Festival News

Festival Schedule 2013: Classes, Films and More… (updated Feb 27)

Posted on Feb 20, 2013 | Comments Off

Here’s an overview of the 2013 festival!   We hope you will consider buying a supporter pass if you are able, but remember the conference is offered by donation also so that it is available to everyone. Suggested donation is $5 per class, film, talk. It’s going to be a great time. 

(You may need to “refresh” your page to see changes if you have visited before.) 

All events take place at UA Global Campus on the Fayetteville Square. Map here.   When you arrive, check in at registration booth in street-level lobby. You will get a detailed program at check in.

Thursday, February 28

• After School Special—4:00-5:30 p.m. What’s on Your Plate - a fun-filled movie about where food comes
  from. The film follows two eleven-year-old city kids as they talk to food activists, farmers, new friends,
  storekeepers, their families, and the viewer, in their quest to understand what’s on all of our plates. This
  movie is free and open to the public – everyone welcome. This is a great film for kids, but adults will love it
  too. Donations gratefully accepted. A co-production with Apple Seeds, Inc.

• Evening—Films: Festival Starters 7 p.m. Truck Farm and 7:55 Fresh This showing of Fresh sponsored by the Fayetteville Chapter of The Weston A. Price Foundation.

Friday, March 1: Farmer Friday

One morning track designed for farmers and aspiring farmers. A second morning track for gardeners with some experience. Followed by a special keynote presentation of interest to both groups and and to water conservationists too.  Farmer Friday is offered by donation, with $20 suggested for the full day, but we want Farmer Friday available to all growers who are interested, so please come as you are!

• 9:00-9:30 Registration and Welcome: Street level Lobby

• Farmers Morning Session 1: 9:30 to 10:45—”How to Sell More” Lori Boatwright, Public and Media Coordinator, Fayetteville Farmers Market, and Nicki McNelly, Manager, Bentonville Farmers Market

• Farmers Morning Session 2: 11:00-12:00—”Small Farm Financing” Charlie Stockton, FORGE, Financing Ozark Rural Growth and Economy (forgeonline.com)

• Gardeners Morning Session 1: 9:30 to 10:45—“The Generous Garden: Designing Landscapes That Give As They Grow” with Leigh Wilkerson & “Backyard Fruit” with Guy Ames. 

• Gardeners ( & Growers welcome too)  Session 2: 11:00-12:00 — “Fundamentals of no-till gardening: start and run a garden or farm with no machine, high yields and great peace” with Patrice Gros. 

• 12 noon: Lunch and Conversation: Lunch provided by Ozark Natural Foods for full-day participants.

• Afternoon Keynote Session & Conversation: 1:00-4:00—“Planting the Rain: Principles, Practices, and Tips for Water-Harvesting Earthworks & more” Brad Lancaster, author  of Rainwater Harvesting for Drylands and Beyond.  (www.harvestingrainwater.com)  Food is virtual water – originating from the source of irrigation. Local, sustainable food is all the rage, but we can take it further by growing that food with local, sustainable water. This talk covers the growing of food using rainwater  for irrigation. Case studies include rain-fed greenhouses, dryfarming, backyard market gardens , and climate-appropriate plantings.

Friday Evening, March 1: Opening Night & Film Premieres!!

• Opening Reception sponsored by BHK Kafe and Arsaga’s at The Depot— 5: 30 p.m. Come and kick off the main festival with all of our friends, supporters, volunteers, teachers, and sponsors.  (This ticketed event is included in Foodie, Locavore, and Friend of the Farm Passes, or $15 per ticket)

• Farmer Friday:  FILM PREMIERE NIGHT starts at  7 p.m. Join us for the Arkansas premieres of Eating Alabama at 7 p.m.  and To Make a Farm* at 8:15. Two delightful new films, not to be missed, were the favorites of your Dig In! coordinators and are the highlight of our film series.  Included in supporters passes; suggested donation $5/film.

Saturday, March 2: The Big Day!

 Classes & Films Included in all Festival Passes or $5 suggested donation per session; seed swap and information/vendor fair are free. 

8-9 Registration & Coffee. Info & Vendor Fair Opens. Info/Vendor fair.

