Northland Food Network
April Newsletter

Wed. April 14th, 4-5pm: Farm Incubators in NE MN – Preliminary Insights on the Value of Farm Internships

What: The Northland Food Network has partnered with the Northeast Regional Sustainable Development Partnership (NERSDP) to identify what makes farm internships successful in creating new farmers/farms in NE MN. Join the April 2021 Northland Food Network meeting to learn more about the preliminary insights of interviews conducted with farmers and interns from the principal investigator Dr. David Syring. Then share your thoughts on how this information could be used by policy makers, educators and current/future farmers offering internships.

Who: David Syring is a UMD Professor of Anthropology, Environmental Education graduate faculty member and Director of the Masters in Professional Studies (MPS) in Multidisciplinary Research and Creativity program.

When: Wednesday, April 14 at 4 PM

Where: Northland Food Network Zoom Meeting (click here for link)

Please complete this survey to inform a community food project

We live in a region with many forests and lakes and want to explore how to connect people to the foods available like fish, berries, deer, etc. AEOA, Essentia Health, the Iron Range Partnership for Sustainability, and our partners are interested in hearing from you about how much these foods are currently used in your household food budget.

Please share your experience with us by taking the 12-question survey at: https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/CommunityFoodsSurvey. The survey is open until Friday, April 16th.

Learn more about local food efforts at: https://www.irpsmn.org/rutabagaproject

Bimaaji’idiwin Grow Your Own Food Training Program Thursdays in April

Join the Bimaaji’idiwin FDLTCC Extension Producer Training Program for weekly classes on farming and gardening. Thursdays in April from 5:30 to 6:30 PM. To register, please email erikalegros@fdlrez.com

Cottage Foods Training for Certification – Sat. April 24th 9am-1pm

Due to the popularity of the Cottage Food Producer food safety webinar class, we have added another for Saturday, April 24, 2021 from 9AM-1PM. It qualifies for both Tier 1 and Tier 2 training. Registration link here: https://learning.umn.edu/.../publicCourseSearchDetails.do... Below is information about the course from UMN Extension.

Cottage Food Producer Food Safety Training Webinar and Online Course Available

Do you get rave reviews on your homemade breads, cakes and cookies? Are family and friends asking to buy your yummy home canned salsa and pickles?
 
Have you considered starting a food business out of your home but are at a loss where to start? Join University of Minnesota Extension Food Safety Educators, Kathy Brandt and Suzanne Driessen at a Cottage Food Producer Food Safety Training webinar or take the online course.
 
Both the webinar and online course meet the Minnesota Department of Agriculture food safety training requirements to register as a Minnesota Cottage Food Producer. Once registered, you’ll be able to make and sell homemade non-potentially hazardous foods including baked goods, candy, home-canned peaches, pickles, salsa, jams, jellies and more. The specific conditions that must be met to qualify as an allowable Minnesota cottage food will be thoroughly covered.
 
The training focus is on food safety practices for all processes covered under the Minnesota Cottage Food Law (CFL) including drying, baking, confections, jams and jellies, acid and acidified fruit and vegetables, and fermentation. Participants learn how to produce, package, label, store, and transport a safe food product. 
 
Many details of the CFL will be covered including who needs to register, where allowed cottage food can be sold, and the maximum gross yearly sales allowed.

Registration and $50/person fee are required. 

To register for the upcoming webinar on Saturday, April 24, 2021, or for the online course, go to https://extension.umn.edu/courses-and-events/cottage-food-producer-food-safety-training. For more information contact Suzanne at 320-203-6057 or driessen@umn.edu.
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Source: Suzanne Driessen, Extension Food Safety Educator, driessen@umn.edu, (320) 203-6057, University of Minnesota Extension Regional Office, St. Cloud