On a sunny yet crisp winter’s day at Audubon Greenwich last Saturday, over 100 guests gathered to attend a screening of the documentary food film FRESH.  This film is the perfect excuse to invite members of the local-sustainable food movement to serve on the guest panel and share their passions with the public. A complete list of all the panelists and exhibitors appears below, along with a photo gallery from the event.

Thoughtful audience questions during the panel discussion clearly demonstrate an ongoing need for continued dialog on this topic. Please read “How to Eat FRESH this Winter” to learn ways you can join or increase your participation in the local-sustainable food movement.  Please sign up for the e-newsletter and follow me on Facebook and Twitter so we can stay connected.

I’m delighted to have received very positive emails from a number of guests, one of whom posted a fantastic review of the event on his blog. He’s become a fan of the Fairfield Green Food Guide and Audubon Greenwich and is looking forward to more events like FRESH. As a reminder, Jeff Cordulack at Audubon has planned  two more screenings that are worth the trip: ‘A Chemical Reaction’ on Sunday, March 28 from 3:30-5 pm and ‘Tapped’: A Movie About Bottled Water on Friday, April 23 from 7-9 pm.

Remember Russ Kremer? He’s the hog farmer from FRESH who’s also the poster boy for how sick superbugs passed from animals to humans can make us. Well an excellent op-ed piece in Sunday’s NYT by Nicholas Kristof opens our eyes to the disturbing fact that “70 percent of antibiotics are used to feed healthy livestock, with 14 percent more used to treat sick livestock. Only about 16 percent are used to treat humans and their pets, the study found.” Russ was lucky they could save him with a new generation antibiotic, but the article suggests that increasingly, we might not be so lucky. And so, the FRESH story continues.

Panelists:

Moderator: Analiese Paik, Founder of the Fairfield Green Food Guide

Dan Levinson, Co-founder and Chairman of Westport Green Village Initiative (GVI)

Dan is Founder and Chairman of Westport Green Village Initiative(GVI); and Founder/Chairman of Main Street Resources

www.westportgvi.org;  www.mainstreetresources.com

Deb Marsden, Founder, CT Farm Fresh Express

Deb Marsden is the founder of CT Farm Fresh Express, a farm-to-consumer company that sells exclusively CT grown and made food. Deb has been featured in article in the New York Times, the Faith Middleton Show on NPR, and NBC 30 News. www.ctffe.com

Amy Kalafa, co-producer school lunch documentary 2 Angry Moms, and a better school food advocate

Rachel Khanna, an organic chef and Certified Health Counselor

Melina Brown, a chicken expert and founder of the Southern CT/Westchester Backyard Poultry Meetup

Exhibitors:

Analiese Paik, Founder, Fairfield Green Food Guide, LLC

Analiese is a local-sustainable food advocate who helps consumers source local and sustainable food via her web site, blog, live events and regular guest appearances on News Ch. 8’s Good Morning CT Weekend. www.fairfieldgreenfoodguide.com

Deb Marsden, Founder, CT Farm Fresh Express

Deb Marsden is the founder of CT Farm Fresh Express, a farm-to-consumer company that sells exclusively CT grown and made food. Consumers place their custom order online once-a-week home delivery that Friday. Deb has been featured in article in the New York Times, the Faith Middleton Show on NPR, and NBC 30 News. www.ctffe.com

Amy Kalafa, a better school food advocate and co-producer of the school lunch documentary, 2 Angry Moms

Rachel Khanna, an organic chef and Certified Health Counselor

Melina Brown, a chicken expert and founder of the Southern CT/Westchester Backyard Poultry Meetup

Nick Mancini, Master Gardener, Founder Organic Gardening Simplfied

Nick is a Certified Master Gardener from the Cooperative Extension System of the University of Connecticut, and past head Master Gardener of Vegetables, Brambles and Fruit Frees at Bartlett Arboretum in Stamford, CT. He is a lecturer, educator and consultant that specializes in vegetables, brambles and espaliered fruit trees. Nick is a member of CT NOFA. www.organicgardeningsimplified.com

Fairfield Bread Company - a new artisan bakery making the bread served at the event, The Flaxette. Michael Mordecai can be reached via http://fairfieldbread.blogspot.com/

Artscape Organic Care LLC - Owner Mike Pappa is a CT NOFA Certified organic landcare specialist serving Fairfield County.