CLASS SCHEDULE:
9-10am Concurrent Class Session 1

1030-1130am Concurrent Class Session 2

1130-130p Lunch Break/ Vendor Fair/ Interest Group Roundtables/ FREE Community Seed Swap by Fayetteville Community Garden Coalition. 

11:30-12:30 Sponsored Tasting: Lean Green Gourmet. Visit their table in the Information & Vendor Fair
12:30-1:30 Sponsored Tasting: Greenhouse Grille Visit their table in the Information & Vendor Fair
12:00-1:00 Interest Roundtables: Community conversations, totally casual. Meet up with other folks who share your interests and share information.
•Lexicon of Food: What do the terms organic, local, locavore really mean? Farmer James Maginot of Beyond Organics Farm will moderate this discussion on the terminology of the food movement.
•Urban Gardening: Peter Nierengarten, Director of Sustainability and Strategic Planning for the City of
Fayetteville will moderate this conversation on the particular challenges and opportunities of growing within cities.
•Find Your Food: Local Markets, CSAs & More. Farmers Mariah and Ira of Summer Kitchen Farm will moderate this conversation on exploring options to eat more locally.

130-330p PUBLIC KEYNOTE PRESENATION: BRAD LANCASTER

Water-Harvesting Presentation: Turning Drains Into Sponges and Water Scarcity Into Water Abundance
This inspiring  presentation shares eight universal principles of water harvesting along with simple strategies that turn water scarcity into water abundance. They empower you to create integrated water-sustainable landscape plans at home and throughout your community. Rainwater harvesting is the process of capturing rain and making the most of it as close as possible to where it falls. You’ll see examples enhancing local food security, passively cooling cities in summer, reducing costs of living and energy consumption, controlling erosion, averting flooding, reviving dead waterways, minimizing water pollution, building community, creating celebration, and more.

3:30-4:00 Sponsored Tasting: Ozark Natural Foods Tasting table in the Information & Vendor Fair area (4th Floor).

400-500pm Concurrent Class Session 3

Saturday Evening—FESTIVAL FILMS: Make A Difference Night Films start at 6:30 King Corn (90 min) , 8:10 Big River (27 min) 8:40 Homegrown Revolution (14 min) (Included in all Festival Passes, or $5 per film suggested donation)

Feature Films at Dig In! 2013

Posted on Feb 18, 2013 | Comments Off

Dig In! strives to have food and farming movies that teach and inspire in addition to a class lineup to help you put that inspiration into practice . This year is no exception! We hope you will find ideas to inspire you toward supporting local food and farms for many reasons.  Here’s the lineup of feature films to be shown at Dig In! 2013. Feature films are by donation (suggested $5/film). Better yet, they are included included in most supporter passes, which help make the festival happen. Check out this year’s features! Click the titles to view trailers.

Thursday, February 28: Festival Starters

 4:00-5:15 p.m. What’s on Your Plate - a fun-filled movie about where food comes from. The film follows two eleven-year-old city kids as they talk to food activists, farmers, new friends, storekeepers, their families, and the viewer, in their quest to understand what’s on all of our plates. This movie is free, donations accepted and open to the public – families welcome!

 7:00 p.m.  Truck Farm  (48 minutes) - A simple concept with a big impact, Truck Farm is a mini-farm planted in the back of a 1986 Dodge pickup truck. Traveling and edible, the truck is a rural experience brought to urban New York City. With fresh produce delivered periodically around the neighborhood, Truck Farm teaches an imperative lesson about the importance and accessibility of urban agriculture.

7:55 Fresh (72 minutes) – This classic is a must-see to understand WHY local and organic food matter so much. Fresh presents the problems we face, but also celebrates the farmers, thinkers and business people across America who are re-inventing our food system. Each has witnessed the rapid transformation of our agriculture into an industrial model, and confronted the consequences: food contamination, environmental pollution, depletion of natural resources, and morbid obesity. Forging healthier, sustainable alternatives, they offer a practical vision for a future of our food and our planet.

