2022 South Dakota Local Foods Conference Videos
The conference was held in Sturgis, SD November, 17-19 2022. The event is coordinated by the S.D. Local Foods Coalition. Recordings of sessions funded by NRCS cooperative agreement.
SNAP & Incentive Programs at Farmers Markets
Barbara Cromwell has managed the Black Hills Farmers Market for the past five years. She has supported local food systems as a volunteer since 2007. She enjoys collaborating with others, both within the Black Hills Farmers Market community and across South Dakota, to build support for local food systems.
Creating an Action Plan You Can Follow
Kari O’Neill comes from deep agricultural roots, and lives on a farm/ranch east of Martin. She has been with SDSU Extension for 20 years, is currently the SDSU Extension Community Vitality Program Manager, and works with communities and organizations across the state doing project planning, skill-building workshops, and coaching. O’Neill is passionate about her state, agriculture, and working beside people who want to improve their lives and communities.
Farm to School Panel
Ken Charfauros, Wall Meat Processing; Kyle Cox, Cox’s Farm Stand; Lynn Dunker, Wall School District; Rhonda Ramsdell, Meade School District; Cindy Tolle, Evergreen Specialty Foods
Relying on Each Other: The Practice of Community
Hannah Breckbill is a first-generation farmer and founder of Humble Hands Harvest in Decorah Iowa, a worker-owned farm that raises organic vegetables, pastured pork, and grass-fed lamb for local markets. Hannah has earned recognition for her public experimentation with the economics of farming and land access, and for her crafting of the Queer Farmer Convergence, an annual gathering that celebrates the contributions of the queer community to agriculture and land tending. Lesser known but equally important are that Hannah plays any instrument with strings, she’s a Mennonite, and she keeps a “perennial list” on her fridge to stoke the tree-planting vision.
SARE Panel
“Wiconi Waste Resistance Farm: a Lakota agroforestry and permaculture demonstration farm”
Michele Tyon, an Oglala Lakota woman from Porcupine, SD, is a land owner and great grandmother who owns Wiconi Waste Resistance Farm. She is regenerating her land through agroforestry and permaculture practices implemented after becoming a SARE grant recipient. She is focusing on food sovereignty by growing her own food and preserving her culture by reintroducing endangered native plants and medicines that were used by the Lakota people for centuries. Michelle is helping the elders with similar land grow food through demonstrations, social media, and sharing crops.
“No money, no problem. How to build a roller crimper on a budget.”
Ryan Schmid has been a research scientist with Ecdysis Foundation since 2018. He credits his upbringing on a family farm for honing his interests to work with farmers and ranchers to develop practical solutions to their problems. When not building roller crimpers, his time is spent investigating services provided by arthropods in agroecosystems.
“SARE Project Update: Enhancing producer resources to build small meat processing capacity and local meat demand”
Dr. Amanda Blair received her PhD from Purdue University in 2007 where she focused her research in the area of meat science. In the same year she joined the faculty at South Dakota State University where she is currently a Professor in Animal Science with a research and Extension appointment. Dr. Blair’s research is focused on understanding the effects of pre- and post-natal management strategies on growth, body composition and meat quality of beef cattle. Her Extension programming is focused on connecting producers with the processing and product sides of the industry as well as enhancing consumer understanding of meat production and products. In addition to her work with SDSU, Amanda ranches with her family near Sturgis, SD raising and marketing Angus cattle.
Growing and Marketing Unique Vegetable Varieties
Jeremy Nelson is the owner of Tillford Rye Farm, a diversified regenerative and organic operation started in 2017 that serves Sioux Falls and the surrounding community. Our focus is on producing outstanding, nutrient dense food while also building soil health.
SARE Featured Speaker Eliza Blue: Start Small, Dream Big
Eliza Blue, Plainsong Farm & Fiber, is a folk musician, writer, environmental advocate, and rancher residing in one of the most remote counties in the contiguous United States, Perkins County, South Dakota. She writes a weekly column about rural life, Little Pasture on the Prairie, that is carried by 17 different print publications, writes and produces seasonal audio “postcards” from her ranch for South Dakota Public Broadcasting and Prairie Public Radio, and released her first book, Accidental Rancher, in 2020. Her writing on rural life has also been featured in the New York Times, The Guardian, and she is regular columnist for The Daily Yonder, a national publication for and about rural people. Blue’s latest project, a traveling concert television show for PBS that celebrates rural culture & arts called Wish You Were Here with Eliza Blue, was recently nominated for a Midwest-Emmy, and is now filming its third season.
