Thanks to the folks at Jackson County Local Action Coalition (JCLAC) and Thrive, Joel Salatin, the poster child for small sustainable farming, is coming to Medford Friday, Feb 19th. Over 350 people have purchased tickets so far, and JCLAC isn’t saying anything about being sold out yet (so get your tickets!). Anyone who has read Michael Pollan’s Omnivore’s Dilemma has heard of Salatin, the owner of Polyface Farms in Virginia. Salatin is an author as well, and his books have been great inspiration to folks in the local food movement. Personally, I’ve read parts of his book Everything I want to do is Illegal, and I love the point he made about how we’ve come to rely on the government to tell us what’s safe to eat (expiration dates, inspections, etc) and given up the right and ability to make those decisions ourselves.
JCLAC’s event brochure lists local food systems and the aforementioned book at topics for the evening. Who knows where Salatin might go with it though. He is a well-spoken, passionate advocate for local food and the rights associated with growing and eating food. Here’s a clip of him speaking about the Food Safety Modernization Act that is committee somewhere now, but when voted on by Congress could making gardening regulated by the Feds.
If you’re at all interested in local food you should head on up to North Medford High School on Friday for an Evening with Joel Salatin. Tickets are only $15 and I’m sure it will be well worth it. See you there.
