By KAREN BINDER
Illinois Correspondent

CARBONDALE, Ill. — Vanessa Kalek never thought she’d enjoy dorm food, but the Southern Illinois University Carbondale freshman actually looks forward to dinner.

“I would expect this kind of freshness at home, but in a dorm cafeteria? I love it,” she said.

Kalek is among thousands of university students living in campus housing who are enjoying fresh and organic vegetables from two local farms, Mulberry Hill Farm in Carbondale and Farmer Brown’s Production Company in Pomona. These two farms will be the highlight of a University of Illinois Extension sustainable agriculture tour, set from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. on Friday, June 18.

Chef Bill Connors has made a conscious effort to incorporate as much locally-raised produce as possible into the dormitory cafeteria menus. Mulberry Hill recently became a vendor for Southern Illinois University Housing.

“There’s a good group of chefs there who are interested in promoting locally grown, fresh foods,” farmer Tom Grant of Mulberry Hill said.

“We talk on a fairly regular basis. Communication is important. One day they ordered 200 pounds of spinach. We started picking it in the morning and had it on their delivery dock by 4 in the afternoon, and a good portion of it was served that night for dinner. That’s fresh.”

Another recipient of his fresh picked produce is Irv and Shelley’s Fresh Picks in Niles, some six hours north of Carbondale. Grant’s deliveries arrive d at their dock the day after it’s picked, and with the knowledge it has travelled across the country.

Grant started his organic operation in 2000 with the conversion of traditional row crop fields. “I wanted to make soil amendments without erosion, so I experimented with terracing garden beds and using grass clippings as green manure,” he explained. “Early on, I also decided to try to improve the soil as much as possible, figuring that healthier soil would result in healthier plants. I cook down the compost, incorporating wood chips and even oyster shells for a slow-release calcium to the soil.”

 Also featured on the tour is Josh Brown’s place. He will describe the process and strategy behind becoming USDA Certified Organic, discuss the best practices and maximum yields using raised beds, and share some of his marketing strategies and an overview of his crop plan.

“Chef Bill Connors from SIU contacted our local co-op about the potential for some of their small-scale farmers providing food for the students,” said Brown. “We do some volume as far as small farmers go, so we were a likely candidate to getting that relationship under way. Things worked out well last year, and we have started selling to them again this year.”

Brown said his farm specializes in leafy greens, lettuce, kale, and spinach, culinary garlic, peppers, squash, tomatoes, and herbs. “We have a strong emphasis on soil building through cover crops, crop rotations, and nutrient management,” he said.

Connors will prepare the tour lunch made from locally grown produce as well as pasture-fed and finished beef raised by Joshua Buchheit at Lick Creek Beef. Buchheit will speak briefly during the lunch about how he raises, grazes and processes his cattle. And Chef Connors will talk about how he has made serving local food to his students a top priority.

Another group involved in the local food movement is Food Works. Jerry Bradley, a co-founder of Food Works, will provide information about his organization’s work in helping to develop local, sustainable food systems in southern Illinois.

He said the group has been working for two years with small-scale to mid-size fruit and vegetable growers in the region, farmers’ market managers, and community stakeholders to start a comprehensive, year-long new and beginning farmer-training program for growers in the region. It is based from the successful Central Illinois Farm Beginnings program.

“We hope to give growers the business and marketing skills necessary to become successful growers over the long term.
Part of the course also includes hands-on field days and one-on-one mentorships with established growers in southern Illinois,” Bradley said.

A fee of $20 per person will be charged for each tour, which includes lunch. Two adults pay $30 when registered together, and children under the age of 10 attend free.

Registration at least one week in advance is required. To register: visit http://web.extension.illinois.edu/smallfarm/ag_tours.cfm or call 217-241-4644. The tour is sponsored by the University of Illinois Extension, the North Central Region Sustainable Agriculture Research and Education Professional Development Program, the Agriculture Tourism Partners of Illinois (ATPI), the Agroecology/Sustainable Agriculture Program at the University of Illinois, Mulberry Hill Farm, Farmer Brown’s Production Company and Food Works.