The Holy Day of Barbecue will soon be upon us. Are you looking to shake it up, get out from behind the grill, and do something different this year? How about joining us for our Build a Burger fundraiser BBQ at the King Market on Sunday, July 4th between 11-1? Build a Burger will feature market-fresh burgers (and Tofurky for the veggies among us) with all the fixin’s, courtesy of market vendors and area businesses. All proceeds from the scrumptious event benefit Foodshare Fund Northeast, a market money matching program for SNAP recipients (SNAP stands for Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, formerly known as the Food Stamp Program) who shop the King Portland Farmers Market.

Find out more about Build a Burger here and our market money match programs here.

See you at the market!

For the last couple of years, Portland Farmers Market has been delving into the question of food equity, examining the role we can play in getting farm-fresh produce into the hands of our neighbors who need it most. In 2009, this work took the form of a new “market money” matching program for Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP, formerly food stamps) recipients shopping our King Portland Farmers Market. Created by the Northeast Coalition of Neighborhoods and managed by a team of dedicated volunteers, Foodshare Fund Northeast provided a dollar for dollar match up to $5 per week for customers who use EBT cards at the market. In 2010, the match has increased to $10 per week.

The inaugural year of Foodshare Fund Northeast resulted in a significant increase in the number of EBT cardholders shopping the market, from 1% of all shoppers at the beginning of the 2009 market season, to 5% of shoppers by season’s end. This encouraging news tells us that everyone values access to fresh produce, not just those who are most able to afford it. Nutrition incentive programs such as the Foodshare Fund are helping us grow healthier individuals, healthier families, and a healthier community for all our citizens.

Foodshare Fund Northeast was the inspiration for Fresh Exchange, a similar matching program launched this year at our Buckman Market in southeast Portland. Fresh Exchange provides a dollar for dollar match up to $5 for shoppers using EBT cards at the market. Fresh Exchange was initiated by members of the Portland Business Alliance’s Leadership Portland program in collaboration with Southeast Uplift Neighborhood Coalition. Like Foodshare Fund Northeast, Fresh Exchange is managed by committed volunteers and funded solely by local individuals and businesses, including founding support from the Portland Trail Blazers, Wells Fargo, and Markowitz, Herbold, Glade & Mehlhaf, P.C.

Both matching programs are actively fundraising to ensure a solid endowment for this season and beyond. To that end, check out this series of upcoming garden workshops at the Buckman Market to benefit Fresh Exchange. The workshops will tell you everything you need to know to get on your gardening way, beginning with an overview of seeding, planting and watering this Thursday, June 3, from 5:30-6:30. Registration is encouraged but not required. Drop by the market and join us.

Click here to learn more about Foodshare Fund Northeast and Fresh Exchange, including how you can help us sustain these valuable programs.

See you at the market!

We are looking ahead to a busy week in the food world. With three markets opening, the Portland Farmers Market office is buzzing, the totes are flying, and the market maps are being finalized. Check our our latest blog entry for all the details.

See you at the market!

The EverGreen cat is officially out of the bag. Our EverGreen composting and recycling campaign got a nice write up today in The Oregonian’s PDX Green column. Read more here and join us at the market tomorrow to see it all in action.

When you stop by the market this weekend, look for the multitude of Earth Day celebration activities happening, including make your own toothpaste and deodorant workshops with Create Plenty, an egg carton creatures activity for kids, hosted by Song Garden Preschool and make your own market kit, hosted by PFM volunteers. Season sponsor COUNTRY Financial will also be on hand distributing reusable tote bags to our produce loving shoppers. Mayor Sam Adams will cap off the celebration with a public launch of EverGreen at 11:30am. It promises to be a day chock full of good food, good community, and good fun.

See you at the market!

In a last minute update, we would like to let you know about the Future Energy Conference going on today and tomorrow at the Oregon Convention Center.  This is the fourth year running for the Northwest Environmental Business Counsel’s Energy Conference and this year proves to be the biggest yet.  This is your chance to gain an up-to-date perspective on the state of the industry and learn about new technologies, how to implement efficiency in buildings and industry and new biofuel projects.

The conference is open April 21st 7:00am - 5:00pm and April 22nd 7:00 am to 3:00pm.  Admission to exhibits and keynotes are free.

For more information click here.

As most of you know, tomorrow is Earth Day.  To coincide with this and to bring awareness to food-related carbon footprints, all Bon Appetit cafes will be transformed into “low carbon learning venues”.  Have you ever considered how much of a carbon footprint your every day lunch creates?  Now you can find out with Bon Appetit’s Carbon Diet Calculator.  For example, beef and cheese are high carbon foods as the cows they come from emit high levels of methane gas which, as everyone knows, wreaks havoc with the ozone layer and is 23 times more potent than our other favorite toxic run-off, carbon dioxide.

