, educators, and local businesses, visitors to the Food for Thought Expo will be introduced to the vast range of resources available to help us all attain that goal of healthful eating.”

The FFLP sponsored the event as part of an on-going effort to help educate the general public about the best ways to approach nutrition, and how we can overcome the health challenges Paik mentioned in her lecture. “We’re all on a journey toward changing the way we eat,” said McCabe. “That comes with a learning curve, and our focus is to help people take ownership of their health, and the health of their children.”

Paik sees consumer interest in natural foods growing exponentially. She sees her role as providing a way for people to get to the food they should be eating. It’s also a way to keep our precious farmland preserved. “There are a thousand points of light out there and we’re connecting them,” she said. “There is hope.”

But it’s not just the farms. It’s everything that relies on the farm that provides fresh food to families. Maybe you go to food stores like Trader Joe’s and Whole Foods Market. Or maybe you decide on take-out from Fairfield area hot spots like Health in a Hurry, Catch a Healthy Habit, and Green Gourmet To Go. Fairfield County’s latest farm-to-table restaurant comes in the form of a mobile brick oven caterer and Cheff Jeff had it stationed outside to serve pizza made with fresh, local toppings to the more than 600 guests that attended the event.

But there are some people who are a little apprehensive about buying shares in CSAs (Community Supported Agriculture). Frequently, farms provide an abundance of produce at some point during the season that the average consumer can’t use up in a week. To that, Paik said there are easy ways to avoid that problem. Blanching the excess and freezing it makes it easier for you to use the vegetables any time you choose. And if that doesn’t work for you, try Veggie Trader. They link people with excess produce to those who are looking for it. And if you can’t make it to a farmers’ market and don’t belong to a CSA, use CT Farm Fresh Express to get farm-fresh food to your table in one quick delivery. Of matching a farmer’s produce with the consumer, Paik said, “That’s a match made in heaven.”

While real estate is location, location, location, food has a similar concept: local, local, local. “CSAs are selling out,” said Paik. “We’ve stopped losing farmland. Smart people are running farms with a good business plan.” She said that farms are the hub, providing the raw material for the consumer, government, institutions like New Milford Hospital and their Plow to Plate initiative, retail chains, chefs, and school lunches. “It’s a jigsaw puzzle,” she said “and we are all finding ways to work together to be part of the solution.”

Paik feels we’ve reached our tipping point with the organic food movement. “We’re not waiting for our government to fix the food system. We’re doing it for them.”

A celebration of local farms, stores, restaurants, local/sustainable food advocates, businesses and educators for National Nutrition Month.

Type:     Free expo with guest speakers and workshops
Date:     Saturday, March 27, 2010
Time:     10:00am - 4:00pm
Location: Fairfield Warde High School, 755 Melville Avenue, Fairfield, CT

Don’t miss this amazing, free event sponsored by Fairfield PTA Council’s Fuel for Learning Partnership Committee. Come with your family and enjoy the cooking demos, panel discussions, guest speakers, exhibitors and free tastings of fresh, local food. Lunch may be purchased from the portable, wood-fired brick oven caterer featuring locally grown foods.

Participants include:

Samantha Heller, MS, RD, CDN, author of Get Smart: Samantha Heller’s Nutrition Prescription for Boosting Brain Power and Optimizing Total Body Health.

Amie Hall, CHHC, AADP, From Your Inside Out, is host to many delicious farm lunches and part of the edible schoolyard garden team.

Health in a Hurry, an award-winning restaurant offering inspired organic, vegetarian food to go.

Catch a Healthy Habit, an organic, raw food cafe and host to many live, education events.

Fairfield Green Food Guide, your guide to local and sustainable food.

Red Bee Artisanal Honey, a Weston apiary offering honey, a full line of honey products, honey tastings and book events.

Wave Hill Breads, Wilton, handcrafted, artisan breads available at specialty stores and farmers’ markets including the indoor winter farmers’ market at the FTC.

Fairfield Bread Company, Fairfield, home of  “The Flaxette”

Chef Jeff Borofsky and his portable, wood-fired brick oven catering company featuring locally-grown food. Come hungry because Chef Jeff is catering the event.

