Guest blogger Joel Carlin writes:
CNN published a story this week on Tony Thompson, a farmer in Windom, MN (just 75 miles southwest of St. Peter). Thompson is a super-fun guy who is very excited about keeping up the family tradition of farming in a way that is kinder to nature and consumers. Tony has met with many people in St. Peter and was a big fan of the 2009 Nobel Conference on water. He co-sponsors the annual Agroecology Summit, which brings together farmers, agrobusinesspeople, scientists, non-profits, and agency personnel. (For more information on the Summit, see the 2009 flier.) The 2009 Summit is referenced in the CNN article — Thompson invited a Louisiana shrimper to the Summit to bring home the impacts that Minnesota farming has on Gulf fishing and shrimping. The shrimper, Dean Blanchard, couldn’t attend but did send up a crate of shrimp.