When the Santa Monica single-use plastic bag ban goes into effect on September 1st, it could change the way you experience farmers markets in the area. Instead of a straight ban of all bag types in favor of one eco-friendly BYOB alternative, the LA Times notes that the new ordinance will treat different bags...differently. more ›

Students, faculty, and staff at the University of Southern California have dirt-y dreams and vegetable visions for their campus, and for all of Los Angeles. A panel convened yesterday to discuss "The Politics of Food," and how to grow and use food in the local community, reports the Daily Trojan. Among the goals of USC's food service are to implement "tray-less dining," and source more food locally. more ›

It's National Farmers Market Week and today California's Food & Agriculture Secretary A.G. Kawamura wants people to take part. “Farmers markets celebrate the relationships all consumers have with farms,” he said today. “We are fortunate that many farmers markets operate year round because of our state’s ability to grow a cornucopia of different products.” He notes that since 1977, when the state created the first Certified Farmers Market program in the nation, that the number of certified markets have grown to 520, with 51% of those open year round, and some 2,200 certified agricultural producers. In L.A. County, there are 96 certified markets, with many of them and more in surrounding counties found found on this map. more ›

An ordinance expanding what Angelenos can grow at home and later sell was approved by the L.A. City Council today. The "Fruit and Flowers Freedom Act," as it is called, changed the city's Truck Gardening ordinance, which said only vegetables and herbs could be grown, trucked to a market and sold. more ›

No longer are the days of inconsistent actions regarding how the city approves and pays for special events like neighborhood block parties, farmers markets, festivals and larger, more notable street closures for events like the Oscars and Emmys (which means street closures this weekend in downtown). Some of those larger events like the Oscars will get half their fees waived while other events like farmers markets are left in the dark. The city says they need to entice events such as the Oscars to stay in Los Angeles as they contribute heavily to the local economy--caterers, flowers, fashion, tourism, etc. Farmers markets also contribute to the economy and organizers fear the new ordinance will force them to shut down as money raised is not enough to pay for street closures. Although Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa signed the ordinance into law today, his office tells LAist that he fully supports Farmers Markets and knows they are vital assets to our communities (case in point, a local food policy is in the works). The City Council is currently looking into a way to adapt the new ordinance to waive or minimize the fees for the markets. more ›

When compared to New York City and Chicago, Angelenos score a cheaper price when buying organic, finds a study release by IBISWorld. "The study looked at three product categories: Private label or store brands, commercial brands, and organic items," explained Wallet Pop. The cost of groceries depends largely on what part of the country you live in. Chicagoans get a cheaper groceries than the next two bigger cities (but pay among the highest sales taxes), except for organic items. If you want to eat more naturally, you'll pay less in L.A. But organics in general will set you back more, about 18% more than branded products and 37.6 % more than store brands, according to the findings." more ›

As mentioned yesterday via blogdowntown, the Arts, Parks, Health and Aging Committee is exploring two smoking related motions today. The suggested actions will not completely ban smoking like it practically is in Calabasas, but they do further the limiting of your rights or the protection of your health, depending on how you see it. more ›

Now that fast food is banned in South LA in order to make way for healthier options to exist in the region, what's next? In New York, it was reported today that "food stamp sales have grown to $90,000 in 2007 from $3,000 in 2002." Part of the increase comes from technological advancement with wireless or scrip debit food stamp machines at the markets. 118 markets in California use these machines with over 25 of them located in the Los Angeles area. Unfortunately, only a couple of the South LA farmers market use EBT and food stamps. Or is it that there are only a few South LA markets in the first place? more ›

Whether you are a carnivore or herbivore, the question these days is about your locavore status. Does the word sound familiar to you? It won the 2007 New Oxford American Dictionary Word of the Year Award. Via VegNews Magazine:

If you really want to lighten your carbon footprint, don' just go vegan, go locavore. That means buying food locally to avoid the burning of fossil fuels entailed by long-distance transport by truck or rail. The term "locavore" was coined in 2005 by a group of four San Francisco women... The Locavores continue to encourage Bay ARea residents -- and people around the country -- to only eat foods within a 100-mile radius of their homes during the month of August (and beyond). "Our food now travels an average of 1,500 miles before ending up on our plates," the group maintains.