I’m so grateful for the support and generosity of Audubon Greenwich.  Special thanks go to Deb Marsden of CT Farm Fresh Express for arranging the cheese donations from the followingfarmers listed below and to Fairfield Bread Company for donating their “Flaxette” loaf to the event and Glenville Wines for the organic wines they donated to accompany the cheese tasting.

Connecticut cheeses served during the FRESH reception/exhibition:

Cato Corner Farm, Colchester (all cow’s milk)

Hooligan

Brigid’s Abbey

Aged Dutch Farmstead

Beltane Farm, Lebanon (all goat’s milk)

Feta

Dill chevre

Chive chevre

Sankow’s Beaver Brook Farm, Lyme

Pleasant Cow (cow’s milk)

Sun (cow’s milk)

Pleasant Valley (sheep’s milk)

M&K Dairy, Lebanon (all cow’s milk)

Black Pepper Queso Fresco

Chive Queso Fresco

Meadowstone Farm, Brooklyn (cow’s milk)

Cheddar

All these cheeses are available for online ordering and home delivery from CT Farm Fresh Express. See you at the movies!

The documentary food film FRESH was shown to a packed house at Audubon Greenwich yesterday and nearly everyone attended the guest panel discussion! In honor of the movie and all the local heroes who make farm-fresh food available to consumers, I’ve created a list of ways you can easily eat fresh this winter. Enjoy the winter season and all the interesting and delicious local food it brings: Organic Adironack Blue potatoes, organic tatsoi, organic maitake mushrooms, sweet, wild Maine shrimp-what are your favorites?

1)      Shop at a winter farmers’ market and stock up for the week. Both Fairfield and Norwalk have indoor winter farmers’ markets that run on Saturdays from 10-2 and offer a wide variety of CT Grown produce, cheese, yogurt, eggs, meat, bread, and artisan made foods. Fairfield’s is held inside the Fairfield Theater Company on Sanford Street and Norwalk’s is held at 61-65 Wall St., near the Garden Cinemas.

2)      Buy CT Grown foods online for home delivery. Order online from CT Farm Fresh Express (CTFFE) by noon Tuesday for a Friday home delivery. You pick what and how much CT-grown food you want from their online store and they deliver it to your door. No minimums, no membership fees and no ongoing commitment. Leave a cooler with ice packs on your doorstep if you won’t be home to receive the delivery. New: Order your CSA from CTFFE for home delivery.

3)      Buy from local, family-owned specialty or independent grocers that make it a point to carry locally grown and produced food. Palmer’s Market in Darien, The Village Market of Wilton Fairfield Cheese Company and The Pantry in Fairfield, and Walter Stewart’s Market in New Canaan carry a selection of local fruits, vegetables, breads, cheeses, honey, and artisanal foods.

4)      Buy from national retailers that are committed to selling locally grown and other sustainably grown and harvested foods. Whole Foods Markets in Greenwich and Westport proudly feature produce from local farms, artisan products from local producers, and a wide range of organic and Fair Trade Certified foods like coffee, tea and chocolate.

5)      Dine at restaurants that source local and organic ingredients. Farm-to-Chef restaurants in the county include: The Boxcar Cantina in Greenwich uses local and sustainably grown food and is Fairfield County’s first restaurant to receive a Green Restaurant Certification from the Green Restaurant Association. Health in a Hurry and Catch a Healthy Habit Cafe in Fairfield, The Dressing Room and the newly minted Le Farm in Westport, Bloodroot in Bridgeport, Cobbs Mill Inn in Weston, David’s Catering and Napa & Co. in Stamford, and Woodway Country Club in Darien all cook with the seasons using fresh, local ingredients. Look for The Filling Station to open soon in New Canaan; it will feature grass-fed burgers, nitrate-free hot dogs, organic French fries and antibiotic and hormone-free milk shakes.