Sport Hill Farm, an organic farm in Easton run by Patti Popp and also the site of The Unquowa School’s Summer Farm Camp. Her CSA is sold out, but you can buy just picked produce at her farm stand once the season begins.

Stone Gardens Farm, an IPM (Integrated Pest Management) farm in Shelton offering CSA shares for pick up at the farm or at Westport GVI’s Wakeman Farm in Westport

Green Gourmet to Go, a brand new, organic, vegetarian restaurant located in Black Rock.

The Farmer’s Cow, Lebanon, provider of milk, eggs, cream, cider and lemonade. Ask them about their ice cream which is coming out soon.

SPEAKER SCHEDULE

10:00 - 10:15am    Introductory remarks

10:15 - 11:15am    Growing your own Produce: Organic Backyard Gardening with Nick Mancini

11:30am - 12:30pm
Get Smart: Samantha Heller’s Nutrition Prescription for Boosting Brain Power, Samantha Heller, MS RD CDN, Registered Dietitian, Clinical Nutritionist, Exercise Physiologist

1:00 - 2:00pm
Get it Local: Finding all Your Cooking Needs in and around Fairfield County with Analiese Paik, Founder and Editor of the Fairfield Green Food Guide

2:15 - 3:15pm Panel Discussion

From Classrooms to Cafeterias: Why Public Schools are Important in the Fight Against Obesity and the Fight for Sustainable Food Systems

Marlene Schwartz, PhD, Deputy Director, Rudd Center for Food Policy and Obesity

Bruce Gluck, Food Services Director, New Canaan Public Schools
Michelle Flashman, Curriculum Leader and Instructor , Family and Consumer Science Department, Fairfield Public Schools

Please feel free to stop in at any time to attend the following family friendly activities! For everyone - of all ages and all stages of life! All talks, demos, and displays are designed to help build confidence in your kitchen and comfort at your table.

Location:
Barlow’s Restaurant (in the school)
10:30am Healthy Eating Choices for the Whole Family, JoAnn Koebbe

11:30am Healthy Eating Choices for the Whole Family, JoAnn Koebbe

12:30pm Cooking in the Classroom: the Fairfield Middle School Curriculum, Michelle Flashman

1:30pm Cooking in the Classroom: the Fairfield Middle School Curriculum, Michelle Flashman

3:00pm Healthy Eating Choices for the Whole Family, JoAnn Koebbe

Instructors & Classes
JoAnn Koebbe, Certified LEAN Coach & Health Counselor
Lifestyle, Exercise, Attitude, Nutrition are the key components to this interactive, FUN, lesson in making healthy eating choices. For everyone, children, parents, grandparents.

10:30 am, 11:30 am, 3:00 pm, 3 sessions, 30 minutes each

Michelle Flashman, Family & Consumer Sciences Curriculum Department Leader, Fairfield Public Schools
Discover what Fairfield middle school students are learning about food in the cooking classroom!

12:30 pm, 1:30 pm, 2 sessions, 30 minutes each

Location:
Family & Consumer Sciences Classroom

SPEAKERS & DEMOS
10:00 - 10:45am Whole Foods, Whole You — Amie Hall

10:45 - 11:00am Gluten Free and Flour Power — Amie Hall

11:00 - 11:30am Small Batch Baking and Buying local breads — Michael Mordecai

11:30 - 11:45am Whole Foods, Whole You — Amie Hall

11:45am - 12:45pm Food Scientists! — Valerie Wilke

1:00 - 2:15pm An Introduction to Health Supportive Cuisine - Sue Cadwell

2:15 - 3:15pm Lunch Box Fun and Co-op Bulk Buying - Valerie Wilke

3:15 - 4:00pm    Re-thinking the School Lunch Menu - Bruce Gluck and Amie Hall

Instructors & Classes
Amie Guyette Hall, Health Counselor and Cooking Coach, From Your Inside Out

Whole Foods, Whole You! We all know we should eat better food. This workshop helps us understand WHY. Kick off the day’s events with this helpful way of understanding the food mood and chronic condition connection that we are all trying to conquer. Insightful, eye opening.

