October 17, 2014 | Nina Ignaczak

‘Young Farmers NY’ provides financial help for St. Lawrence County’s future farmers

Excerpt: New ‘Young Farmers NY’ providing incentives for farmers starting out or hanging on in St. Lawrence County and around the state.

Parts of the program launched include more than $600,000 in grants and a loan forgiveness program, both aimed at helping young farmers overcome obstacles to give them a greater chance of a successful career in agriculture.

Source: North Country Now

Why engineers are critical to the future of sustainable farming

Excerpt: “By introducing engineers and technologists, people that have worked at consumer design brands, and bringing that experience and worldview, we can make farming and food tech and ag tech sexy. Once [that] appears, it’s a self fulfilling prophecy. [There will] be more engineers,” said Gabe Blanchet, co-founder and CEO of Grove Labs, which has created a home aquaponics system the size of a bookshelf that has sensors and software to automatically update people of their crops’ health and send the information to their smartphones.

Source: Tech Republic

Encinitas sows new urban farming rules

Excerpt: Encinitas will continue to move forward with plans to make it easier to farm, raise bees or keep chickens in residential areas, the City Council agreed Wednesday, but several council members said there may be some significant unintended consequences.

“(Urban farming) sounds really good, unless it’s next to you and that’s the hang-up I have,” Councilman Mark Muir said as he described his concerns with the proposed changes.

Source: San Diego Union-Tribune

Across the US, Cities Struggle to Figure Out How to Accommodate Urban Farming

Excerpt: Widespread interest in urban agriculture is forcing local authorities to re-examine rules that prohibit farming in cities

Source: Earth Island Journal

Whole Foods to Rate Its Produce and Flowers for Environmental Impact

Excerpt: Whole Foods Market on Wednesday began a ratings program for fruits, vegetables and flowers aimed at giving consumers more information about pesticide and water use, the treatment of farm workers and waste management, and other issues surrounding the food they eat.

Source: New York Times

Panasonic sees bright future for indoor farming technology

Excerpt: Panasonic has licensed its first vertical indoor vegetable farm, a sustainable and economical indoor farming technology that can produce a wide range of seasonal crops using soil-based cultivation in controlled environments and Hydroponic type factory which uses water only without soil, in Singapore.

Source: Gulf News

UVM To Offer Nation’s First Food Hub Certificate Program

Excerpt: Beginning in January, the University of Vermont will offer a first-of-its kind professional certificate in food hub management.

Source: Vermont NPR