2 // COASTWEEKEND.COM Flavor of the month North Coast Food Web publishes 2019 calendar highlighting local farms, restaurants By JON WILLIAMS FOR COAST WEEKEND F rom Alimento’s meal kit service that uses local produce, vege- tables and meat, to Black- berry Bog Farm in Knappa that provides chicken for Fort George Brewery, to the Salmonberry Saloon in Wheeler that buys from more than 20 local farmers, the North Coast is bursting with fresh food. But not everyone knows that they can have local food on their table. That’s why the North Coast Food Web, a non- profit, whose mission is to cultivate a healthy commu- nity and economy through agriculture, decided to create a 2019 calendar to raise awareness of com- munity-focused farms and restaurants people can pur- chase local food from. “There’s a passion with the connection to the land,” said Sue Cody, a photogra- pher and supporter of the Food Web who spent three months this summer pho- tographing and touring the farms and restaurants with Food Web board member Mary Blake. Each month features a photo of a different farm or restaurant and includes information about it. The calendar is a fundraiser for the Food Web and high- lights information about its community offerings. The calendar costs $20 and is available now at the Salmonberry Saloon in Wheeler, Rainy Day Barber in Cannon Beach, the Shelburne Hotel in Ilwaco, Beach Books in Seaside, COURTESY NORTH COAST FOOD WEB The cover of the North Coast Food Web 2019 calendar. Pat’s Pantry and Lucy’s Books in Astoria, Astoria Co-op and through the Food Web’s website, northcoast- foodweb.org. The calendar includes Skamokawa Farmstead Creamery, Lazy Creek Farm, 46 North Farm, Blackberry Bog Farm, Spring Up Farm, Moon River Farm, Nehalem River Ranch, Alimento, Bridge- water Bistro, Salmonber- ry Saloon, Fort George Brewery and the Shelburne Hotel. A Food Guide with information about more than 40 local farms, what they produce and how to contact them is included in the calendar. Blake’s hope is for people to know the name of their farmer and where their food at the region’s restau- rants came from. Love of the land Blake learned through visiting the farms how many of the farmers came to it later in life. “There wasn’t a single person that had been a farm- er their whole life,” she said. Cody, who works for The Daily Astorian, said she was amazed at the farmer’s ener- gy and dedication. She also noticed the care the farmers took with their produce, animals and soil. Jared Gardner at Ne- halem River Ranch raises his livestock free range not only for the animals’ welfare but also for the final product. Gardner produces grass-fed beef and pas- ture pork. He works with a dozen restaurants in the area as well as 150 regular customers. MARY BLAKE PHOTO Continued on Page 13 Teresa Retzlaff, of 46 North Farm in Olney.