Hemp History Week is a national campaign showcasing the health benefits and eco-friendly attributes of hemp products. The second annual Hemp History Week will be celebrated May 2-8th, 2011. American farmers are currently prohibited from growing non-drug industrial hemp, despite 400 million dollars and growing in annual retail sales for hemp products in the U.S.

Working under the banner of ‘Hemp for Health and Sustainability’ organizers aim to bridge the conversation between America’s past history with industrial hemp and the increased benefits that consumers and the economy will experience when American farmers can grow industrial hemp once again. Hemp History Week is a public awareness campaign supported by the Hemp Industries Association, Vote Hemp, and a number of leading hemp products companies and retailers, including Dr. Bronner’s Magic Soaps, Manitoba Harvest, Nature’s Path, and Nutiva. Get involved at www.HempHistoryWeek.com.

A state-by-state calendar of confirmed Hemp History Week events is available by visiting: Hemp History Week Events.

At Valley Natural Foods, several Hemp-based products will be on sale April 27 through May 10. Look for Manitoba Harvest, Nature’s Path, Dr. Bronner’s and Nutiva products.

Although it’s January, it is never too early to start thinking about your garden!

We have a new class series at Valley Natural Foods focused on sustainable land use design to get you thinking about new ways to evolve your garden this year.

Our Permaculture Workshop will be held on Tuesday, January 25th and again on Tuesday, March 1st from 6-9pm at Valley Natural Foods. Anybody can attend the classes and all co-op members receive a discounted rate. The workshop is $25 for non-members and $20 for members. Call 952-891-1212 to register or stop by the customer service counter at our store.

During late January and February also join us for our FREE sustainable film series. Please call to pre-register as space is limited! Our film series will explore various environmental concepts including sustainable farming, global warming, and our nation’s use of oil, promoting greating understanding of how these issues affect everybody equally.

The workshop and film discussions are taught by experienced Permaculture designer, Dan Halsey, who has worked with the cities of Apple Valley and Burnsville  and School District 196 to implement his Perpetual Harvest Community Garden designs. Dan is currently working with Valley Natural Foods to design their mandala community gardens during the spring of 2011.  Read more about Dan on his blog: http://southwoodsforestgardens.blogspot.com

During this three hour workshop  learn different, practical Permaculture design elements for your garden that carefully analyze ecological and biological principles using patterns and relationships in nature. The goal is to create synergy and balance between all of the elements in your garden in order to minimize waste and the demand for human labor and energy.  Learn how to consciously design and maintain productive ecosystems that have the diversity, stability, and resilience of natural ecosystems. Through the harmonious integration of landscape and people, we are better able to produce food, energy, shelter, and meet other needs—both material and non-material—in a sustainable way.

SUSTAINABLE FILM SERIES
Fridays in January & February are Movie Nights at the Co-op!
Join us to view this innovative film series while enjoying popcorn and engaging in warm conversation. Dan Halsey will introduce the films, offer insights, and encourage discussion.

FRESH, THE MOVIE

Friday, January 28th, 2011 – 6:00 p.m. – 9:00 p.m.

FRESH the movie celebrates the farmers, thinkers and business people across America who are re-inventing our food system. Each is focused on offering healthier, sustainable alternatives to our nation’s industrial food model.

CRUDE AWAKENING

Friday, February 4th, 2011  – 6:00 p.m. – 9:00 p.m.

Crude Awakening tells the story of how our civilization’s addiction to oil puts it on a collision course with geology. The film visits with the world’s top experts and concludes that our industrial society must be completely overhauled.

INCONVENIENT TRUTH

Friday, February 11th, 2011 – 6:00 p.m. – 9:00 p.m.

An Inconvenient Truth is a passionate and inspirational look at former Vice President Al Gore’s fervent crusade to halt global warming’s deadly progress by exposing the myths and misconceptions that surround it.

A FARM FOR THE FUTURE

Friday, February 18th, 2011 – 6:00 p.m. – 9:00 p.m.

Wildlife filmmaker, Rebecca Hosking investigates how to transform her family’s farm into a low energy farm without the use of fossil fuels. She discovers that nature holds the key to making this possible.