Leftbank Cafe Manager, Leah Wilmoth, said “I stand behind Bon Appetit’s mission to provide healthy sustainable food.  This was one of the main reasons I wanted to work for the company.”  On Earth Day, the Leftbank Cafe will not be serving any types of food that have a high carbon footprint.  Chef Adam Torres said “On a day to day basis we only serve locally sourced foods and tomorrow will be no exception.  We will only have low carbon footprint foods such as Turkey, Tuna and vegetables on the menu.”  The Turkey served at the Leftbank Cafe is locally sourced from Cooper Farms in Stanfield, Oregon and the Tuna is caught off the Oregon coast and canned right here in Portland.

Waste from food packaging is also another high-carbon culprit.  At Bon Appetit all of the to-go boxes and cups are compostable, thereby reducing the carbon footprint further.  It’s up to everyone to consider these things when making their food choices - for the good of this lovely Earth.

In this installment of “behind the scenes” at Portland Farmers Market, we’d like to introduce you to the newest member of our team, EverGreen Coordinator Ryan McLaughlin. Ryan is a recent transplant to Portland from North Carolina, bringing with him a commitment to environmental conservation, mad trash sorting skills, and an aversion to car ownership. When he is not at the PSU market wrangling refuse and entertaining our EverGreen volunteers, Ryan also works with the Oregon Microenterprise Institute, a statewide association of microenterprise development programs and their supporters. You may occasionally catch him whipping in and out of the Leftbank building on his bike, en route to one adventure or another. Here’s our 30 second glimpse into the head of a refuse loving, okra eating, self described data geek:

PFM: Why are you drawn to the wild world of trash?

Ryan: A combination of fascination with resource use and a childlike desire to be taboo. Trash is one of our ultimate societal outcasts, and we have designed waste systems to remove it from our sight and mind. So by dismissing the norm and embracing waste, I get to feel like a kid who’s doing something bad while having a blast.

PFM: What do you hope we accomplish with the EverGreen campaign?

Ryan: Ultimately, I hope that we will build a system that works year after year. Quantitatively, I would love to see us surpass our 50% diversion goal at PSU by an additional 25%, for a total of 75% diversion.

PFM: Aside from sorting refuse, what’s the best part about working for PFM and/or at the market each week?

Ryan: The atmosphere. I work for a non-profit in an office downtown during the week, so it is really fulfilling to work alongside thousands of excited people in the open air every Saturday.

PFM: What is your favorite season to eat and why?

Ryan: Oh man, that’s tough. Well, I love eating in winter when my body craves rich, nourishing foods. There is something deeply satisfying about eating delicious food when it’s freezing and wet outside. On the other side of that coin, who can complain about the late summer cornucopia? I love the range of colors and flavors that are available at the end of summer, and the transition into fall is an exciting time to cook because the spices I use start to change and suddenly I find myself buying butter again.

PFM: Anything else you’d like the Leftbank community to know about you?

Ryan: What is this, the Dating Game? I’m an Aries, enjoy moonlit walks and smooth jazz…No, seriously, I really want to raise ducks this year, and need to meet someone soon that I can talk to about that. Perhaps someone can connect me with a backyard duck farmer?

If you know that duck farmer, want to volunteer for the EverGreen campaign, or just want to say hi and welcome Ryan to the building, email ryan@portlandfarmersmarket.org anytime.

See you at the market!

Pats on backs and hearty handshakes are in order for Alex and the crew at Upright Brewing.  Last weekend, hot on the heels of Upright’s one year anniversary party,  Alex found himself on a plane headed to the World Beer Cup 2010 in the windy city of Chicago where he had entered six of his wonderful brews.  We are happy to announce that he won a bronze medal for his German-style sour ale, Gose.  Congratulations Alex and Gerritt!

Click here for more information on the World Beer Cup 2010.

And here is a blog Alex wrote on his way to the award ceremony, published on Brewmaster’s Corner.

On April 22nd AIGA, Portland’s Professional Association for Design, will host its annual Green Design Expo to be held at the Leftbank Annex.  As part of their sustainability initiative, this year’s expo will be focusing on green design and featuring speakers and vendors from the green design industry.

Along with local product and service vendors, there will be a number of speakers.   The featured keynote speakers are Marty McDonald, the founder and Creative Director of egg - a Seattle-based firm specializing in brand development and communications for sustainable brands - and Hilary Bromberg, egg’s Strategic Director.

Kristin Rogers Brown, Vice-President of AIGA Portland, will be discussing AIGA’s living design principles and Will Villota, Brand Manager at Bonneville Environmental Foundation will be talking about market research into consumer sustainable lifestyle choices.

If you are need of inspiration and want to learn more about sustainable design and how to implement it into your everyday practice, this is the expo for you.

For more information and to RSVP to the event click here

Following hot on the heels of Uncommon’s announcement that their product line was to be rolled out into Apple stores nationwide, we would like to let you know of some more exciting things they are working on.  There is now an application that can be downloaded onto your iphone from the iTunes App Store that lets you browse for artwork, upload your own image or, if you prefer you can snap a photo with your iphone and instantly configure it into a capsule case and place your order there and then.  Of, if you prefer instant gratification, get yourself to the nearest Apple store where you can select from Uncommon’s Spring Collection.

Also in the works, a capsule case for iPod Touch users, set to be available in a matter of weeks.

For more information on these product lines and on Uncommon’s featured artists, check out their April newsletter here.