10:00 am - 10:45 am, 11:30 - 11:45am

Gluten Free & Flour Power. A supportive introduction to alternative flour and pantry products.
10:45 am - 11:00 am

Michael Mordecai, Fairfield Bread Company, Bread Baker
Learn about small batch baking and buying local. Bread is the staff of life, and Michael shares
11:00 am - 11:30 am

Valerie Wilke, Chef, Blood Root Restaurant
Food Scientists!
Become the food scientist that you and your children want to be! Find encouragement and discover fun, fabulous ideas of how to experiment around the rainbow!
11:45 am - 12:45 pm

Lunch Box and Co-op Bulk Buying
2:15 - 3:15pm

Sue Cadwell, Owner, Health in a Hurry
An Intro to Health Supportive Cuisine. Easy recipes & food samples. Grains, Greens and Soy.
1:00 pm - 2:15 pm

Bruce Gluck, chef and Food Services Director in the New Canaan Public Schools
Rethinking the School Lunch Menu
3:15 pm - 4 pm

SELF GUIDED KITCHEN TOUR
Visit 5 interactive family friendly stations that will expand your food knowledge and build comfort in your kitchen.
Topics include Glorious Greens, Great Grains, The Mighty Bean, Flour Power, and Power Tools!
10:00 am - 4:00 pm

RSVP for this event on my Facebook page

by Emily Brooks of Edibles Advocate Alliance

There are numerous advantages to planting gardens in raised beds. Sal Gibertie, owner of Gilbertie’s Herb Gardens in Westport and one of the most knowledgeable gardeners anywhere, will enumerate them and provide expert how-to advice on Tuesday, February 9th from 7pm-9pm at Ambler Farm in Wilton. Sal will also bring copies of his new book, Small Space High Yield Gardening, to sell and sign.

Ages: Adults

Fee: $5 per person, FREE for members

Registration: Walk-ins welcome. Advance registration click here.

CT NOFA’s 28th Annual Winter Conference

Celebrate Local Organic Farming, Gardening, Landscaping and Sustainable Lifestyles

Co-sponsored with Manchester Community College’s Team Green

Saturday, March 6, 2010
Manchester Community College
Manchester, CT
8:30 am to 4:45 pm

Join us in celebration of local organic farming, gardening, landscaping and sustainable lifestyles. This event will feature 30 plus workshops, a vendor and exhibit area, keynote speech, delicious potluck lunch, children’s program, and a series of hands-on cooking demonstrations.

KEYNOTE~ REGISTRATION~ WORKSHOPS~ SPONSORS~VENDORS

Keynote

Featuring Michael Shuman, author of The Small Mart Revolution: How Local Businesses Are Beating the Global Competition. Author and entrepreneur, Mr. Schuman has written nearly one hundred articles for such periodicals as The New York Times, The Washington Post, The Nation, Weekly Standard, Foreign Policy, Parade, and The Chronicle of Philanthropy. His books and articles have explored people, practices, and policies in the fields of technology, national security, citizen diplomacy, municipal foreign policy, entrepreneurship, philanthropy, and business development. To view Michael’s blog, click here.

Michael co-authored a recent report, “Community Food Enterprise: Local Success in a Global Marketplace,” spotlighting 24 ventures around the world that are pioneering models for local food.

Registration

	Before 2/19	After 2/19
NOFA Members:	$40	$45
Non-Members:	$50	$55
Students/Seniors:	$25	$30

Volunteer for 2 hours and receive $10 off the registration price!

Children 12 and under are free.
Free daycare will be available for children ages 3 to 12 with preregistration only.

Online registration is now available. Details>

For a printer-friendly form to mail in, click here.

Workshops

PERMACULTURE DESIGN FOR PRODUCTIVE CONSERVATION:  GROW FOOD, REBUILD THE ENVIRONMENT - Keith Zaltzberg, Regenerative Design Group www.regenerativedesigngroup.com

GROWING CUT FLOWERS - Alan Gorkin, Growing sustainable cut flower crops for to increase market diversity.

MAKING FOOLPROOF COUNTRY WINE - Jack Kittredge, Many Hands Organic Farm.  www.mhof.net

BUILDING A CSA - Dina Brewster, The Hickories Farm www.thehickories.org

HOW WE GROW GARLIC AT WAYNE’S ORGANIC GARDEN - Wayne Hansen, Wayne’s Organic Garden www.waynesorganicgarden.com

FIRST LESSONS IN BEEKEEPING - C. Marina Marchese, Red Bee Apiary   www.redbee.com

THE AMATEUR ARTISAN BAKER - Jiff Martin, Serious & not-so-serious home bakers learn new techniques and share old favorites.  Taste tests & take home live starter.

