AFPC Member Bryce Wrigley tells Alaska to Get Growing!

Alaska Food Policy Council member and owner of Alaska Flour Company Bryce Wrigley wrote this article encouraging Alaskans to participate in growing food and stresses the importance of working collectively toward a more food secure Alaska! 

"While these ideas by themselves do not amount to much in the way of feeding the state, taken together, they make a difference." -Bryce Wrigley

Read the full article here.

Find out more about Alaska Flour Company products and support Bryce Wrigley's great Alaska Grown work!

Celebrate Alaska Agriculture Day!

Support local agriculture today by purchasing products grown and produced in Alaska! On April 14, 2013, Governor Sean Parnell proclaimed May 7th as Alaska Agriculture Day in order to emphasize the vital role the agriculture industry plays in our food security, self-sufficiency, and economic prosperity as a state.

For more information on where to purchase Alaska Grown products, please download the Alaska Division of Agriculture's Alaska Grown Source Book

A Statewide comprehensive list of Alaska Farmers Markets created by the Division of Agriculture can be found here.

ALASKAN PLANTS AS FOOD AND MEDICINE SYMPOSIUM

"Coming Together to Promote Traditional Plant Knowledge and Ethical Harvesting"

Alaska Native Tribal Health Consortium is hosting the Alaska Plants as Food and Medicine Symposium, May 24-27 in Girdwood. For more information, visit the website, http://www.apfm2013.org/, or contact Meda Dewitt-Schleifman (907) 729-3639, mmschleifman@anthc.org.  APFM 2013 has been approved for CME’s, CNE’s, and CHAP CEU’s (13). To earn 2 college credits, contact Sarah McConnell, ssmcconnell@alaska.edu,  UAF Interior-Aleutians Campus, (888)474-5207, option 2, ext. 6. Deadline for registration is May 15th.

Fresh From Alaska Food Co-Op Meeting in Anchorage

The Alaska Cooperative Extension Service will be hosting the first meeting of the "Fresh from Alaska Food Co-Op" on Thursday, May 9th from 5:30 - 7:00 pm at their office, 1675 C Street, Suite 100, Anchorage, 99501. For more information contact Triena Slatter, 907-830-0775, or the Cooperative Extension Service office, 786-6300. Follow on Facebook at http://www.facebook.com/FreshFromAlaska.

Resolution Creating Food Working Group Passes

House Concurrent Resolution 1 (HCR1) sponsored by Representative Bill Stolze passed the Alaska State Senate today with no opposition and is awaiting transmittal to the Governor. The resolution goes into effect after having already passes the House on 3/11/13.

The resolutions asks the Governor to create a food resource development working group whose mission is to advise the legislature on food policy issues and to bring together various food stakeholders for the purpose of promoting local food markets and increasing Alaska's food security.

The resolution requests the working group collaborate with the Alaska Food Policy Council. See the AFPC press release for more information.

Recruiting for AFPC VISTA

The Alaska Food Policy Council (AFPC) is sponsoring an AmeriCORPS VISTA to conduct outreach, coalition management, grant writing and fundraising to further develop the structure and sustainability of the AFPC. AFPC is a group of Alaskans – over 200 individuals and agencies across the state – driven by the need to strengthen our food system. AFPC works to promote policy change to improve Alaska’s food production, processing and distribution. This is a one-year position with the potential to increase to 2-3 years. This position is located with the Alaska Center for the Environment in Anchorage, Alaska.

To apply or learn more about the VISTA program, please visit the AmeriCORPS website at  http://www.americorps.gov/for_individuals/overview/index.asp. 

Details on the “Alaska Food Policy Council Capacity Building” position can be found at: https://my.americorps.gov/mp/listing/viewListing.do;jsessionid=1p2pQZDQPcChf2dMQQx5h1vTKrlCFy4M7d4GnWqxTvtyGmynk6wh!-1544269104?id=47901&fromSearch=true.  

    Applications should be submitted to VISTA online by February 1, 2013.

VISTA application deadline now 11/26/12

For the  two new VISTA positions listed below, the applications must be submitted by November 26^th. The December 15^th date listed on the AmeriCORPS site is not the date for applications.

I apologize for any inconvenience.

Diane