Audubon Greenwich Hosts Sustainable Food & Farm Expo for Families

GREENWICH, CT (February 15, 2014) Hundreds of guests eager to sample local, artisan and organic food, attend tasting workshops, and learn about homesteading are expected to flock to Audubon Greenwich's Sustainable Food & Farm Expo on Sunday, March 9, from 10 am until 5 pm. Eighteen exhibitors and vendors, including organic farmers, homesteading experts, artisan food producers, specialty food retailers, and organic restaurants, will be present to share their products and expertise with attendees.

The Sustainable Food & Farm Expo is produced by Audubon Greenwich in cooperation with the Fairfield Green Food Guide and is poised to attract both regular guests and newcomers from as far as Westchester County. "Audubon is proud to host this exciting, family-friendly event. Organic farming practices and more wholesome approaches to eating will greatly reduce our burden on Earth's natural resources while enhancing our habitats, soils, and communities" said Jeff Cordulack, Audubon Greenwich's Events Manager.

"Fairfield County is home to a strong and growing community of organic farmers, artisan food producers, specialty food retailers, organic restaurants and homesteading experts and this event is a fun and effective way for the general public to get to know them and their products and services" said Fairfield Green Food Guide founder Analiese Paik. "The diversity of sustainable food and beverages grown, produced or sold locally– from biodynamic Champagne and locally roasted, organic Fair Trade coffee to organic restaurants and farm-fresh food delivered to your door - is quite impressive and offers consumers a delicious and compelling alternative to mass-produced food."

Event Highlights:

· Visit 18 exhibitors to learn about, sample, and purchase their sustainable food products.

· Attend free talks (with admission) about backyard beekeeping, chicken keeping, organic gardening, community gardening, and the soil food web.

· Attend tasting workshops including artisan honey, ultra-premium extra virgin olive oil, organic chocolate, biodynamic Champagne plus a cheesemaking for beginners workshop; $10 each.

· Enjoy organic coffee, tea, fresh juices, snacks and lunches catered by organic restaurants.

The following businesses and organizations will be exhibiting at the Food & Farm Expo: Fairfield Green Food Guide, Slow Food Metro North, Fairfield County Farm Bureau, On the Rocks Farm, HomeFront Farmers, Armstrong Court Community Garden, My Pet Chicken, Bedford Bee, Red Bee Honey, Henri's Reserve, Olivette, Shearwater Organic Coffee Roasters, GourGanics Salsa, Kaia Yoga & Café, Grass Rxoots, Arogya Tea, Simple Cheesemaking, and Fresh Nation.

The Sustainable Food & Farm Expo is open to the public from 10 am until 5 pm on Sunday, March 9, 2014. Foods and lunch are available for purchase on-site from local restaurants.

General Admission tickets (includes exhibits, vendors, and five talks):

· $15 per person, $20 per couple, or $25 per family

· Tasting Workshops are an additional $10 per person, per session

Advance reservations highly recommended for all Tasting Workshops as capacity is limited. Send all RSVPs to Jeff Cordulack at greenwichcenter@audubon.org or 203-869-5272 x239.  Please leave a best phone number so that Audubon can contact you back to process your payment and reserve your seat.

Event address: Audubon Greenwich, 613 Riversville Road, Greenwich, CT 06831

About Audubon Greenwich:

The Audubon Greenwich mission is to engage and educate people to conserve, restore, and enjoy nature, focusing on birds, other wildlife, and their habitats. The Audubon Center in Greenwich is also home to Audubon Connecticut, the state office of the National Audubon Society. http://greenwich.audubon.org

About Fairfield Green Food Guide:

The Fairfield Green Food Guide is a free online resource dedicated to providing Fairfield County consumers with local and sustainable food resources and news. This award-winning website helps guide consumers to farmers' markets, CSAs, farm stands, organic and farm-to-table restaurants, specialty food retailers, and farm and food events. Fairfieldgreenfoodguide.com. Contact: Founder & Editor Analiese Paik at marketing@fairfieldgreenfooguide.com.

Schedule of Special Events

Talks are free with admission; tasting workshops are $10 per person per session.

11:00 am

· Chicken Keeping for Beginners – Are you considering keeping chickens? You don't have to go it alone! Traci Torres of My Pet Chicken runs a website chock full of resources and will share her expertise in person to help beginners get the very best start with their own chickens.

11:30 am

· $10 Organic Dark Chocolate Tasting Workshop with Analiese Paik of the Fairfield Green Food Guide. Learn to taste fine dark chocolate like a pro using all 5 senses. Taste and evaluate 4 high-quality, dark organic chocolates while learning about the fascinating story behind chocolate, properties of fine chocolate, and efforts to protect and preserve rare cacao.

12:00 noon

· Soil Food Web with Jeff Cordulack of Audubon Greenwich. Tiny one-celled bacteria, algae, fungi, protozoa, nematodes, micro-arthropods, and small vertebrates are directly responsible for plant health and the flavor, quality, and nutrient value of the foods we eat. Learn about these soil food web heroes and to better care for these unseen, essential allies.

12:30 pm

· $10 Artisan Honey Tasting Workshop: Taste limited harvest, single-origin honeys of the US with author and founder of The American Honey Tasting Society and Red Bee Honey, Marina Marchese; book signing follows.

1:00 pm

· Beekeeping for Beginners Are you finally ready for your own hives? Don't miss this talk with beekeeping expert and educator DJ Havercamp of Bedford Bee where you'll learn the basics of getting started as a successful backyard beekeeper.

1:30 pm

· $10 Extra Virgin Olive Oil Tasting Workshop: Taste some of the finest, award-winning, single varietal olive oils from the latest harvest. Talk/tasting/education with Alina Lawrence, a certified olive oil sensory analyst who received her training from The National Organization of Olive Oil Tasters (O.N.A.O.O.) in Imperia, Italy, and the owner of Olivette.

2:00 pm

· Cultivating A Community of Gardeners - We can all play a role in our community as local green stewards, productive gardeners and public health champions. Patty Sechi, Founder and President of Greenwich Community Gardens, shares her experience at the Armstrong Court Community Organic Garden and the New Bible Street Community Garden in Cos Cob and answers your questions about how you can support this healthy, community-building initiative.

2:30 pm

· $10 Champagne Tasting Workshop featuring Boutique Champagnes from France's finest, privately owned estates. Hosted by Ruth Frantz of Henri's Reserve, the tasting will include several biodynamic Champagnes that are the new darlings of wine critics. Henri's Reserve is a one-of-a-kind curated e-Boutique of small, family estate Champagnes, creative gifts and "first time" Champagne experiences. It has been featured in Elle, Epicurious, DuJour, UrbanDaddy, Traditional Home, Cottages & Gardens and on Fox News. They ship to 40 states.

3:00 pm

· $10 Cheesemaking for Beginners Workshop – Artisan cheesemaker and organic farmer Carol Lake will teach participants how to make two simple yet delicious fresh cheeses, Farmhouse Ricotta and Labneh. Learn from a local expert and founder of Simple Cheesemaking what type of equipment you will need and the best ingredients to use to make cheese at home. Recipes and resource list included.

3:30 pm

· Growing Your Own Food Organically – Planning your edible spring garden, but in need of some advice? Organic gardening expert John Carlson of Homefront Farmers will discuss best practices for a successful edible garden. Homefront Farmers designs and builds attractive, high quality fenced raised bed gardens and provides garden planning, planting and maintenance services to clients throughout Fairfield County.

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Submitted by Cos Cob, CT

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