It’s arrived, the growing season is here and we’re raring to go. The garden is built, the seedlings are planted and we’re ready to learn more about how food goes from the farm to our market.

Farming the Backyard is a new program at Valley Natural Foods which focuses on gardening in our community. We want to be a resource through educational opportunities. Let’s bridge the connection from the farm to the market.

Kicking off our summer Farming the Backyard program is a film series with Daniel Halsey, of South Woods Forrest Gardens. He’s a talented artist as well as landscape architect who is highly skilled at working with plants and the environment to create a sustainable system through the permaculture philosophy.

Each film Daniel shares touches on a specific issue or technique followed by a discussion on different practices you can use in your own home and garden. He will share his knowledge and offer advice through a discussion format. The film series is free however donations are encouraged.

Farming the Backyard Film Series

Location: Valley Natural Foods Classroom (registration encouraged)
(More Farming the Backyard classes are posted on the Co-op Calendar)

Harvesting Water (Using collected rain water for the garden as opposed to city water.)
Thursday, June 10
6:00 pm-8:00 pm

Global Gardener (A look around the globe at the use of permaculture.)
Wednesday, June 23
6:00 pm.-8:00 pm

Permaculture Design (What is permaculture and why is it useful.)
Thursday, July 8
6:00 pm.-8:00 pm

Home Grown (One family lives off their small lot.)
Thursday, August 12
6:00 pm-8:00 pm

Farms for the Future (One woman’s journey to discovering permaculture and returning to the family farm in a new economy.)
Thursday, August 26
6:00 pm-8:00 pm

The students from Apple Valley who went to Copenhagen this year for the International hearing on climate change this year were one of a select few U.S. high school delegates in attendance. 

They traveled to a new country. Lived with Swedish families. Learned about environmental issues and connected with countless leaders (young and old) from around the globe.

Now they’re home, and want to share their knowledge to begin a discussion about environmental issues right here in our hometown. With the School of Environmental Studies, they’re hosting a Sustainable Communities Banquet. With a meal and great discussion, these young leaders want you to contribute your voice to the discussion. Join them at the Sustainable Communities Banquet.

Every day is Earth Day at Valley Natural Foods. That sounds trite, but it is true. As far back as 1977, the people who started our co-op had that goal in mind and over the decades we continue to strive for ways to reduce waste. In the beginning we built our business around a bulk department that offered food in the amounts a person would use with less packaging. Our bulk department thrives today and is a great way for households to reduce waste, especially if shoppers commit to bringing in their own containers.

From an operational standpoint, our co-op has made great strides as a business. In 2007, Valley Natural Foods participated in Dakota Electric’s Rate 70 program and installed a back-up generator. Not only does this reduce the co-op’s electric rate, it also reduces the store’s connection load during times of peak energy demand. When the co-op expanded in 2008, other energy reduction measures were upgraded to reduce the store’s energy usage. This included refrigeration, on-demand water heaters, lighting and the installation of a cardboard compactor.

The co-op’s fresh foods manager, Orlando Haripal, is also in charge of waste reduction at the co-op. When it looked like the amount of garbage was increasing, Haripal invested why. He found that the fresh departments were contributing to the waste. He worked with a local homeless shelter for women and children, Dakota Woodlands, and found an outlet for the consumable waste. He also partnered with Beth and Tom Kackman who organize a community garden at the International Outreach Church in Burnsville. The Kackman’s need compost, so Haripal and Tom Kackman came up with a system to turn non-consumable waste into garden fodder.

The search to find ways to reduce waste is as endless as creativity itself. Recently, a new hire in the meat department questioned the waste from cutting and grinding our own meat onsite. He suggested to Haripal that the co-op consider creating a new saleable product—smoked dog bones. Since we already work with a local business to smoke our own fresh brats, bacon and hot dogs, it was a natural fit to smoke the waste bones from beef. Just in time for Earth Day, Valley Natural Foods now produces and sells smoked dog bones. Made from the same local beef that carries our Down in the Valley label, you can be assured that these are quality dog bones, not just waste.

If you want to read a photo essay about how dogs react to the new smoked bones, click on:  Dogs Save the World.