Soil Health & Cover Crop Management for Vegetable Production
Dr. Rhoda Burrows is a Horticulture Specialist with SDSU Extension, focusing particularly on fruit and vegetable production and producer food safety. She also retains a keen interest in Soil Biology, having obtained her PhD in Plant Pathology (Univ. of Minn.) studying the relationships between native plant diversity and its associated mycorrhizal community. Her M.S. in Horticulture (Univ. of Minn.) involved study of asparagus transplant timing. She is a trainer for the disease and fruit and vegetable sections of the SD Master Gardener program.
Dr. Kristine Lang is a South Dakota State University Assistant Professor and Extension Consumer Horticulture Specialist based in Brookings, SD. She holds a Ph.D. in Horticulture and Sustainable Agriculture from Iowa State University, where her research focused on sustainable vegetable production. Her horticultural career has included working in private-sector, university, and non-profit organizations across four Midwestern states. Dr. Lang works with citizens across South Dakota to empower Master Gardeners, celebrate public gardens, champion local food and cut flower production, and address herbaceous plant questions from aster to zinnia.
A Mechanical Engineer’s Approach to Gardening
Darin Waldner grew up in the great town of Webster, SD, where he attended Webster High School. He graduated in 2005 and attended SDSU in Brookings to study Mechanical Engineering. After graduating in 2010, he started working for Dakota Pump & Control, of which he is now a partner in the business. He got his first taste of gardening when he was growing up – there was never a shortage of tomatoes or cucumbers in the summer. He moved back to Webster after finishing school, and a 10 acre lot was available just down the road from where he grew up. He bought it, and the garden was started. What started out as a little sweet corn, tomatoes, and cucumbers for his family quickly evolved into the Waldner Farms operation it is today.
Regenerating a Local Food System on the Pine Ridge Reservation
Nick Hernandez is a member of the Oglala Sioux Tribe and a citizen of the Pine Ridge Indian Reservation (SD). Nick is the father of two boys, Alee Jax and Kai Tyndall Hernandez and significant partner to Liz Welch. Nick earned a master’s degree in Lakota Leadership and Organizational Management from Oglala Lakota College (2019). Today, Nick has founded Makoce Agriculture Development, a 501c3 non-profit, which is the next level of local Indigenous agriculture and food systems development on the Pine Ridge Indian Reservation. Nick is passionate and dedicated towards creating viable change for his community through a self-determined, indigenous led reconnective local food system, designed to regenerate healthy equitable communities, economies and our environment for many generations to come.
Pricing Your Products
Michelle and Rick Grosek have operated Bear Butte Gardens since 2011 and The Farm Stand at Bear Butte Gardens since 2020. They and their crew grow certified organic products as well as non-certified products to sell in the farm stand. They also source from over 50 other regional producers for their year-round farm store. Michelle’s background is a degree in Business and Marketing, training as a South Dakota Master Gardener and a Master Food Preserver, along with many years working in various healthcare-related positions. Rick’s background is a degree in Computer Information Systems, serving as the Senior Database Administrator for Monument Health, and an avid permaculture and regenerative agriculture follower. Kiara Poitra, Farm Stand and Kitchen Manager, will also be collaborating on this presentation. She started working at The Farm Stand at Bear Butte Gardens in 2021 in the Commercial Kitchen Manager Apprenticeship and graduated from the apprenticeship in the spring of 2022. Kiara’s background is in food service and customer service and she is also a Master Food Preserver. Bear Butte Gardens is a certified organic farm just outside of Sturgis.
Some Things about Seeds
Trish Jenkins & Jeremy Smith, Cycle Farm, and Rachel Saum, Common Roots Seed Library
Trish and Jeremy work together at Cycle Farm, a small scale, mixed vegetable farm in the Northern Black Hills. They have been selecting for and saving seed for the last 12 years.
Rachel Saum has spent the last 10 years working in and educating themselves on local food systems in South Dakota and beyond. Rachel has worked for various sustainable farming operations, including vegetable, fruit, and dairy production. They worked as the produce manager of the Sioux Falls Food Co+op for 5 years, building relationships with local growers in southeastern South Dakota, and was active in Homegrown Sioux Empire’s local foods campaign. Rachel currently works for the non-profit Project Food Forest and manages Common Roots Seed Library in Sioux Falls, among other things.
