Local farmers push for co-op

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November 14, 2007

One says it is way to provide healthier food

By BRAD DICKERSON The Glasgow Daily Times Wed Nov 14, 2007, 03:58 PM CST

GLASGOW — Paul Wiediger saw the light in the “Spring.”

The farmer, who resides on the Barren/Edmonson County line, said he became interested in growing all natural foods in the 1970s after reading Rachel Carson’s 1962 novel “Silent Spring,” which exposed the hazards of the pesticide DDT.

“It was such a powerful story,” Wiediger said.

He and his wife Alison run Au Naturel Farm, which provides customers with a selection of natural, fresh foods free from any type of contaminant.

In helping to keep clients informed on the weekly offerings and to accommodate sales during the cooler months, Wiediger said a lot of business is done through an e-mail distribution list.

Every week, a message is sent informing customers of what produce is available and even a list of recipes. This method appears to work for the operation.

“The average size of the order doubled,” Wiediger said.

His operation is also sustained during the winter months through the use of high tunnels for growing such produce as lettuce, spinach and tomatoes.

The structures are unheated, plastic-covered facilities that offer a level of environmental protection and control in contrast to open field conditions and heated greenhouses, says www.hightunnels.org.

Wiediger says they are the equivalent of an unheated greenhouse.

High tunnels are relatively inexpensive to erect, costing as little as 50 cents per square foot, according to the Web site.

Comparatively, commercial greenhouses cost up to $20 per square foot.

Wiediger, who has two high tunnels on his property, spoke about his personal operation at the Oct. 30 public forum regarding a proposed food cooperative in Barren County.

“There’s a disconnect between people and food right now,” he said, adding that an area co-op would reconnect the consumer with the grower.

Forum attendees were given a list of benefits a co-op could offer, such as providing a greater variety of products and services, expanding opportunities for community connection and involvement, creating new opportunities for food and cooperative education within the local community and generating new jobs for Glasgow.

“Access to locally grown foods year-round is one of the primary advantages of the co-op,” said Kimberly Page, chair of the co-op steering committee, in a written statement. “And just as healthy food is a basic need for a healthy body, we believe that healthy farms provide a foundation for maintaining our strong community.”

Wiediger said that in the few weeks since the forum, he has received a lot of positive feedback from those in attendance.

He sees the idea of bringing a co-op into the region as a positive for the rural community.

“I think it would be a viable outfit for a number of the other growers in the area,” Wiediger said.

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