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Hancock Harvest Council 
News, Announcements & Meeting Minutes    
April 26, 2012

Dear HHC members and interested parties,  

Our next meeting will take place on Monday, May, 7th at 7 pm.  The meeting will be held at the Purdue Extension Office at 802 N Apple Street in Greenfield. 
 
The planning commission met on the 24th and unanimously recommended the approval of the Agribusiness Ordinance.  It will be going in front of the county commissioners next month and do not expect any problems with it passing.  The other counties in the state have been watching this process and will likely use Hancock county as a basis for adopting ordinances in the other counties.  We would like to thank the Indiana Farm Bureau, the Hancock County Farm Bureau, ISDA, My Local Indiana, Purdue Extension and many others for their work on this.  It was over a year in development and took many things into consideration.

The web site is being updated to include all of our newest members and to remove those who did not rejoin this year.  Thank you to all who continue  to support this organization and receive benefits from it.  We only lost a few members, mostly those who are no longer in business or did not develop the business as they had planned.  The web site updates should be done by the date of our meeting.  Please review your page and let me know of any changes you would like made to your page. I can make minor adjustments without having to rely on our web person.  

The 2012 Buy Fresh Buy Local Membership Directories have gone to the printer and will be available at our meeting.  Please try to attend the meeting to pick up some copies for your business, farmers market, etc.  We will also be trying to get them out to other locations. A web version will be on our web site as well. A big thank you to Ruth Ann Roney for working with our designer and printer.  We are going to get the directories sooner than we originally thought.

Food Hub meeting was last Friday at 2 pm at the Purdue Extension Office, surveys will be going out soon.

 
Agenda for our meeting:
  • Approve meeting minutes
  • Treasurer's report
  • Food Hub
  • Agribusiness Ordinance
  • Misc - suggestions for meetings
Barb Smith, BFBL Contact & Editor
In This Issue
April Meeting Minutes
Farmers Markets
Indiana Living Green Magazine
Membership Benefits
Mission Statement
Vision & Values
April 2012 Meeting Minutes

 

Meeting minutes for the Hancock Harvest Council regular meeting held April 2, 2012 at the Extension Office.

 

Attendance:  Gary Mithoefer, Carol Waterman, Glen Reynolds, Marvin Miller, Jeniece Miller, Rex Zenor, Earl Smith, Barb Smith, Edna Yeager, Roy Ballard.

 

The meeting was called to order at 7:04pm by Earl Smith.

 

The March minutes were accepted as presented.

 

The treasurer's report was accepted as presented.  The names have been changed on the banking account.  Checks will be going out to the Daily Reporter, Indiana Living Green, and the Chamber of Commerce.  The balance is $3,349.24.  There are deposits to be made.

 

The Indiana Living Green magazine ad was discussed.  We reviewed the April ad.  The cost was $100 which was less than the $150 price quoted earlier.  We will watch for hits on the website to sign up for the newsletter.  We decided to change the background color to yellow with green lettering where the outlined letters were for the May edition.  We may promote the new directory or advertise the Farmers' Markets in a future ad.

 

There was discussion about the cause of the bee deaths in our country.  The coating on the corn seed that will kill the corn worms has been established as the cause.  The coating blows in the wind while the planting is being done landing on field rows, etc.  The bees carry it back to the hives and it kills many of the bees.  The product is banned Europe.

 

Farmers' Markets were discussed.  Waterman's are planting early, they will have a Jazz -A-Berry Festival June 2 & 3, 2012.  It will be promoted in the newsletter.  New Castle in Henry County market will be June through October.  The Cumberland market will be charging $55 for the season this year.  The Geist market will be $35 this year.  The Greenfield market begins May 5 from 8:00 to 12:00 at the fairgrounds. The Extension office parking lot will be used during the fair (June 22 to 29).  The Crooked Creek Farmers' Market is looking for vendors.  It will be Sunday 11:30 to 3:00 in June through October in the N. Michigan Rd. and 70th Street area.  Churches are promoting in bulletins and St. Vincent Hospital is promoting.  There will be a discount if you sign up April 16 or earlier.  The full season of 20 weeks will be $200 with discount and 10 weeks for $125 with discount, single day $10 to $15. Eligible permits and license, products highest quality, no buying from wholesaler, other farmer's product sold with approval.  Barb can forward application.

 

We will have more information about the county fairs at our next meeting and will decide then if we will participate at any with a booth.

 

The directory will be finished by the first part of May.  We will be using the same format as last year.