WORM COMPOSTING - Nick Mancini,   www.OrganicGardeningSimplified.com

SEEDY BUSINESS:  THE HISTORY, POLITICS, & FUTURE OF SEEDS - Ken Greene,  Hudson Valley Seed Library  www.seedlibrary.org

RAW MILK AND FOOD RIGHTS - David E. Gumpert, www.davidgumpert.com

“LIKE A GOOD NEIGHBOR, YOUR AGRICULTURE COMMISION IS THERE” - John Weedon,  How to start a commission w/no money down.  What a Town Agriculture Commission can do to help farmers.  How to work effectively with a commission.

THREATS TO THE HEALTH OF HONEY BEES AND WILD BEES - Dr Kimberly Stoner, Vegetable Entomologist at the CT Agriculture Experiment Station, New Haven.  www.ct.gov/caes

FARM TAXES SHOULDN’T BE TAXING - Ron Capozzi, “Class will be limited to those who think they can spend their money wiser than the government.”

GETTING INTO RAW FOODS - Rawdawg Rory  www.rawdawgrory.com

RAISING DAIRY GOATS & MAKING CHEESE - Paul Trubey, Beltane Farm.  www.beltanefarm.com

NATURAL NIBBLES, AN INTRODUCTION TO WILD PLANT FORAGING - Bryan Connolly, Massachusetts State Botanist, PhD student - Native Plant Horticulture.

WEED ECOLOGY & ORGANIC WEED CONTROL - Robert Durgy, Farm Manager CT Agricultural Experiment Station, Griswold Research Center.

THE 10 LEAST WANTED: VEGETABLE INSECTS PESTS & WHAT TO DO ABOUT THEM - Robert Durgy, Farm Manager CT Agricultural Experiment Station, Griswold Research Center.

EXTENDING THE GROWING SEASON AND COLDWEATHER CROPS - Bettylou Sandy, Bettylou’s Gardening.  Learn tricks to extend the growing season at both ends. Harvest April thru November.

THE FUTURE OF COMMUNITY FOOD SECURITY - Michel Nischan, Wholesome Wave Foundation www.wholesomewave.org

HOOP TUNNELS,  LOW & HIGH - Bryan O’Hara, Tobacco Road Farm.  Use, construction, costs, and appropriate crops for the extended season production of vegetable crops.

BACKYARD BARNYARD - Peter & Judith Rothenberg, Northfordy Farm.  Sustainable farm animal husbandry.

GREENHOUSE/NURSERY ENERGY CONSERVATION - IDEAS THAT SAVE MONEY - John W. Bartok Jr. Extension Agricultural Engineer - Emeritus Univ of CT  Materials, tools, and techniques for reducing fuel  & electricity  use in small to medium size propagation & production structures.  Basics of wood, corn, waste oil, geothermal & solar systems.

REFORM OF THE “SUPPLY CHAIN”: INSTITUTIONAL FOOD SERVICE - Marydale DeBor, Plow to Plate/New Milford Hospital  www.plowtoplate.org

HILLS AND VALLEYS - RAISED BED GARDENING - James Roby, Roby’s Organic Farm.  Raised bed, ridge till and trench planting methods.  Managing walkways, mulching, and cultivation.

SO  YOU WANT TO START A  FARMERS MARKET? - Winter Caplanson    www.CoventryFarmersMarket.com Basics of starting a market; defining a niche for your farmers market, state requirements, location, management, vendor recruitment, rules/regulation & marketing.

EXPERT PANEL DISCUSSIONS:

BACK (AND FORTH) TO OUR ” ROOTS” - Dr. Lisa Gengo, PA, ND, CNS, Chef  John Turenne, President & Founder of Sustainable Food Systems  &  Farmer Wayne Hansen  discuss & demonstrate uses and nutritional benefits of familiar and the less-well known winter vegetables.

Additional details and workshops still to come.