It was a great year of new books, re-discovered books, and books we meant to get to last year but didn't. The end of the year is nearly here and before we look forward, we'll take a look back. LAist Editors share their favorite book they read this year: more ›

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Would you pay $85 for truffle mac n' cheese? Or would you rather enjoy the cheaper, classic versions at Larkin's or Lucky Devil's? The Glutton over at the LA Times samples the goods for you. What do we want? Conservation programs, access to healthy food, and promotion of renewable energy! When do we want it? Whenever the Senate gets around to voting on the Farm Bill. There's still time to make your voice heard.... more ›

Zucchini and other squash are abundant right now at farmer's markets and in home gardens (it's one of the easier vegetables to grow). Making big batches of delicious Italian-style zucchini soup is a good way to transform your bounty, and this dish uses flavors that will please even the most zucchini-fatigued palate. This soup can be a main course for two (put some crusty bread and butter on the side), or an appetizer for... more ›

As of last Wednesday, Downtown now has six farmers markets: three on Thursday, two on Wednesday and one on Friday. "It was only back in June that we marveled at the new Bank of America market, but it seems a mere five markets each week wasn't sufficient," writes Eric Richardson at blogdowntown. Find the complete interactive map at Blogdowntown.... more ›

It's starting to feel a little like Fall: an "unseasonably strong and cold storm system" is headed our way. Bundle up! How green was Burning Man this year? Elsa Wenzel from CNet's News.com explains her perspective: "As a first-time Burner, I've finally shaken the playa dust from my shoes and mind to conclude that it was perhaps the most and the least eco-friendly mega-event I've attended." With a name like Inland Empire, you deserve... more ›

For almost a year now, the southern corners of National Boulevard and Overland Boulevard have not had anything on them. Now, in the last week, they're bustling with activity. On the eastern corner, where there was once an Arco, a plywood fence has gone up (now it's festooned with posters) and on the western corner, where the stripped Blockbuster still advertises the video release of The Omen remake last October (saw it, not great)... more ›

... but there's not much Los Angeles in the latest issue of Plenty, a bi-monthly magazine on environmental news and commentary. There's a feature story on the negative environmental impact of surfing and good tips for going to the farmer's market (use it with the new Farmer's Market Google Map), but our dear home is not but a mere mention in a small, but fun brief. With the fact that "urban areas are responsible for... more ›

- Only a few thousand of the 15,000 expected marchers showed up to the Immigration Rights March In Hollywood. - Last night in Mid-City a suspected drunk driver crashed his SUV and was thrown from his car at Washington and Cochran. The SUV then caught fire. - Scoooooooore! U.S. Beats Mexico to Win Soccer's Gold Cup. - A water pipe broke today at LAX causing fire sprinklers to wash down hundreds of travelers at... more ›

Feeling a little lazy. Maybe a little experimental. We ordered in. We refused the nice bike ride to the grocery store. We said no to the nice farmers at the market. We skipped going out for dinner. Instead, we went online and pressed "yes" to delivered organic fruits and veggies. To live in a city with farmer's markets everywhere, it just feels so lazy to do this. But when we opened that box, we... more ›

Unless you are an Olsen twin, chances are you eat. And if you're reading this, chances are even greater that you dig LAist. To top that, we're guessing you probably have opinions about what you like and what you don't like, say maybe in the arena of where you grab some drinks after work with your friends, where you go after seeing a play or movie for late-night noshing, or what of any one of thousands of local eateries you go to for a guaranteed great date, steak, bowl of ramen, or cup of tea. more ›

We work at home. We work on Macs. We don't like Outlook. We are Google kids. We use Gmail. We use Google RSS Reader. We use Google Groups, Google Maps and Google SMS. We also use Google Calendar and here's five of many reasons why: 1. If you're like us, you plan events big or small. And sometimes planning that party on a holiday we forgot existed on that day screws things up. With... more ›

Daily News tells tales of earmarked federal funding to go to the wayside in the Valley due to Democrats going lean on the budget. Of course, it won't be just the Valley. Watch out basin/metropolitan LA. The California Report looks into the future of rest stops along California's highways. Coffee vendors, farmer's markets, solar power, wifi and more. (Download Audio Here) Closer to home, Art Center College of Design's downtown campus's roof is green.... more ›

We had a chance to stop by the farmer's market at Wilshire Boulevard and Mariposa Avenue on Friday morning. The little market bustled with workers from the nearby office towers and people who live in the neighborhood. The first spring produce was already available. We picked up some slim spears of new asparagus. The strawberries smelled nice, too, though we didn't buy any this time. Also, we haven't had great luck buying bread at farmer's markets in the past, finding it too often dry and dull, but we picked up a loaf of whole wheat and honey bread from the stand run by the Old Town Baking Company of Fontana, and it was excellent -- simultaneously hearty and light, and, according to the vendor and the label, 100% whole grain. It's great when the healthiest foods are also the most delicious. more ›

This week's Los Angeles Times Food Section produces an special issue focused on farmer's markets. This year they not only update the masterlist of Farmer's Markets area but also includes a special survey of the smaller, neighborhood markets. more ›