6)      Buy some Connecticut wine directly from a winery or buy organic and biodynamic wines from a wine shop like Glenville Wine & Spirits in Greenwich and Harry’s Wines & Spirits in Southport. Some standouts from the Connecticut Wine Festival were Sharpe Hill Vineyard’s Ballet of Angels, the award-winning wines of Hopkins Vineyards, Miranda Vineyard’s Seyval Blanc and Woodridge White, Land of Nod’s Bianca, Taylor Brooke’s Traminette and Connecticut Valley Winery’s Chianti and port-style Black Bear.

7) Join a spring, summer or winter 2010 CSA (Community Supported Agriculture program).  Community Supported Agriculture (CSA) is a means for consumers to buy a share in a farm’s seasonal production directly from the farmer. Consumers benefit from buying local, farm fresh, high quality produce at an attractive price and farmers benefit from pre-selling the harvest. Click here for a complete Guide to Fairfield County 2010 CSAs.

Westport Green Village Initiative (GVI) and Westport Public Library Present a Film/Lecture Series Devoted to the Sustainable Food Movement:

Mark Your Calendar for 5 Tuesday Evening Sessions 

A Sense of Wonder, A film about Rachel Carson (Silent Spring), her love for the natural world and her fight to defend it will be the first in the series, on Tuesday, March 2^nd @ 7-9 pm in Westport Library’s McManus room.

Rachel Carson was a daring pioneer of the environmental movement in the 60’s. Despite the strong opposition against her, she worked to create the reversal of our nation’s attitude toward pesticides and the development of the EPA.

David Brown, Sc.D, Adjunct Professor of Ethics in the Environment at Fairfield University, will facilitate the post-film discussion. He will also talk about Rachel Carson’s life and her impact on our lives.  David is an Environment and Health Toxicologist and founding member of EHHI.  He has been a teacher at Yale, Maryland and Northeastern University and is now working on risk assessment of particulate matter on human health.

Upcoming films and lectures in this series include:

March 16 - Film:  FRESH. FRESH celebrates the farmers, thinkers and business people across America who are re-inventing our food system. Each has witnessed the rapid transformation of our agriculture into an industrial model, and confronted the consequences: food contamination, environmental pollution, depletion of natural resources, and morbid obesity. Forging healthier, sustainable alternatives, they offer a practical vision for a future of our food and our planet.

March 23 - Lecture on Permaculture by Andrew Faust. Andrew Faust has been teaching permaculture design and related courses for 17 years, first in rural settings all over the East Coast and now in Brooklyn, where he is adapting his ideas to urban living through his Center for Bioregional Living.

April 6 - Film:  The Real Dirt on Farmer John. The epic tale of a maverick Midwestern farmer. An outcast in his community, Farmer John bravely stands amidst a failing economy, vicious rumors, and violence. By melding the traditions of family farming with the power of art and free expression, this powerful story of transformation and renewal heralds a resurrection of farming in America.

April 13 - Panel Discussion on Creating a Local Foodshed. Panelists will discuss local food systems and efforts to create more sustainable ways of producing and consuming food.

For further information please contact Monique Bosch at moniqueb@optonline.net or 203-858-8829.

This event is sold out as of Feb. 24.

Please subscribe to this blog, sign up for the  e-newsletter or follow me on Twitter of FB to hear about future screenings.

Please join me for a very special  screening of the documentary food film FRESH on Saturday, February 27 from 2:00-4:30 pm at Audubon Greenwich. Immediately following the film, I will moderate a panel discussion with prominent members of the local/sustainable food movement. Please join us afterwards for complimentary organic wine and local cheese in the exhibition area. A special outdoor educational program for children 5 and up is being offered free of charge so the whole family can enjoy an afternoon at the beautiful venue.

ABOUT THE MOVIE: Local, organic and sustainable food movements are gaining ground across our country.  FRESH provides a vivid glimpse into our nation’s broken food system and celebrates the farmers, thinkers and business people across America who are re-inventing our food system and working for change. Come out and learn about the policies that are responsible for our current food system and see what we need to change so we can all access food that sustains our health, our farmers, and our planet.

