‘225 Dine’: Organics still hard to come by; new farm in the mix

There’s no question that interest in locally grown produce is at an all-time high in Baton Rouge. The three locations of the 15-year-old Red Stick Farmers Market host a steady stream of new patrons along with committed regulars who plan their menus according to what’s in the fields. Our progress on this front is palpable—we’d hold our local market up to any city’s—but what we still lack in Louisiana is substantial organic produce. The few organic farmers who have sold at the Red Stick Farmers Market over the years have largely faded or moved to other communities. Moreover, organic participation in Louisiana overall is woefully behind other states. Farming authorities here have generally told farmers flirting with the idea that going organic is too hard in a region with near-tropical climates, scads of bugs, and other heat-related challenges. Read the rest of this story by Maggie Heyn Richardson as well as the rest of this week’s 225 Dine e-newsletter here.