Automation for High Tunnels, Watering Systems, and Monitoring Coolers
Peggy Martin and Bud Manke, co-owners of Cedar Creek Gardens, have been growing since 2009. Peggy has an extensive computer background, which has helped with research and choosing automation aspects. Bud has many years of practical on farm experience, which comes in handy when implementing a variety of trial and error methods to achieve different goals. Cedar Creek Gardens (CCG) has 14 acres of vegetables and melons in field production, 8 high tunnels and 4 coolers, and most of these areas use some type of technology to manage them. Sales are made year-round via wholesale, farmer’s markets, and farm stands.
Lamb & Wool: Adding Value to Your Operation
Dr. Lisa Surber, PhD was born and raised on a ranch near Medicine Hat, Alberta, Canada and is still active in her family’s commercial cattle operation. She obtained her B.S., M.S., and PhD in Animal and Range Sciences from Montana State University. During her time at MSU, she was the managing director of the Montana Wool Lab. Lisa served as a Wool Education Consultant for the American Sheep Industry Association and with WestFeeds as a Ruminant Nutritionist. Lisa now runs her own business providing nutritional expertise for cattle and sheep, wool buying, classing, and education services, sheep marketing and sales, NSIP certified ultrasounding services, and OFDA on-site wool testing services. She is also the Executive Secretary for South Dakota Sheep Growers Association. She is a certified sheep ultrasound technician and instructor and an ASI Level 4 wool classer and instructor, and performs these services across the US and Canada. Lisa lives in Opal, SD.
Jaelyn Whaley serves as the SDSU Extension Sheep Field Specialist based in Rapid City. She grew up direct marketing lamb, beef, and goat with her family and has a passion for advocacy and producer-consumer connections. She received her Master’s degree in Animal Science from the University of Wyoming focusing on lamb production and meat quality. Jaelyn truly believes that the greatest assets we have in agriculture are the producers telling our farm to table story.
Cover Crop Strategies
Shawn & Kristy Freeland are the owners of Dry Creek Farm & Ranch, a first-generation operation specializing in soil health, direct market pastured meats, and community education. The Freeland’s believe regenerative agriculture systems are imperative to the future of sustainable, nutrient rich meat production as is educating and connecting with their community. The farm has been completely no-till since 2016. Additionally, the farm utilizes cover crops for soil health and livestock grazing, practices managed grazing and does not use synthetic fertilizer. In September 2019, the farm added a crop maze and pumpkin patch to enhance their educational efforts.
Controlled Environment Agriculture at Western Dakota Technical College
Bryan Mitchell currently serves as the Program Director for the Electrical Trades program, as well as the Co-Program Director of the Controlled Environment Agriculture program at Western Dakota Technical College. He and his team are leading the way in technical education through the use of applied technology to sustainably produce food and train students skills their degrees require.
Chicken Processing
Jamie started processing chickens as part of his first job cleaning fish and doing fur. When he got an acreage, he started raising some chickens for himself. Soon, others in the community wanted chicken, and things escalated from there. Now, Jamie not only runs a chicken CSA but also supplies local restaurants with his chicken.
The Urban Agriculture Initiative at USDA
Rachel Frei, Urban Conservationist, and Tanse Herrmann, State Rangeland Soil Health Specialist
Getting Started with Farm Service Agency
Brooke Wier serves Butte, Lawrence, and Harding counties as a Farm Loan Officer for the Farm Service Agency (FSA). She started her career with FSA after graduating from South Dakota State University in 2016 with a degree in Animal Science and minor in Ag Business. Growing up, she was active in her family’s commercial cattle and small grain operation near Bowman, ND where she found her love for agriculture. She enjoys working alongside farmers and ranchers to better their operations through the programs FSA has to offer.
Adding Livestock to a Vegetable Farm
Hannah Breckbill is a first-generation farmer and founder of Humble Hands Harvest in Decorah Iowa, a worker-owned farm that raises organic vegetables, pastured pork, and grass-fed lamb for local markets. Hannah has earned recognition for her public experimentation with the economics of farming and land access, and for her crafting of the Queer Farmer Convergence, an annual gathering that celebrates the contributions of the queer community to agriculture and land tending. Lesser known but equally important are that Hannah plays any instrument with strings, she’s a Mennonite, and she keeps a “perennial list” on her fridge to stoke the tree-planting vision.