Food From Family Farms Stars At Farm Aid 2012

Food From Family Farms Stars At Farm Aid 2012

Central Pennsylvania Farmers, Businesses and Organizations Bring Local Flavor to All-Day Music Festival

HERSHEY, Pa., Sept. 19, 2012 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- Farm Aid 2012 at Hersheypark Stadium on Sept. 22 will bring together an all-star lineup and more than 29,000 fans to celebrate the good food that family farms provide us all. From interactive, hands-on workshops in the HOMEGROWN Village to holding a food collection for those in need, Farm Aid 2012 will showcase the innovation and ingenuity of family farmers.

Central Pennsylvania farmers, businesses and nonprofit organizations are pitching in to make sure this year's Farm Aid benefit concert provides concertgoers with family farm experiences that are distinctly Pennsylvanian. Local partners will help Farm Aid bring family farm-sourced ingredients to HOMEGROWN Concessions®; inform concertgoers in the HOMEGROWN Village about the work family farmers do to protect our economy, our environment and our health; and achieve recycling and composting goals.

Information about the local flavor at Farm Aid 2012:


-- HOMEGROWN Concessions® at Farm Aid 2012 will bring family farm food to
more than 29,000 concertgoers at Hersheypark Stadium. HOMEGROWN
Concessions® will feature food with family farm-sourced ingredients,
including organic beef burgers; local veggie wraps; organic jalapeno
corn dogs; non-confinement pork; antibiotic-free chicken; harvest salad;
and local, non-genetically engineered popcorn.
-- HOMEGROWN Youthmarket's farm fresh stand, organized by GrowNYC and
staffed with local FFA youth from the Milton Hershey School, will offer
concertgoers fresh fruit from local farms, Pennsylvania pretzels, baked
goods and local cheeses. Beverages include fresh limeade, lemonade and
organic coffee.
-- The Central Pennsylvania Food Bank is partnering with Farm Aid and Giant
Food Stores to help meet the needs of the hungry across the region by
collecting non-perishable food items from concertgoers at the main
entrance to Hersheypark Stadium. Concertgoers can bring products that
are in boxes, cans or plastic bottles, and do not have to be
refrigerated. Suggested donation items include canned tuna, canned
fruits and vegetables, cereal, hearty cold weather meals like stew and
soup, peanut butter and baby food. Learn more at
www.centralpafoodbank.org.
-- Farm Aid's HOMEGROWN Village will feature hands-on activities that give
concertgoers a chance to meet farmers, dig in and learn about the ways
family farmers are growing good food for all of us. From composting,
seed saving and ice cream churning to farm trivia games like, "Guess
which country the food in your grocery store comes from" and the "Wheel
of Agriculture," concertgoers can learn more about the roots of their
food.
-- The HOMEGROWN Skills Tent is where concert-goers have the opportunity to
learn specific agrarian skills such as growing their own mushroom farm
in a bag, how to pickle any vegetable in just 10 minutes, the
fundamentals of building and managing compost piles, how to raise
chickens in the backyard and much more.
-- Farm Aid is composting and recycling in order to achieve minimal waste
goals at Hersheypark Stadium. All compostable waste at the concert will
be turned into valuable agricultural material to improve the health of
soil. A sizeable volunteer effort will be on hand to help concertgoers
differentiate between landfill-bound trash, recyclables like plastic and
compostables, such as food waste and compostable foodservice-ware.
-- Channels Food Rescue, Central Pennsylvania Food Bank and Hershey Food
Bank will partner with Farm Aid 2012's backstage catering operation to
conduct a food rescue to donate prepared foods and surplus items that
are not used during the concert.
Additional Farm Aid 2012 details for concertgoers and fans at home:


-- Farm Aid 2012 will feature performances by Willie Nelson, Neil Young &
Crazy Horse, John Mellencamp, Dave Matthews & Tim Reynolds, Kenny
Chesney, Jack Johnson, Grace Potter & the Nocturnals, Jamey Johnson,
ALO, Pegi Young & The Survivors, and Lukas Nelson & Promise of the Real.
-- The Farm Aid 2012 webcast, Farm Aid 2012: A Backstage Pass, will allow
fans at home to share in the excitement through a special presentation
from Hersheypark Stadium on Saturday, Sept. 22, from 8 to 11 p.m. EDT at
www.farmaid.org.
-- Willie Nelson's SiriusXM channel 56, Willie's Roadhouse, will air live
from Farm Aid 2012, beginning at 2 pm EDT. SiriusXM's Dallas Wayne will
host backstage interviews and behind-the-scene coverage of the event.
For nearly 30 years, Farm Aid's work with family farmers has helped to grow the Good Food Movement -- the increasing demand for and accessibility of local, organic, humanely raised, family farm food. Each year the annual concert provides an opportunity to raise awareness and connect farmers to eaters.

The sponsors of Farm Aid 2012 are Giant Food Stores, Anvil Knitwear, Chipotle Mexican Grill, Horizon Organic, Weis Markets, Organic Valley, Jeni's Splendid Ice Creams, Silk Soymilk, Amy's Kitchen, Bell & Evans Air Chilled, Martin Guitar, Messina Wildlife PLOTSAVER and UNFI Foundation.

For updates about Farm Aid 2012, visit www.farmaid.org and join the conversation at www.facebook.com/farmaid and www.twitter.com/farmaid.

About Farm Aid
Farm Aid's mission is to build a vibrant, family farm-centered system of agriculture in America. Farm Aid artists and board members Willie Nelson, Neil Young, John Mellencamp and Dave Matthews host an annual concert to raise funds to support Farm Aid's work with family farmers and to inspire people to choose family farm food. Since 1985, Farm Aid, with the support of the artists who contribute their performances each year, has raised more than $40 million to support programs that help farmers thrive, expand the reach of the Good Food Movement, take action to change the dominant system of industrial agriculture and promote food from family farms.

SOURCE Farm Aid

Farm Aid

CONTACT: Brittany Vanderpool, bvanderpool@vancomm.com, o: +1-202-248-5487, c: +1-410-599-2323

Web Site: http://www.farmaid.org


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