Market Reminder

Good Evening ALFN Members!

Remember to get all your orders into the market before tomorrow at noon.

In the meantime, I hope everyone is having a good week. It’s been a hectic week for me, so here is some pertinent wisdom from Vandana Shiva:

“You are not Atlas carrying the world on your shoulder. It is good to remember that the planet is carrying you.”

Take care,

Kyle Holton
Program & Market Manager

Market Is Open

ALFN Members,

The market is open! Peaches, spaghetti squashes, okra, tomatoes, onions, and potatoes are still producing in the market. As our growers begin to transition into fall plantings, make the most of what the summer has to offer. There are some excellent deals on the market right now for folks who want to store for the winter!

Program Manager Position

The Arkansas Local Food Network welcomes applicants for the part-time position of Program and Market Manager. We’re looking for someone who is passionate about the local food movement to manage our programs, communicate with our stakeholders, and contribute to the sustainability and growth of our mission. A full job description is available by e-mail to arlocalfoodnetwork@gmail.com. Interested candidates should send a cover letter, resume, and contact information for two professional references to arlocalfoodnetwork@gmail.com by Sunday, August 14th.

Scarcity & Fear

I’ve mentioned before that our current economic system operates on the idea of scarcity. Pricing on commodities and services are driven by the idea that there isn’t enough. Supply and demand are driven by the engine of scarcity. The politics of scarcity foment fear-mongering among citizens, drive national conversation, and structure the speeches of presidential-hopefuls. But the model of scarcity only works in linear systems. Cyclical, rejuvenating systems (i.e. natural systems) are revolving doors where scarcity meets sustainability. In any given election year, the politics of scarcity drive fear and team-based politics. However, the cycle of sustainable life and resource production continues. The pumpkins will be fat on the vine regardless of apocalyptic politics. However, with each decision we as a civilization make away from sustainability and towards scarcity, we cultivate a future according to our current worldview.

As you know, I’m a fan of The Story of Stuff. They have an older video on moving away from our current economic model toward a sustainable one. During this election season, their video on The Story of Broke seems pertinent. Check it out if you have 10 minutes.

Thanks

Kyle Holton
Program & Market Manager

Volunteers Needed

We’re in need of volunteers for tomorrow morning. There are still three spots available for the 8-10:30 shift.

Sign up to reap the reward of a month of membership or a $5 credit towards your order. Volunteer Spot

Thanks!

Weblog Entry

Good Morning ALFN Members,

Remember to take advantage of this week’s fresh produce and locally made products. The market will close for the week tomorrow at noon, so remember to get your orders made before then.

Also, we have four open volunteer spots for this Saturday. Come and help, and we will provide credit that goes to your order or to your monthly membership! Sign up here: Volunteer Sign-up

Also, Ozark Natural Breads is back this week with their products. If you didn’t get a chance to try their goods, check them out this week.

Thanks

Kyle Holton
Program & Market Manager

Market Is Open

ALFN Members,

We’ve reached the sizzle of summer marking the zenith of summer produce and signaling a transition into fall products. Those cold weather crops we won’t see until September and October, but our growers have begun to seed them with an eye to the future.

The market is open with so much to choose from our new listings of granola and breads from Ozark Breads to okra, frozen sweet corn and winter squashes.

Open ALFN Program/Market Manager Position

I will step down as the program manager this fall and transition to working with other projects associated with ALFN. Consequently, the board is looking for applicants. Please share the job description within your network!

The Arkansas Local Food Network welcomes applicants for the part-time position of Program and Market Manager. We’re looking for someone who is passionate about the local food movement to manage our programs, communicate with our stakeholders, and contribute to the sustainability and growth of our mission. A full job description is available by e-mail to arlocalfoodnetwork@gmail.com. Interested candidates should send a cover letter, resume, and contact information for two professional references to arlocalfoodnetwork@gmail.com by Sunday, August 14th.

Thanks

Kyle Holton
Program & Market Manager

Call for Volunteers!

Hey Folks,

We’re in need of volunteers for tomorrow morning. There are still three spots available for the 8-10:30 shift, and two for the 10-12:30 shift.

Sign up at Volunteer Spot to reap the reward of a month of membership or a $5 credit towards your order.

Market Reminder!

The market closes at noon tomorrow, which leaves plenty of time to get your order in. After you’re done browsing the meats and veggies for mouthwatering menu ideas, don’t forget to check out our other categories for fantastic household supplies made by talented local artisans. In addition to body soaps and lotions, there’s laundry soap, scouring powder, dishwasher tabs, and more!

The Market Is Open

ALFN Members,

Welcome to another week in the market! As a few mid-summer crops are starting to dwindle and our growers continue preparations for fall, be sure to stock up on the smorgasbord. And don’t miss the first offerings of our newest vendor, Ozark Natural Breads. They’re offering a trio of tasty granolas, which you can find in the Baked Goods category.

And a note from another of our favorite farmers:
“Crimmins family farm will be taking a week off in order to get our fields planted for both the second part of summer plus the fall garden. We hope to have more tomatoes, green beans, purple hull peas, zucchini and yellow squash, and the fall crops of lettuce and all the greens, etc. Thanks for your support and we’ll be back next week.”

Don’t forget to sign up for a Volunteer Spot for this Saturday’s market. It is always a treat to earn ALFN credit and rub shoulders with other members!

Have a great week!

Market Reminder!

Good evening, loyal Food Club Foodies!

It’s Tuesday, and that means the market will close tomorrow at noon. There’s still plenty of time to stock up on delicious summer veggies, meats, and more.

We also have a few coveted spots available to volunteer this Saturday. In addition to earning a $5 credit towards your order or a month’s worth of membership, you can enjoy some great coffee and tasty snacks. Sign up here: Volunteer Spot.

Weblog Entry

Good morning ALFN members,

What a wonderful day to begin another week on the “market”:http://littlerock.locallygrown.net/market! I love this season in the ALFN market when the cybernetic seams are stretched with the bounty of summer choices. This is the time to let tomato juice dribble down your chin and gorge on fresh food. This is also the time to can and freeze the foods you love miss the most in the winter.

We had a successful pilot run with the dry goods on the market. We will continue to have dry good available in the coming months as a pre-order option. Just head over to the dry goods section on the market to order. Don’t forget to check out the heirloom tomatoes, fresh okra and mixed sweet pepper options available right now.

Shared Economy

Recently, I read a profound description of modern life and the desires cultivated by our over-capitalized world. Ricky D’Ambrose suggested the modern lifestyle is “available only in an affluent, wasteful, appetitive society such as ours, committed to reckless uses of limited energy, built upon extravagance and speed, crammed with unremitting secondhand desires that are hugely disproportionate to what most of us are capable of ever achieving.” Have you every wondered whether the desires that well up within you are your own or recycled desires from unsustainable economy based on unlimited consumption? Secondhand desires are passions seeded by marketing. Through mass media, reality is presented as a new glossed surface promising a life based on mirage. However, I think we can redeem “secondhand desires” by refusing to take part in an economy and worldview of obsolescence. I’m interested in the market exchange of used and recycled goods. As the limited resources of planet earth begin to run thin, human economy must move to a shared, recycled economy.

Want to hear more? Here are two cool resources. From the Story of Stuff folks, listen to the podcast on how to open up to the market forces of sharing. Inevitably, you may find yourself at a website called Yerdle. On this site you can swap items with folks in a cyber share-exchange…check it out!

Have a great week!