The “locavore diet” originally focused on supporting small farms and protecting the environment, says the blog Triple Pundit, however, large grocery store chains and big box discount stores are now writing their own definitions of “local.”

Their definitions include:

• Grown and sold in the same state - Walmart
• Grown within an eight-hour drive of the store - Safeway
• Grown within one day’s drive - Whole Foods
• Produced either in that state or that region of the US - Krogers
• Grown in regions as broad as four or five states - Supervalu (Albertsons,...

Solano County growers will gather this afternoon in Fairfield to learn how they can participate in the Solano Grown direct marketing program, according to a press release distributed by the county's news office. The article was picked up by the Vacaville Reporter.

Solano Grown was initiated in February 2010 by the Solano County Agriculture Department and University of California Cooperative Extension with a $50,000 grant from the USDA Marketing Services Agency. Local farmers will benefit from a Solano Grown...

A webinar series produced by an organization of agricultural economists at Western land-grant universities is adding Spanish programming this month, according to a news release distributed today by Washington State University. Webinars are seminars on the Web.

The webinar series in English, called "Ag in Uncertain Times," began broadcasting in June 2009. Past programs programs have included "Operating in risky environments" and "Operating in the face of uncertain markets." All programs are recorded and available on the Western Extension...

The Zelinskis began working with Central Coast vineyards in 2003; a few years later they began making wine from vines they were managing, a process documented by Becky Zelinski, an aspiring photographer.

Their friends were envious, the newspaper reported. "The Zelinskis then wondered if their friends’ interest could translate into a do-it-yourself winemaking business,"...