Darryl Parker

From a letter to the editor of the Charlotte Observer I wrote in June 2006: I would like to propose that our citizens, city government and various city news resources take up the issue of national security by first thinking of local security. In the age of the impending dooms of pandemic, global warming, peak oil and world war, it is important to recognize the dependency our lives have on the global economy and to make efforts to reduce that dependency to ensure we are able to endure and succee… Continue

I have returned from my trip to Greenfield, Massachusetts, to visit the facilities of RealPickles.com. Dan Rosenburg was quite the host and my partner in sauerkraut fermentation, John Helms, and I sampled several recipes from his natural fermentation process. We also discussed the business side of things. Food is a tough business to make a go of it. Farming it and selling it is one thing. Processing it is something completely different. It requires an entire set of rules and attorneys to figure… Continue

Okay backyard gardeners! The hands-down best school on gardening is coming up for the 15th year in Flat Rock on March 8th. I went last year and had a great experience. There are several paths you can follow through the day that will help small scale backyard farmers. And - big plus - you meet some great folks! My two big finds last year were fellow-Charlottean Lynn Caldwell (from the Charlotte Tailgate Market) and Imladris Farms' Walter Harrill. Both two terrific people. Walter's session on b…

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A terrific series of videos on the setup and processes required for canning various items can be found at www.CanningUSA.com. Canning your own food is a great way to eat locally.

There are many good canning videos on www.YouTube.com and invariably you will be led to individuals or individual websites that give you even more information.

After nearly three years of becoming more and more involved in the local food movement in the Charlotte area, I have finally found a way to become an active participant versus just being a consumer.

Sauerkraut and other naturally fermented products represent a time honored food preservation technique. Food fermentation is believed to have originated during the construction of the Great Wall of China. Now a variety of fermented products from cabbage to cucumbers are available in the mar…

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