Circular Food Systems Buoy Washington Agriculture, Reinvigorate Local Economies

Feb 07, 2024

By Joe Roberts

In agriculture, land and water degradation is a real concern. Also of concern is lack of access to locally produced, high-quality foods, either because they are unaffordable or because they are destined for other markets.

Washington State University Extension’s Marcia Ostrom is working to address those problems. As Food Systems Program director, she leads WSU Extension’s efforts to develop regionally interconnected food systems across the state. A particular focus of hers is ensuring that the benefits of Washington’s bountiful food systems are more accessible and equitable.

“The term ‘circular food system’ describes a way to source food that is protective of our land, water, people, and ecosystems while reinvigorating local economies,” she said.

Washington is an agricultural powerhouse, but its highest value crops are produced for national and global export markets. Major disruptions to global trade often result in supply chain and market vulnerabilities for both farmers and consumers.

Ostrom and fellow Extension educators support the regional farmers who harvest and produce the quality vegetables, fruits, meats, and dairy products that many local residents are demanding through programs like Cultivating Success and Farm Walks. These types of programs create opportunities for farmers to innovate ways to build more secure and profitable markets.

“We’re working toward closing the food system loop as tight as we can,” Ostrom said. “That means local farmers taking care of fragile ecosystems, creating food supply chains that minimize waste, improving the availability of healthy regional foods, and supporting the livelihoods of many, many Washington farmers.”

To combat food insecurity and food waste, communities across northwest Washington pooled their resources to open a community processing kitchen in Clallam County.

The new kitchen, a partnership between the Port Angeles Food Bank and WSU Clallam County Extension, is a success story of sharing resources with multiple counties and partners while closing the food system loop.

“So many different outcomes are now tied to this kitchen,” said Clea Rome, director of Clallam County Extension. “Our farm-to-school program just launched, several school gardens are being established, and we’ve secured multiple grants and contracts to purchase food from local farmers.”

Locally grown food and imperfect or donated goods and produce are transformed by the kitchen into fresh, convenient, ready-to-go meals for food bank clients, and soon, local schools and hospitals.

“The work we do in food systems not only helps keep our small family farms viable, but couple that with the idea that this food is now going to the most food insecure people in our area,” Rome said. “To me, that’s really gratifying.”

Source : wsu.edu

Video: Turning Plant Defense Into a Management Strategy

Turning Plant Defense Into a Management Strategy

Understanding how a plant responds to stress is one thing.

Using that knowledge to make better management decisions is another.

Systemic acquired resistance, or SAR, is the plant's more direct defense response. When stress or infection occurs, the plant begins signaling throughout its system and preparing defensive compounds.

But if we know that response exists, can we help prepare the plant before the stress arrives?

The answer starts with understanding what triggers the response and what the plant needs to carry it out.

The Trigger and the Fuel

Salicylic acid plays an important role in triggering the SAR pathway.

Think of it as turning the truck on.

The engine may be running, but it still needs fuel to do the work.

In this case, manganese plays an important role in supporting the enzyme systems involved in the plant's defensive response.

This makes manganese status an important part of the conversation. Whether a producer is using tissue testing, sap analysis, or simply scouting for visible deficiency symptoms, the goal is to make sure the plant has adequate manganese available.

Manganese is required in relatively small amounts, but that does not make its role small.

If the plant receives a signal to defend itself but lacks the nutrition needed to support that response, it may struggle to carry out the process efficiently.

The trigger matters.

The fuel matters too.

Prepare Before the Stress Arrives

The best time to think about stress management is before the plant is overwhelmed.

Once a crop is already struggling, management can quickly turn into a game of catch-up.

This is similar to nitrogen management. Once a plant becomes severely deficient, correcting the problem does not necessarily erase the time and yield potential already lost.

Plant defense can work the same way.

Low-rate, targeted approaches designed to support the SAR pathway may fit best ahead of an expected stress event rather than after significant damage has already occurred.

That requires producers to think about predictable stress.

We may not know exactly what the weather will do tomorrow, but we generally know summer heat is coming. We know certain field conditions increase disease pressure. We know a herbicide application can temporarily stress a crop as the plant processes the chemistry.

Even a properly timed and labeled herbicide application can create a temporary response in the plant.

That does not mean the herbicide is bad.

Weeds can create significantly more yield loss than the temporary stress caused by controlling them.

The question is not whether we should eliminate every stressor.

The question is whether we can better prepare the plant to manage necessary and predictable stress.

Not All Stress Is Bad

Stress is a normal part of plant growth.

A perfectly stress-free environment does not exist in the field.

In fact, some stress is necessary for normal plant development. A plant responds to wind, temperature, moisture, sunlight, and countless other environmental signals throughout the season.

The environment is stress.

The plant's job is to manage it.

Problems begin when the stress load becomes greater than the plant's ability to respond.

Extreme heat, drought, high salt concentrations, disease pressure, and even certain management practices can add to that load.

This is where understanding SAR becomes useful.

Instead of waiting until the plant is visibly struggling, producers can begin identifying periods when stress is likely and make management decisions around those windows.

ISR Starts With the Soil

While SAR is a more direct defense response, induced systemic resistance, or ISR, brings the conversation back to soil health.

The longevity of a farm is closely connected to the health of its soil.

Carbon plays a major role because it supports biological life within the soil. Bacteria, fungi, and other organisms interact with plant roots and influence how the plant grows, accesses nutrients, and prepares for stress.

This is why soil health cannot be reduced to one product or one application.

It is a system.

Keeping living plants in the field longer can support biological activity. Cover crops may fit some operations. Better water management can improve soil conditions.