Friday,  March 1: Farmer Friday:  FESTIVAL PREMIERE NIGHT

7:00 pm Eating Alabama (63 minutes)  - In search of a simpler life, a young couple returns home to Alabama where they set out to eat the way their grandparents did – locally and seasonally. But as they navigate the agro-industrial gastronomical complex, they soon realize that nearly everything about the food system has changed since farmers once populated their family histories. A thoughtful and often funny essay on community, the South and sustainability, “Eating Alabama” is a story about why food matters. This award-winner is a true highlight of Dig In! 2013.

8:15  To Make a Farm (74 min)* – This one won the hearts of of all who previewed it. Named one of the ten most popular Canadian films at the Vancouver International Film Festival, To Make A Farm asks: what might the future of local food and farming look like? This beautifully photographed documentary explores of the lives of five young people who have decided to become small-scale farmers. VIFF calls To Make A Farm “exceptionally hopeful, giving us a close-range view of humanity along with a detailed portrayal of the nuts and bolts of agriculture.” Don’t miss this one!!

Saturday, March 2: Make a Difference Night

6:30 pm King Corn (90 min) – Another classic.  King Corn is a feature documentary about two friends, one acre of corn, and the subsidized crop that drives our fast-food nation. In the film, Ian Cheney and Curt Ellis, best friends from college on the east coast, move to the heartland to learn where their food comes from. With the help of friendly neighbors, genetically modified seeds, and powerful herbicides, they plant and grow a bumper crop of America’s most-productive, most-subsidized grain on one acre of Iowa soil. But when they try to follow their pile of corn into the food system, what they find raises troubling questions about how we eat—and how we farm.

8:10 Big River (27 min) – Following up on their Peabody Award-winning documentary KING CORN, Ian Cheney and Curt Ellis have returned to Iowa with a new mission: to investigate the environmental impact their acre of corn has had on the people and places downstream. In a journey that spans from the heartland to the Gulf of Mexico, Ian and Curt trade their combine for a canoe, and set out to see the big world their little acre of corn has touched. On their trip, flashbacks to the pesticides they sprayed, the fertilizers they injected, and the soil they plowed now lead to new questions, explored by new experts in new places. Half of Iowa’s topsoil, they learn, has been washed out to sea. Fertilizer runoff has spawned a hypoxic ‘dead zone’ in the Gulf. And back at their acre, the herbicides they used are blamed for a cancer cluster that reaches all too close to home. A lively investigation and a worthy follow-up, BIG RIVER grows to ask is industrial agriculture worth its hidden costs?

8:40 Homegrown Revolution(14 min) – We’ll close with a challenge: What is YOUR homegrown revolution? For this family, in the midst of densely urban downtown Pasadena, radical change is taking root. For over twenty years, they been transforming their home into an urban homestead.They harvest three tons of organic food annually from their 1/10 acre garden, while incorporating back-to-basics practices, solar energy and biodiesel. You don’t have to go this crazy…but you could if you wanted to!

So plan to join us for films, classes and more at Dig In! Feb 28-Mar 2, 2013 in Fayetteville. Most of all: please spread the word and tell your friends! Check out the festival schedule overview too. Join us on facebook at:  www.facebook.com/Dig.In.NWA

(*licensing in process.)

News! Green Fork Farmer’s Market to Open!

Posted on Apr 28, 2012 | 2 comments

We are so pleased to share this announcement as all three of your Dig In! Coordinators will be a part of this new market! Cheri LaRue is creator and market-manager. Check it out:

There is a new and unique farmer’s market getting set to start in Fayetteville. Green Fork Farmers Market will open every Wednesday from 4-7pm in the breezeway of Nightbird Books on Dickson Street starting May 9th. You can drop by and select from naturally-grown, handmade and local items. Some of the products that will be available this year include beef, chicken, pork, eggs, honey, microgreens, vegetables, herbs, herbal products, plants, and baked goods.

What makes Green Fork Farmers Market a first in the Fayetteville area is you can also select and reserve your order online for pickup at the market. The other first is the focus on all naturally-grown products.

The online system adds convenience for you if you need to know ahead what’s available and  just drop by to pick up your order on the way home from a long day. On the other hand, you can also drop by to chat with your foodie friends and favorite farmers a bit, see what the growers have available on their tables, stop by Nightbird Books for a good read, and get a cup of coffee, glass of wine, beer, and delectable food from BHKKafe.

