UVM Food Feed

New Course Helps Students Unearth an Ancient Idea: Sustainability

Posted by Guest Author | August 22, 2018

By Jeff Wakefield

Classics professor Mark Usher was nearing the end of a visiting scholar stint at the American Academy in Rome when he decided to take a break from working on his latest book to hike the nearby Sabine Hills with his wife, staying at a series of “agriturismi” – small farms that host guests, B&B style – along the way.

Left to right, UVM student Ariella Mandel, archeology graduate student Viviana Petraroli and Classics professor Mark Usher under a 1,500-year-old olive tree in Mompeo, Italy next to an ancient Roman villa. (Photo by Massimo Berruti)

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Posted in Education, UVM | Tagged education, UVM | Leave a comment

Farmer Training Student Refocuses His Career

Posted by Erica Houskeeper | August 15, 2018

Joining AmeriCorps and the Peace Corps led Stephen Crimarco to shift his career focus from photography to farming.

The Kingston, Jamaica native, who migrated to Florida and studied photography at University of Central Florida and Indiana University Bloomington, didn’t know much about farming after earning his master’s degree. But after experiencing difficulty in finding a photography job after college, he decided to explore other options.

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Posted in Education, UVM | Tagged farmer training program, UVM | Leave a comment

Learning the Business of Craft Brewing

Posted by Guest Author | August 9, 2018

By Rachel C. Leslie

For Renee Hamblin, a typical day at Queen City Brewery may involve bottling the latest brew, scheduling the week’s social media posts, or leading a focus group for market research. A food systems major with a concentration in public communication and minor in nutrition and food science, Hamblin saw the brewery as the ideal place to gain hands-on experience in a small business with an eye for growth.

Hamblin is one of 14 students interning with Vermont food businesses this summer as part of the Next Generation Food Systems Internship program. Based in the UVM College of Agriculture and Life Sciences, the program offers paid internship placements and helps enable local host sites to bring on students.

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Posted in Education, UVM | Tagged craft beer, education, local foods, UVM | 3 Comments

In Cuba, Only Tourists Drink Mojitos

Posted by Guest Author | August 7, 2018

By Sarah L. Tichonuk

He squatted, waiting tensely but patiently, and then seeing the right moment, he snuck the 9-inch blade under the armpit and into the heart, and withdrew it immediately. The pig reeled and squealed, but within 10 seconds, it was on the ground, the rope around its neck and snout went slack, and he snorted one last time. The two men quickly stepped in, grabbed its legs, heaved it into a wheelbarrow, and walked briskly off to the cleaning station. The transformation from pig to pork had begun.

A biodigester is one of the sights at the permaculture farm Finca del Medio. Visitors are guided by the founder’s daughter, Leidy Casimiro Rodríguez, who holds a doctorate of agroecological sciences.

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Posted in Culture, Economic, UVM | Tagged agrocology, Economy, food culture, UVM | 4 Comments

Fortifying a Critical Crop

Posted by Guest Author | August 2, 2018

By Joshua Brown

Perhaps you missed this winter’s news that the price of hummus spiked in Great Britain. The cause, as the New York Timesreported on February 8: drought in India, resulting in a poor harvest of chickpeas. Far beyond making dips for pita bread, chickpeas are a legume of life-and-death importance—especially in India, Pakistan, and Ethiopia where one in five of the world’s people depend on them as their primary source of protein.

As global climate change continues, scientists expect more droughts, heat stress, and insect pests—creating need for new varieties of agricultural plants with diverse qualities that will let them cope and adapt to quickly changing conditions. Where could those novel traits come from?

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