Edited by LC, JP

Lincoln Land Goes Organic

By Jacob Fisher

Lamp writer

SPRINGFIELD – Sarah Goodman has become part of the growing trend of organic food consumers.

A budget specialist for the college, Goodman said her family began eating organically grown foods about a year ago, and she said a great way for them to get the food is by shopping regularly at the LLCC agriculture department’s organic Food Stand.

On Sept. 25, Marnie Record was sitting in the A.Lincoln Commons selling organically grown produce at the ag program’s regular Farm Stand event. It’s in its third year, and Record is hoping people will make a healthier food choice after visiting the stand.

The Food Stand’s products are grown as part of the community garden behind the Work Forces Careers Center on the Springfield campus.

As organic products have become more and more popular, Record said, “It has continued to grow for the past 20 years and [organic living] is staying on this upward trend.”

Record would expand on a statistic she recently saw regarding people eating organically.  She would go on to say that there has been a 23 percent increase between 2015 and 2016.

Lincoln Land Community College has supported the agriculture department to produce organic products. The Farm Stand sold several types of organic products that has been grown on Springfield’s very own campus.

For the Agriculture department to get the produce ready for the Farm Stand sale, Record says, “Each produce has a different growing time, [products] pretty much ranges from 30 days to 60 days.”

“Some things like carrots, take longer,” Record said, “and some of the greens are closer to the 30 to 45 days.”

Goodman is glad that she is eating organically-grown foods. “It is better for people”, she said. “Buying from the Food Stand is great because when they buy local, you are also supporting your local businesses.”

“It is an easier access to locally grown foods,” Goodman said.

As organic living is growing, Lincoln Land Community College is starting to offer Agricultural Watershed Management programs. The programs help students broaden their agricultural interests.

LLCC’s newest program is developed to introduce students to comprehensive problems and best solutions associated with agriculture.

Jacob Fisher can be reached at [email protected].