The website (link below) tells more about this special market and how it works. Please visit and click the “Sign In” tab at the upper right to register as a customer. That way you’ll get the Saturday evening email that lets you know what is available that week and that online ordering is open. You have till Monday midnight to get your pre-order reserved.

Green Fork Farmers Market will have a special sneak-peek market on Thursday, May 3rd at the Walton Art’s Center kickoff of Artosphere before Michael Pollan’s talk that night. (Parking at the WAC parking lot will be free that evening with a donation of nuts or peanut butter.) Visit anytime from 4-7 in front of the Walton Art’s Center. Music from 3 Penny Acre too!

 Sign up — before Saturday at 3 p.m. to get the sneak-peak market email — but sign up soon to be a part of Green Fork Farmers Market:

http://greenforkfarmersmarket.locallygrown.net/welcome

It’s free to sign up and no obligation to purchase. Can’t wait to see you there!

Thank You to Our Generous Sponsors!

Posted on Mar 5, 2012 | Comments Off

Thanks to the amazing generosity of these sponsors, this year’s Dig In! was better than ever. Please support these local businesses who support community endeavors like the Dig In! Food & Farming Festival.

Dig In! Begins Friday: Are you ready to dig into home?

Posted on Mar 1, 2012 | 2 comments

With the warm weather of late February, it’s a fine time to start the Dig In! Food & Farming Festival. Dig In! Events start Friday, March 2 &  run through Saturday March 3, 2012. Join us!

Location:  UA  Global Campus—2 E Center Street—on the Northeast corner of the Fayetteville Square  (Supporters Reception is at Town Center.) Parking: All City Lots are free on Saturday. Two lots are at the intersection of W Center and S Church. There are also parking decks nearby for a city fee.Individual event tickets available at the door.  Suggested donation for each class or film you attend is $5 — more if you can, less if you can’t. No ticket needed for accompanied children under 12. Please BRING YOUR MUG Saturday because Arsaga’s is providing coffee!

Teacher Spotlight: Nao Ueda teaches Beginner Beekeeping

Posted on Feb 27, 2012 | Comments Off

Nao Ueda will join us to teach Beginner Beekeeping. We are thrilled to have her teach at Dig In! Nao lives in downtown Little Rock with her human partner, 2 chickens, 2 ducks, and 60,000 bees.

Nao chronicles her life as an urban homesteader on a blog called GreenAR by the Day. Since 2008, GreenAR by the Day has attracted over 215,000 visitors. For two years in a row, the Arkansas Times has chosen Nao’s blog as one of the Best Blogs in Central Arkansas. Previously, Nao worked for Audubon Arkansas and Viridian, a sustainable building consulting firm that specializes in LEED, or Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design.

In 2006, Nao co-founded the Arkansas Sustainability Network, or ASN. She started the ASN Local Food Club and helped coordinate the first ever green expo in Arkansas.

Currently, Nao serves as a Commissioner for the Little Rock Sustainability Commission. In addition, she serves on Metroplan’s Regional Planning Advisory Council and the U.S. Green Building Council’s Diversity and Outreach Committee. Nao is a Master Gardener, Master Naturalist, and LEED Green Associate. In 2011, Nao was chosen by the Arkansas Business Publishing Group’s annual Green Guide as one of its Eco-Heroes.

Nao loves gardening, cooking, biking, hiking, birdwatching, beekeeping, and yoga.

Local Short Films – Virtual Farm Tour & More

Posted on Feb 27, 2012 | Comments Off

On Saturday at 1pm you can check out three locally made shorts:

Ozark Natural Foods film

This film was produced by Ozark Natural Foods to introduce the local farmers that provide produce for the store. It features a tour at several of our area farms. Thanks to ONF for sharing this with Dig In!

Cut Flowers: Dripping Springs Garden (21 min.)

This film is one in a series produced by Southern Sustainable Agriculture Working Group (SSAWG) called Natural Farming Systems in the South. This series was developed by SSAWG to pprovide an easy, economical way to take a virtual tour of some highly successful farming operations in the region. The local farm Dripping Springs Garden is featured in this short. Many of the regular downtown Fayetteville Farmer’s Market shoppers will recognize these growers and their beautiful flowers. It gives a glance at what it takes to be a successful in farmer in our area, specifically for flower production.

