The North Shore Land Alliance, in partnership with Hofstra University, the Long Island Group of the Sierra Club, EcoScraps, Edible Magazine, Slow Food Huntington and iEatGreen, will host the Long Island Food Conference, to be held at Hofstra University, in Hempstead, on Saturday, April 25, from 8 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. This seminal event is a forum to educate people about growing food, making healthy and sustainable food choices, and incorporating broader policies and programs that affect food sources in our communities.
Although best known as a suburban community, Long Island was home to nearly 3,000 farms in 1950. While farms and open space have grown scarcer since those days, there is still a strong interest in growing fresh food. “There was a tremendous turnout and response from the nearly 1,400 participants who attended the 2011 and 2012 Small Farm Summits,” says Stephen Searl, director of land conservation for the Land Alliance. “We need to keep educating the Long Island community so we can continue strengthening and increasing our local sustainable food movement.”
Over the course of the daylong conference on growing and farming, workshops and panels will be led by local educators and professionals on various subjects from composting to hydroponic gardening. Featured workshops include: From Hive to Table: Basic Beekeeping Practices and Honey Extraction; Garden Gold: Best Soil Practices and Composting; From Seed to Superfood: Eating Locally on Long Island Year-Round; and Community Garden Toolkit Essentials. There will also be farm and food related exhibitors, including local Community Supported Agriculture farms and service gardens, who will share information about local programs and products.
Plenary speaker Stephen Ritz will start the day off by sharing inspiring stories of how he has helped community families grow more than 30,000 pounds of vegetables in the Bronx through his organization Green Bronx Machine. Along with the workshops and networking forums held throughout the day, Ritz will bring a great deal of knowledge about urban and suburban growing to the audience.
Location: Hofstra University, in Hempstead. Cost: $25 for adults, $15 for college students and free for Hofstra students and children. For more information, visit LIFoodConference.com or contact North Shore Land Alliance at 516-626-0908.
