Joel Salatin to Speak in Buffalo, NY

Jan. 22, 2011 - PRLog -- Media Contact:  Cherie Messore
           716.866.3875
           FarmerChefEvents@gmail.com

Joel Salatin to Speak in Amherst:
Called “America’s Most Influential Farmer”

Edible Buffalo is proud to present “An Evening With Joel Salatin,” Monday, February 21, 8pm at the Daemen College Wick Center, 4380 Main Street in Amherst.

The author of six books and respected authority on sustainable agriculture, Salatin is a dynamic  and engaging speaker . He shares an urgent message:  the traditional food paradigm can be replaced by networks of small farms, local food producers and others who believe environmentally healthy land creates healthy, nourishing food to feed communities and the economy.
Naturally witty with a gift for theatre and marketing, Salatin’s talk will enlighten and entertain.  Attendees will leave knowing that “farming can be ecologically regenerative,” says Salatin. “Air, soil and water depend on good farmers.”  Consumers benefit, too. Salatin says his talk will encourage guests to “discover the joys of culinary arts. That means purchasing unprocessed, seasonal food and preparing and preserving it in our remodeled and newly gadgetized kitchens.”
Salatin’s Polyface Farm was featured as the grass farm in food guru Michael Pollan’s book The Omnivore’s Dilemma. Salatin has also appeared in the documentary films FRESH and Food Inc.

Polyface Farm (the “farm with many faces”), in the Shenandoah Valley of Virginia, is pasture-based, environmentally friendly and beyond organic. It’s a thriving business and an exemplar in encouraging like-minded enterprises to collaborate and thrive.  More than 3,000 families (through on-farm sales and buying clubs) are served by the farm in addition to 10 retail outlets and 50 restaurants.

Salatin is the third generation to embrace holistic land-management techniques. His grandfather was an avid gardener and follower of RI Rodale’s regenerative organic gardening practices. Salatin’s father was an accountant by trade who endeavored to move his family to a farm in Venezuela. In 1961, he lost the land to political tumult;  he moved his family to an eroded, abused farm in Swoope, Virginia, where Joel Salatin – at four years old – learned to love the land.  The family followed nature’s dictates by planting trees, building compost piles, digging ponds and began raising animals under innovative shelters.  The soil became healthy again and the farm enjoyed success.  By the time he was in high school, he knew he wanted to farm full-time, but didn’t think he could earn enough.  After attending college and working as a journalist, he returned to the family farm in 1982, expanding his parents’ efforts. His children and grandchildren have joined he and his wife on the farm to continue the legacy.

Tickets are $18 and $20 and are available exclusively at www.brownpapertickets.com/event/140425  or by calling 716-565-2306.

Proceeds from the event will benefit the Field & Fork Network, a not-for-profit organization committed to developing new economic opportunities for farmers and artisan food producers in Western New York.  Field & Fork’s goal is to build a thriving local food system in Western New York to drive the economy, make local food purchasing the norm and not the exception, and serve as a community exemplar in the farm-to-table movement.

“An Evening With Joel Salatin” is presented by  Edible Buffalo and Daemen College’s Center for Sustainable Communities and Civic Engagement.  Edible Buffalo is the region’s only food-focused magazine. It celebrates the abundance of  local food in Western New York with stories about region family farms, chefs, artisans and others who are dedicated to producing and using sustainably produced local foods.  

The Center for Sustainable Communities and Civic Engagement at Daemen College provides education and resources about sustainability issues to Daemen community and the region. The Center couples Daemen students with initiatives in under-served communities to promote a lifetime of commitment to civic responsibility and asset-building for future generations.

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Edible Buffalo is the region’s only food-focused magazine. It celebrates the abundance of local food in Western New York with stories about region family farms, chefs, artisans and others who are dedicated to producing and using sustainably produced local foods.

The Center for Sustainable Communities and Civic Engagement at Daemen College provides education and resources about sustainability issues to Daemen community and the region. The Center couples Daemen students with initiatives in under-served communities to promote a lifetime of commitment to civic responsibility and asset-building for future generations.