Sponsors

Gold Level Sponsors - Stonyfield Fam and Whole Foods Market

Silver Level Sponsors - Farmer’s Cow and Global Environmental Services

Supporting Sponsors - Sunlight Solar Energy, Farm Credit East, New England Seed and Steven A. Rose Agency

Vendor - Exhibitors

If you’d like to reserve a space, please call the office at 203-888-5146.

___________________________________________________________

POTLUCK DETAILS

Please bring a dish to share with everyone-it need not be local food or even organic-do what you can. A family-sized serving is fine, along with the recipe or ingredient listing. Drinks are always welcome if you are unable to cook.

Our impressive staff of kitchen volunteers will be on hand to pull it all together for us and make sure hot dishes are hot and salads are dressed.

To help us conserve, please bring your own place setting, napkin, and utensils. Questions? Call 203-888-5146.

_____________________________________

Good thing Westport GVI never settled on a commercial space suitable for distributing the CSA from Shelton-based Stone Gardens Farm they started last year for Westport residents. As fortune would have it, the Wakeman Farm and house on Cross Highway became available for lease from the town for $1 per year last spring and Westport GVI’s team jumped at the chance to lease the property. The town embraced their proposal for a  Town Farm on the site and GVI recently announced the signing of a five-year lease and plans to once again farm the 2.2 acre property.

Westport GVI is a group with clarity of vision and the people and resources to see it realized. The house is being spruced up so the future residents can move in by June. May this be a happy home to Mike Aitkenhead, Staples HS Environmental Teacher and 2009 Westport Teacher of the Year, who will take up residence at and oversee the Town Farm along with his wife, Carrie, and their one year old son, Ethan.

Don’t mind the dumpster; there’s no gutting going on in this historic house. You can see from the above photo that there’s no insulation in the walls and the plaster was cracking so badly in some places that it had to be removed. Think of how beautiful this spacious house is going to look with some new wall board, paint, appliances and fixtures.

The aged red barn is being renovated from the inside out in preparation for CSA season. This is where you will come to pick up your Stone Gardens Farm CSA share each week from Carrie. Don’t have a share yet? Sign up now! Future plans include the addition of CSA shares from other area farms and add ons  like local eggs, cheese, poultry, meat, flowers and honey to make the CSA more full service. These will come after appropriate food service licenses have been obtained and the Town Health Department has given its blessing.

Planting of organic vegetables will begin in the spring at Wakeman Farm, but don’t expect enough production for their own CSA. A farm stand is more likely. The intention was never to grow enough food for the whole town, but rather serve as a model of environmentally sustainable agriculture and an educational facility.

Town Farm Director Becky Howe cited a book, The Backyard Homestead, as the foundation of their message to the public, “You can grow all the food you need on a quarter acre. Anybody can do this. We’re going to be a model of how to do it and provide continuing education to the community in everything from composting to organic gardening to beekeeping so they can get comfortable doing these things on their own.” Andrew (from Andrew’s Local Honey) is going to drop off one of his hives here and Westport GVI board member Sherri Brooks Vinton will give canning and preserving workshops. Get excited but be patient, be supportive, and visit often. It’s going to take the whole community to make this work, and there’s not doubt that it will.

The Green Market Exposition held all day today at the historic Barnum Museum in Bridgeport kicked off with a speech by Mayor Finch announcing numerous initiatives being undertaken by Bridgeport to green the city. Shortly thereafter guests began to pour into the exhibition area and didn’t let up until late afternoon.

My only regret about exhibiting at this extremely well organized and attended event, instead of just being a guest, was that I was unable to visit all the other exhibitors to learn about their businesses or listen intently to any of the panel discussions being held adjacent to the exhibition area. I was so busy with guests that I managed to have only two quick conversations! Talking with Michelle at Origins I discovered that they will accept ANY cosmetics container at their cosmetics counter for recycling. And Planet Zero Gravity has two new 17 ounce thermoses, one of which fits perfectly into a lunch box and the other into a bicycle water bottle holder. I personally love their large thermos and use it to store smoothies in the refrigerator for easy access by the kids.

News Channel 8 was there and posted an online article with some event footage and photos. No question this event will be a repeat next year. Kudos to the organizers. Thanks Daphne! See you at Green Drinks Fairfield and maybe even the newly minted Green Drinks Bridgeport.