BELLOWS FALLS — The first-ever Liberty Food Fest is set for Thursday through Saturday, Dec. 14–16, in Bellows Falls and Walpole, New Hampshire. It will feature local farmers, restaurateurs, and environmentalists presenting on local food systems.
"Lunatic Farmer" Joel Salatin of Polyface Farms of Virginia's Shenandoah Valley and Ojibwe Leader Winona LaDuke of White Earth Farms in Minnesota headline this three-day fest, which kicks off Thursday evening with Salatin at The Hungry Diner restaurant in Walpole.
Hungry Diner owners Caitlin and Chris Caserta will speak on Friday afternoon, Dec. 15, at the Bellows Falls Opera House on "Making Farm to Table Work." Also speaking will be Kristin Canty, who directed the documentary movie, Farmageddon, which explores the "unseen war on American family farms." The film will be shown at the Opera House on (1)Friday afternoon at 12:30.
Besides the Casertas and Salatin, the Fest includes talks by several New England farmers, environmentalists, and politicians.
LaDuke is a well-known environmentalist who co-founded the White Earth Land Recovery Project to buy back lands and create jobs at the White Earth Indian Reservation in Minnesota. She also operates a 140-acre industrial hemp farm at the reservation and was the vice-presidential nominee on the Green Party ticket in the 1996 and 2000 elections.
LaDuke will speak on "Being Connected to the Land" at 11 a.m. on Saturday, Dec. 16, at the Opera House. She will be followed by organic farmer and Maine State Sen. Craig Hickman, who has championed his state's food sovereignty law to remove burdensome regulations on small farmers.
The fest has been organized by documentary filmmaker and Saxtons River resident Graham Meriwether, whose documentary, Farmers for America, narrated by Mike Rowe, was recently aired on PBS stations around the country. He and Salatin, a farmer featured in the film, will head up a screening of the film on Friday evening at 7 p.m. at the Opera House.
For details on the speakers, the schedule, and the costs of the event, visit libertyfoodfest.com.
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