Wk 23 | Summer 5 Sneak Peek Tu-Th | Aug 6 & 8
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Our new root washer just arrived and we'll be inaugurating it by washing our recently harvested Norland Red potatoes--a good all-purpose potato with dark red skins and crisp, white flesh.
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Is small-scale organic egg production endangered?
The Cornucopia Institute, watchdog of all things organic, has alerted its members that the Food & Drug Administration (FDA) last week issued a draft guidance document clarifying what organic egg producers can do to  comply with earlier safety rules aimed at reducing salmonella contamination in the nation's egg supply.
Several of the suggested remedies would make it impractical to allow chickens to freely roam on pasture. Coupled with the USDA's wide-open interpretation of the organic-required "access to the outdoors"--which permits large industrial egg producers to get away with having tiny screened-in porches accessible to a small percentage of their birds--the organic label on eggs is subject to considerable dilution.
For more information, c lick here and here. There is a brief comment period; sign up with Cornucopia for action alerts to learn what you can do and to stay abreast of all their work.
Cornucopia offers an Organic Egg Scorecard which rates organic egg producers on a scale of 5 to 1 with 5 being the highest rating. Points are given in a variety of categories, including outdoor and indoor square
footage per bird, source of pullets (young birds) and feed, laying hen life span, and size of openings from indoors to outdoor access.
We're delighted to offer organic eggs from New Century Farm in Shullsburg, WI. New Century is medium-scale farm operated by Dean and Mary Dickel and their two grown children. New Century achieved a rating of 4 on the scorecard, deemed "excellent."
Because producing eggs is all they do, New Century is able to keep up year-round with the demands from our customers as well as from several cooperative and progressive grocery stores in and around Madison and Milwaukee. They do this by housing 7,000 to 10,000 laying hens (compared to 100,000-plus at industrial-scale "organic" farms) and providing meaningful outdoor access when weather permits.
If you have questions for Mary and Dean, feel free to give them a call at (608) 965-3000--another of the benefits of knowing your farmer!
-- Robin
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Questions?
Call Robin (in Chicago), 708-370-8017 | Chris (farmer/owner), 608-712-1585
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Click links below for info
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COMING NEXT WEEK
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(Sungolds, Juliets and/or Slicers)
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WHAT'S COOKIN'
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Our zucchini crop is done for the year, but after several weeks of them in your box (and more available at farmers markets) if you've run out of ways to work them into your menu, how about Zucchini Cookies with Cream Cheese Frosting. Yes, cookies. Cake, too! Check out our Hide Those Veggies section on our Recipe Index for other ways to hide these and other veggies--beets, tomatoes, turnips & spinach--in surprising ways. |
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Extra Produce | Maple Syrup | Sunflower Oil Raw Honey | Pastured Chickens | Organic Eggs
Stone-Ground Flours, Corn Meal & Pancake Mix | Blue Corn Tortilla Chips | Our Salsas, Soups, Preserves & More | Chocolate Sauce Seasonal Cookbooks
Be sure to apply multi-jar discounts when you purchase our jars!
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