Food preservation, pesticides and pollinators highlight Kodiak Extension Week

The University of Alaska Fairbanks Cooperative Extension Service is planning a week of workshops and webinars in Kodiak this month. Topics include managing, cultivating and preserving Kodiak’s local food sources; livestock nutrition; attracting pollinators; using pesticides on invasive plants; and information about common garden pests. 

On Monday, Oct. 21, at 5:30 p.m., livestock nutritionist Jim Vinyard will discuss the basics of livestock nutrition, why it’s important and how to be more cost-effective when raising livestock in Alaska. The Zoom webinar will be free.

On Tuesday, Oct. 22, at 5:30 p.m., Anchorage entomologist and integrated pest management specialist Alex Wenninger will discuss Kodiak’s bees and what plants to grow to encourage pollinators. The Zoom webinar will be free.

On Wednesday, Oct. 23, from 5:30-7 p.m., Sarah Lewis, a Cooperative Extension health, home and family development agent, will lead a free Q&A on food preservation topics and test pressure canner gauges at the Kodiak Laboratory Aquarium & Touch Tank, 301 Research Court. A free presentation on using electric fencing to deter bears is also scheduled at the same time in the same location.  

On Thursday, Oct. 24, Lewis will offer three food preservation workshops.

• From noon-1:30 p.m., she will teach a free class outlining the most important food and public safety risks associated with food preservation, and how to minimize those risks. The class is designed for community, tribal and other organizations involved with community gardens or farms, food security and food sovereignty programs, food entrepreneurship, and other food-focused programming. It will be held at the Kodiak Seafood and Marine Science Center, 118 Trident Way. 
• From 2-3:30 p.m., Lewis will review the new homemade food sales regulations. Formerly called cottage foods regulations, the requirements have been substantially revised. It will be held at the Kodiak Seafood and Marine Science Center.
• From 5:30-8:30 p.m., residents can learn to make pickled and fermented vegetables at the Kodiak High School Culinary Arts Kitchen, 722 Mill Bay Road. The cost is $15.

On Friday, Oct. 25, there will be three presentations. 

• Lewis will introduce pressure canning and boiling water bath canning methods for safe home food preservation in a free class at the Kodiak Seafood and Marine Science Center, from noon-1:30 p.m.
• From 1-2:30 p.m., Gino Graziano, an invasive species specialist with the Cooperative Extension Service, will lead a free workshop on invasives and pesticides at the Kodiak Laboratory Aquarium & Touch Tank.
• From 5:30-8:30 p.m., Lewis will lead a workshop at Kodiak High School on dehydration and freeze-drying equipment and techniques for drying meats, vegetables, fruits and herbs. The cost is $15. 

On Saturday, Oct. 26, three more presentations are scheduled. 

• From 9 a.m.-1 p.m., Lewis will lead a workshop in which participants learn to safely preserve fruits and berries by using a boiling water bath or steam canner. The cost is $20. The class will be at Kodiak High School.
• From 11 a.m.-12:30 p.m., Joey Slowik, an integrated pest management specialist with Cooperative Extension, will lead a free workshop covering common pests growers see, such as thrips, aphids, whiteflies, root maggots, cutworms and slugs, and how to manage them. It will be held at the Kodiak Seafood and Marine Science Center.
• From 2-7 p.m., Lewis will teach how to preserve low-acid foods, such as salmon, crab, venison and carrots, using a pressure canner. The cost is $25. The class will be at Kodiak High School.

All ingredients and equipment for the classes will be supplied. 

Participants can use the online form to register. Those registering for a Zoom workshop will receive a link after registering. Waivers are available for youth under 16 accompanied by an adult and for tribal members. 

Cooperative Extension is offering these workshops in conjunction with the Kodiak Soil and Water Conservation District, the Kodiak Harvest Food Co-Op and Kodiak Archipelago Leadership Institute.

For more information, contact Alyssa Martin at the Kodiak Cooperative Extension office at 907-486-1503, aamartin6@alaska.edu. 

Accommodation requests related to a disability should be made five business days in advance to Martin. Language access services, such as interpretation or translation of vital information, will be provided free of charge to individuals with limited English proficiency upon request to amnorris2@alaska.edu.

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