 

The next Food Hub meeting will be Friday, April 27.  Five meetings with farmers will be set up by the consultant to meet in May after planting time.  Consumer meetings will be set up at some time.  We are on the leading edge with this project.  There will be another grant available for farmer training.  The grant is for a maximum of $50,000.  We could go ahead and apply for the grant now even though we don't know the outcome of the Food Hub; it would look good for the current grant.

 

This Old Farm is looking for growers.  Call if you are interested.

 

Gas prices will affect grocery products.  Grocers will begin looking for more local food.

 

The next meeting of the zoning ordinance will be April 24 at 6:30pm in the annex south of the court house.  Please attend to support the ordinance and vote for it to pass.  Rex Zenor will be going before the board before the end of May for his zoning.  Every county in the state will have to have an ordinance soon.

 

Rush County has the first pilot program for the Livestock Friendly County, from which confinement farmers are exempt.  The meeting will be Monday, April 9 at 9:30am in the Rush County Court House.

 

The first small farm conference in Danville will be presented March 1 & 2, 2013.  The Purdue Extension will be involved.  They need speakers.

 

The term Indiana Grown Brand is now being used.

 

The home based business extension program is about complete.

 

Herbicides carry over in mulch, hay, compost and could kill your plants.  Be careful when using these.

 

Pest control has to be based on the weather and temperature instead of by calendar dates.  You may need to treat earlier this year.

 

One thousand chickens can be killed at home and can be sold at Farmers' Markets or road side stands.    The raw milk study is continuing this summer.

 

Tuttle Orchards have moved their Open House up this year because of the weather to April 21.  There have been no mushrooms this year because of the weather.

 

The meeting was adjourned at 8:20pm.

 

Submitted by:

Edna Yeager

(317)339-9788

Ednayeager49@yahoo.com 

 

 

 

 

Farmers Markets Opening


Several markets open in May, including Geist on Thursday, Cumberland and Harvest Market at the Fairgrounds on Saturday.  Rushville market opens on May 21st.

Indiana Living Green Magazine
We are now advertising in the Indana Living Green Magazine. 

Their Earth Day issue will hit news stands on April 28, 2012.  Check out our ad and their great magazine.  You can pick up copies at local Marsh, Kroger and O'Malia stores.
Link to our newest publication:   Indiana Living Green
 
 
Benefits of Membership
 
BFBL LabelWe hope that you find membership with Hancock Harvest Council to be a benefit for you. We have several different memberships available that will be included on your invoice and/or letter inviting you to join. It includes a beginner level for those who are not ready to begin promoting their product. Partial list of membership benefits are listed below:
  1. A listing in our Annual Directory - level of membership determines type of listing.
  2. Have the opportunity to use the BFBL graphics in their advertising, brochures and web sites. Must be pre-approved, graphics provided upon request.  Cannot be used on products.
  3. Promotion in our newsletter - member profiles, etc.
  4. Web page on the HHC website - more info at December meeting.
  5. Access to BFBL merchandise.
  6. We are currently working on updating our application to make it easier for Restaurants and Farmers markets.  Each classification will have a separate application. 

Consumer or Associate members are entitled to BFBL merchandise to be determined (we currently have bags and t-shirts). Their membership helps us to continue the mission of providing education and promotion of local foods.  Associate memberships are currently $10 per year.

 

Membership information and Invoices below:

  

Producer Membership Letter/Invoice

 

Farmers Market and Restaurant Membership Letter/Invoice 

 

New members also need to complete application found on-line or can be e-mailed to you.  Current members should send an e-mail with any changes to your information for the directory and web page.  If you want featured in a newsletter, please let us know as well.

For any questions, please contact Barb Smith thru this e-mail or 765-763-0246.


In Closing:
Thank you again for your time and support in making our organization successful.  I hope you can plan to attend these meetings and take part in the furture of Hancock Harvest Council If you have any questions, please contact us.

Sincerely,
 
Barbara Smith, Secretary
Hancock Harvest Council
Mission
BFBL Label

The intent of the Hancock Harvest Council is to further develop opportunities for agricultural producers and potential producers to make available local foods and educational experiences to each other and the community.

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Vision & Values

Vision Statement:

We will continue to foster a more sustainable and educated community for current and future generations

 

Values Statement:

The Members of the Hancock Harvest Council are Dedicated to the Following Core Values:

 · Quality

· Food Safety

· Consistency

· Personal Integrity

· Identity Preservation

· Support of the Local Community