We all need to eat, and in this episode of Western Skies, we attempt to connect you with the people who produce our food. From community supported agriculture to traditional ranching, we’ve talked to people involved with this basic necessity, and bring you their stories.
You can download the full episode, or listen to it here:
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You can also head to the individual segments for the audio, full conversations, and visuals:
Conventional/Mainstream Agriculture Roundtable
Profile: Jay Frost
Local Agriculture Roundtable
4H Celebrates 100 Years
Profile: Hardcore Farmer
Prototype Mobile Slaughter Unit’s Debut
Examining the CSA Model
Commentary: Preparing Bees for Winter
Western Skies is a collaboration between KRCC News and The Big Something.
Conventional/Mainstream Agriculture Roundtable
We’re going to begin with a roundtable discussion from a few people involved in what might be considered mainstream or more traditional agriculture. KRCC’s Michelle Mercer sat down with Shawn Martini of the Colorado Farm Bureau, 4th generation Lincoln County rancher Charles Hoffman, and Emily Lockard from the Colorado State University extension office in Pueblo.
Download the piece as aired, or listen here:
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Here’s the full conversation, available for download, or listening online (about 43 minutes):
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In this roundtable, Shawn Marinti references the Mountain Plover as an example of cooperation between conservationists and ranchers. Michelle Mercer has this look at the Mountain Plover, a story on agritourism that aired in the inaugural edition of Western Skies on tourism (June, 2010):
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South of Colorado Springs, near the county line between El Paso and Pueblo, on the east side of Fountain Creek, Jay Frost works the land. Craig Richardson traveled there and spoke with Frost. He has this profile…and please note that Frost has aphasia which affects his speaking abilities.
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Local agriculture takes on many different forms, and some consumers choose to purchase memberships to CSAs, some go to farmers markets, and some check the supermarkets for products produced in the state. Craig Richardson sat down with some folks in the area looking to promote local agriculture to talk about their efforts. Here he is with Larry Stebbins from Pikes Peak Urban Gardens, Michele Mukatis from Peak to Plains and Cultivate Health, and Michael Hannigan, CEO of the Pikes Peak Community Foundation, which runs Venetucci Farm.
Download this piece as aired, or listen here:
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Here’s the full conversation available for download, or you can listen online (about 37 minutes):
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4H has been in Colorado for 100 years, and the organization has come a long way during the last century in this state. Most people associate 4H with agriculture, but their mission of teaching life skills is a little more philosophical than the actual means. KRCC’s Shanna Lewis spent a few days at the state fair to see how the group is evolving.
Download the piece here, or listen online:
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Jamie Crocket in the weat fields of eastern Colorado
Many young people who grew up in cities are now moving to rural areas to try ranching and farming. As Noel Black reports, even some of the people you’d least expect are taking to the plows.
Listen to Jamie’s story (right-click or option-click to download, or click the play button to stream):
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Listen to some of Jamie Crockett’s songs:
“Rose for a Lie” by Nevertheless
Rose for a Lie
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“You Know What Jack Burton Would Say at a Time Like This” by Millionaire Murder Trial
“You Know What Jack Burton Would Say”
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Prototype Mobile Slaughter Unit’s Debut
(image courtesy of the Nebraska Environmental Action Coalition)
For many ranchers, there’s little choice for where to sell your cattle if they want to control the distribution or sell the butchered meat themselves. KRCC’s Noel Black visited a ranch in northwestern Kansas near the Colorado border where a small group of people is taking small steps to change that. Warning to listeners, some of the sounds and descritions in this piece are graphic.
(right-click or option-click to download, or click the play button to stream)
Prototype Mobile Slaughter Unit’s Debut
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Postscript: Megan Pusey, Director of Communications for the National Cattleman’s Beef Association, an industry trade group, says the units are too new to make any substantive comment, but that their main concern is always to make sure safety parameters are ensured at this level as they would be at larger meat packing operations.
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Whether traditional, organic or natural, the way Colorado farmers grow food continues to change throughout the state. One of those evolutions comes in CSAs, or Community Supported Agriculture farms, that have emerged over the last 25 years. KRCC’s Ellen Mahoney has this look at the CSA model.
Download the piece here, or listen online:
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Slideshow includes photos from Monroe Organic Farms (CSA) and the Munson Farm and Market.
Commentary: Preparing Bees for Winter
Donna Hartley and her husband, John, own Black Forest Honey. They maintain 150 hives east of Colorado Springs. Donna has this anecdote about what happens when the weather gets cooler, and how experienced beekeepers deal with the situation.
Download the piece here, or listen online:
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The Bear and the Honeybee, and The Honeybee and Colors (3:13):
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The Swarm (3:12):
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Donna also shared some of her bee stories for the Citizen Report:
Musings of a Mad Beekeeper
Continued Musings of a Mad Beekeeper
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