Leverett Elementary School’s Green Team Short: Saving Energy Rocks! (10 min.)

Be inspired! This short was created by Leverett Elementary School’s Green Team members in conjunction with Arkansas Green Schools Challenge. It gives great tips on saving energy and can give us all something to think about as we watch our future generation taking action! Thanks to the Green Team leaders for helping to instill these values in our kids and sharing this with Dig In!

Teacher Spotlight: Chef David Lewis

Posted on Feb 25, 2012 | Comments Off

Chef David Lewis is the creator of Brick House Kitchen and BHK Kafé with a focus on fresh, local cuisine like none other. Chef Lewis is a driving force in the local-food movement in Fayetteville and his generosity with the Dig In! festival has been amazing. Not only is he gifting our supporters with tasty selections at our opening reception (See schedule.) but he is also going to get us thinking about creative and delicious ideas for seasonal cooking.

Most recently, David taught a healthy family cooking class at a local school that drew over 100 attendees.  We are so honored and delighted to have Chef Lewis to help us make Dig In! 2012 something that will be memorable to your mind…and your taste buds! Please check out the BHK Kafé website here….better yet, visit and taste!

Teacher Spotlight: Karyn Zaremba

Posted on Feb 25, 2012 | 1 comment

Karyn Zaremba has been growing and using herbs in the Ozarks, New Mexico and Colorado for the past  40 years. Most recently, she has been a partner of Bean Mountain Farms and the primary grower of a vast variety of herbs, both annual and perennial. She has studied herbs and their uses both privately and at a variety of conferences and workshops, as well as currently studying with Deb Soule from Avena Botanicals and Maia Toll of Earthwise Ways. Making herbs part of the daily diet and learning to use them for health and wellness, as well as medicinal uses, have become a large part of her focus. She is currently developing herbal gardens and teaching some herbal classes at her home in Fayetteville, Herbal Simplicity. She also hosts small events both indoors and in the gardens. More will be offered as the property is developed further. This class will include ways to expand our daily use of herbs, demonstrations of making some herbal products, gardening tips, tea sampling, and a question and answer period. Find her at Herbal Simplicity on Facebook.

Teacher Spotlight: Jane Maginot & Dana Smith

Posted on Feb 25, 2012 | Comments Off

Class: Beginner Gardening & Composting with Jane Maginot & Dana Smith

Jane Maginot (left) moved to the Boston Mountains four years ago with her husband, James, to start a small diversified farm, Beyond Organics Farm. Together they raise a better soil using vegetables, goats, poultry and cattle. The farm is in its early stages and growing leaps and bounds every year. Off farm, Jane is a Program Associate in Water Quality for the University of Arkansas Division of Agriculture Cooperative Extension Service. Prior to coming to Northwest Arkansas, Jane worked and lived in the East African country of Tanzania as an Executive Director for a small non-profit and as a U.S. Peace Corps Volunteer. Jane is currently the race director for the 2012 Winslow Half Marathon and 5k Run.

To see more information about Beyond Organics Farm, check out their website: www.beyondorganicsfarm.com

Jane will be partnering with the extraordinary Dana Smith to talk about Beginning Gardening and Backyard Composting at Dig In!

Dana Smith is the Sustainability Coordinator for Fayetteville Public Schools where she works with students, teachers, and staff to be responsible environmental stewards.  She has also served as the Conference Session Coordinator Assistant for the Southern Sustainable Agriculture Working Group (SAWG) Conference for the past two years.  Dana previously served as the manager of the University of Virginia Community Garden and interned on a small produce farm in Virginia before moving to Fayetteville a year and a half ago.  She’s passionate about local food systems, school gardens, and continually learning more through gardening adventures.

The foundation of organic gardening is the health of the soil. In this class, we will be talking about the steps you take to start your garden: edible landscapes; soil amendments; site location, crop rotation; and other concepts to consider when starting your garden. We will also go over different styles and methods of composting to find which one is right for your needs.