Market Bell

Mosey, rush, sashay, skip, or beam yourself over to ALFN’s market . We are open.

Local News & Reminders:

1. We are running low on printing paper for market invoices. If you or your business has a stack of paper with only one side printed, we would love to use the other side. Email me, and I can come and pick it up!

2. We are still seeking interested persons for the Treasurer and Governance positions on ALFN’s board of directors. Please corral these wild accountants and lawyers of Little Rock and drive them our way!

3. We are entering August this week. The death knell will sound for thousands of children as jingles for back-to-school sales reverberate through radio and T.V. commercials. However, August also marks a small change for ALFN in our membership payment structure. Remember, annual membership fees will remain $60, but those who choose to pay monthly will need to pay $7.50 per month. Volunteers on Saturdays will continue to receive either $5 credit on their account, or one month’s credit in membership fees ($7.50).

4. The Root Cafe is partnering with the Southern Center for Agroecology to lead three workshops on food preservation. The first one was this past week. However, you can still sign up for the other workshops. On August 20, the class will look at Fig & Jalapeno preserves; on September 24th, the class will investigate sweet pepper and cucumber pickling. Each class only costs $35. Preserve your spot here .

Reflection on Membership:

The relentless heat of central Arkansas has reminded me of those who have been suffering without rain for years. The extensive drought in California has large implications for America’s food system. California supplies more than half of the country’s fruit and veggies. With mandatory limits on water usage, residents and farmer’s have been put in a squeeze. Yet, alfalfa—a major export crop to countries like China—uses over 100 billion gallons of water totaling more water usage than any other food crop including almonds. Industrial agriculture has traded the logic of common sense for the logic of a capitalist system based only on profit. According to research, over half of California’s farmland was owned by absentee landlords by 2000. Although 90% of farms are owned by small stakeholders, those farms represent a fraction of total land owned by the 10% corporate agribusinesses.

From my perspective, this is a problem of food sovereignty. We need to democratize our food to safeguard our local agroecology and cultivate robust local food systems. I’m interested in what ALFN can do to be a component in developing food sovereignty for central Arkansas. As a hub for local food, we need to lay the cultural and physical infrastructure for a local food system. I invite you to rally behind this movement not with a simple one day protest, but a longer, steady protest. Invest in ALFN by organizing your food purchases throughout the year with local growers. Invest in ALFN through your membership not only as a paying customer, but an active member. We can grow this market to not only reach more individuals, but reach deeper into every month of the year for a four season market. Thanks and hold those memberships with pride!

Ode to Membership

O! how deeply delightful a melon rests on the tongue,
when the journey to my mouth is short and I know where it comes from

O! in honor of memberships, dollars and sense,
used in organizing food sovereignty and bulldozing the corporate absentee fence

Not everything is solved with a smile and a rhyming couplet,
but membership with ALFN is like an edible amulet

A badge, a protest sign, a vote for the democratization of local food,
a network, a node, a fellowship of foodies, an agro-urban brotherhood (and sisterhood).

Your Cheesy Friend

Kyle Holton
Program & Market Manager