ABOUT THE PANEL: The panelists will include: Amy Kalafa, co-producer of the ‘Two Angry Moms’ movie; Rachel Khanna, an organic chef and Certified Health Counselor; Dan Levinson, Founder and Chairman of Westport Green Village Initiative(GVI); Deb Marsden, founder of CT Farm Fresh Express; and Melina Brown (chicken expert and founder of the Southern CT/Westchester Backyard Poultry Meetup). Analiese Paik, a sustainable foods advocate and founder of the Fairfield Green Food Guide, will moderate the panel discussion.

The panel discussion, exhibitors, and an organic wine and Connecticut cheese reception will follow the movie. Space is very limited and tickets are available in advance only. Buy tickets for $7 online at www.brownpapertickets.com/event/91186. (If tickets/space remains, admission will be $15 at the door so please buy in advance.)

Doors open at 2:00 pm / Movie at 2:30 pm. Movie length: 72 min. (Snow date: Feb. 28th).

Co-sponsored by: Fairfield Green Food Guide and Greenwich Audubon

For more information, please visit: www.FRESHthemovie.com or the Audubon website

Event location: Audubon Greenwich, 613 Riversville Road, Greenwich, CT 06831 Questions? Call Jeff Cordulack at Audubon Greenwich: 203-869-5272 x239.

FOR PEOPLE WITH KIDS BUT WANT TO ATTEND THE FRESH EVENT, THIS KIDS PROGRAM WILL RUN DURING THE MOVIE:

Saturday, February 27

Be An Animal Tracks and Traces Detective

2:30-3:45 pm

Learn about the different tracks and traces left by our local animals and then join us for a short walk outside to search for animal signs. Ages 5 & up. RSVP required for this program. Sign up by calling the store at 203-869-5272 x221.

A MESSAGE FROM THE PRODUCERS OF “FRESH: The Movie”

FRESH is more than a movie, it’s a gateway to action. Our aim is to help grow FRESH food, ideas, and become active participants in an exciting, vibrant, and fast-growing movement.

When I write we, I don’t mean our small team (officially two of us, with lots of amazing helps from our interns and volunteers) but I mean YOU. All of you. FRESH is a grassroots efforts for a grassroots movement. It’s been tremendously exciting to see the movie catch on and spread like wild fire, being used all over the country as a platform to raise awareness and connecting people to the solutions available in their community.

Within a month of our launch, we’ve received over 20,000 visitors and hundreds of screenings have already been organized. We want to reach 1 million folks. Not just because that would totally feel nice to our ego (mine especially!), but because, we believe that FRESH can truly help get us to a tipping point, when sustainable food will no longer be just a niche market.

Please help us reach 1 million people (to start with that is.) Organize a home screening or a community screening. Get in touch with us, let us know what we can do more and better. We’re open!

Ana Joanes & The FRESH Team

About Audubon Connecticut/ Audubon Greenwich

Audubon Connecticut, the state organization of the National Audubon Society with more than 9,000 members statewide, works to protect birds, other wildlife and their habitats using education, science and conservation, and legislative advocacy for the benefit of humanity and the earth’s biological diversity. Through our network of nature centers, wildlife sanctuaries, and local, volunteer Chapters, we seek to connect people with nature and inspire the next generation of conservationists.

The Environmental Action Group at the Unitarian Church in Westport will be showing the documentary food film FRESH on Saturday, February 6^th as part of the monthly “Reel Justice” series at the church which is located at 10 Lyons Plains Rd., Westport, CT. Show time is at 6pm, but I recommend showing up at 5:00 for some fresh soup and a good dose of community.

FRESH celebrates the farmers, thinkers and business people across America who are re-inventing our food system. Forging healthier, sustainable alternatives, they offer a practical vision of our food and our planet’s future.  FRESH showcases real people with their personal stories of change inspiring us to believe that our individual actions in fact do matter. Here’s a link to some great movie trailers.

Prior to the film, “fresh” homemade soup will be served at 5pm, with the film screening at 6pm.  Following the film, environmental advocate and Yale Divinity School student, Frances Sink, will lead a discussion about the Fresh movement and how faith communities can deepen their ecological commitment through mindful eating practices and food justice advocacy.

For further information please contact Monique Bosch at moniqueb@optonline.net or 203-221-1829.