Voted BEST LOCALLY GROWN FOOD 2010 and BEST LOCAL GROWER 2011, 2012, 2013, & 2014 byNewport Life Magazinereaders and BEST LOCAL MARKET 2010 BEST PICNIC PROVISIONS 2012 and FAVORITE FARM STAND 2014 & 2015 by readers in the MercuryLove Awards and named RI’s BEST AGRICULTURAL EXPEDITION 2009 in Yankee Magazine and RI’s BEST BERRY PICKING 2009 in Rhode Island Monthly magazine
Sweet Berry Farm’s Tuesday Night Summer Supper Concerts named RI’s BEST FAMILY PICNIC 2011
and Susanna’s Ice Cream named BEST ICE CREAM IN RI inRhode Island Monthly’s 2010 Best of RI Awards and called BEST ICE CREAM IN NEW ENGLAND inYankeemagazine, July/August 2011
A red-tailed hawk surveys the territory at Sweet Berry Farm—Photo by Elona Elms
In accordance with GAP guidelines: No pets allowed at the Farm.
The Rhode Island Agricultural Partnership sponsored a Statewide Agricultural Forum on the Future of Rhode Island Agriculture at the University of Rhode Island Center for Biotechnology and Life Sciences, on November 9, 2010, to review the draft of the 5-Year Strategic Plan for Rhode Island Agriculture.
Jan Eckhart of Sweet Berry Farm is Steering Committee Chair.
The Strategic Plan is based on input from farmers in three listening sessions and a survey conducted in spring 2010. It provides a set of specific recommendations for strengthening the viability and profitability of Rhode Island farms. The recommendations cover key areas, including improved services and technical support for farmers; marketing and product distribution; agricultural land availability, protection and regulations; and state and municipal policies and regulations related to agriculture.
The Strategic Plan will provide farmers, state and local governments, and organizations and individuals who support local agriculture with a coordinated plan to strengthen farming in Rhode Island. It will help shape the State Guide Plan and Local Comprehensive Plans that affect all farm operations in the state.
To learn more about the Strategic Plan, view all comments received, and access the the document itself, click here. For a detailed report of the forum, see the Providence Journal edition of November 13, 2010.
