FARM SPOTLIGHT: Bee Cha
PSF: Let's start with your name, title, and what you do for WSU.
Bee: My name is Bee Cha. My title is Hmong Outreach Specialist with Small Farms Team. Or Hmong Small Farms Coordinator.
PSF: We're here in Renton, but you do work throughout the state.
Bee: Yes, but I focus on King County, Snohomish County, and Pierce County.
PSF: As I understand it, there's a strong Hmong farming community in the Puget Sound region, is that correct? Are there many farms?
Bee: There are about 80 farms. And each farm typically consists of a wife, a husband, and usually two kids, so maybe 320 farmers give or take.
PSF: So there is a strong family component.
Bee: Yeah, the kids start early, when they are young. For instance, the kids working on the video project are around 15 years old, in high school.
PSF: Tell me more about that video project.
Bee: Traditionally, Hmong people aren't set up for classroom learning. They don't have that type of mentality. So, I am trying to use a different medium to teach them. I do workshops, I put on classes, but not a lot of people show up. So I started thinking, maybe we should try something different and see how it goes.
PSF: How many kids are involved in the project?
Bee: 15
PSF: What are you trying to document?
Bee: The kids can do any project they want. Once they graduate from the class, we are hoping to hire them to do some real work with WSU.
PSF: How are you going to showcase their work? Will it be available for the public?
Bee: Yeah, it will be available for the public. The DVDs should be ready by the end of June.
PSF: Is there any information on the website? On WSU's website?
Bee: Yeah, we have a report on the website.
PSF: How long have you been working for WSU?
Bee: About two years. I can't complain! I like my work. It seems like people are happy with my work.
PSF: Do you have a vision or something you really want to accomplish in your job?
Bee: Yeah, I really want to encourage the Hmong farmers to keep records. They want to farm and I want to convince them they need to have a business concept. Your planting schedule, harvest schedule, those kind of things, they have to learn to keep records, in some kind of way, so they know, at the end of the day what they did, what their profits are. The business model isn't the only reason to keep records. If a farm gets hit by a storm or a flood, they have no way of proving their losses.
PSF: You mean when they work with the government?
Bee: Right, like after the floods in 2006, for example.
PSF: Have you been involved in some of the community-based recovery efforts? Like the dahlia tuber donations?
Bee: Yeah, 2006 people were really helpful. We got about $50,000 cash donated, and about $140,000 worth of dahlia tubers.
PSF: That's good community support. I remember seeing the emails asking for tuber donations, who donated? Other farmers?
Bee: No, local gardeners who grow dahlias. Sometimes they donated three four year-old dahlias that had HUGE root balls. I did most of the work myself! One day, we had the whole WSU office go out and help get the dahlias. Everybody took a day off and chose a spot where they could help.
PSF: What can the community do to help support what you're trying to do?
Bee: Well, I think the community could be more understanding: where the Hmong farmers came from, how they got here, read the stories and the history. We're here not because we chose to be here, we're here because we were recruited by the Americans in the Vietnam War. And when the Americans left, we tagged along. That doesn't mean we're not glad to be here, but we want to be recognized for what we've done. What we've sacrificed. When you go to the farmers market, understand that we are Hmong, not Laotian, not Vietnamese. I think the community needs to be supportive, to be open. The famers might seem a little odd, how they do their displays, they might not have the best signs, but the markets need to be patient and accept that's the way they are. They can change; we just need to educate them.
PSF: Sometimes people react negatively to what they're not used to.
Bee: Yeah, sometimes when people see different products, they don't want to buy it. Or sometimes, people say "oh, I won't buy it because it's from China!" Or, "I hear they spray all of their products." NO! Their products are very natural. So, don't look at their face and say "oh, they're different, I won't buy their products."
PSF: Are there any other ways that the community can help out? I guess look for the video coming out at the end of June.
Bee: Well, that project has nothing to do with the Hmong people, but it's done by Hmong students. It's a pure science project. We're explaining the lifecycle of the flea beetle. What it does to the crops and how to prevent flea beetles. We want to use video because it's easier to understand than a paper, or a pamphlet.
PSF: Are there any good books on Hmong culture that you would recommend to our readers?
Bee: There is an online archive with lots of articles about the Hmong people, including masters thesis and scholarly articles.
PSF: Anything else you want readers to know about?
Bee: I just want to emphasize that when you see a Hmong farmer at the farmers market, they are just another farmer, another family trying to make a living. Don't pass judgment. Buy from them. They grow really great products, vegetables and flowers.
COALITION UPDATES: Meet our newest staff member, Alex Moore
I am really excited to be at Cascade Harvest Coalition. My love for agriculture started in college (where I studied bison and cattle poop) and grew through a masters degree in South Africa and an apprenticeship on the UC Santa Cruz farm. The apprenticeship led to a job at the University teaching and designing curricula for garden-based learning programs.Teaching was really fun and rewarding, but after awhile I felt out of touch with farmers. So, I jumped on a bike and started riding. For 10 days I rode from farm to farm, interviewing farmers, sleeping in furrows, and eating bull testicles (ask me about that one sometime!). I documented the trip in radio, video, print and on the web.
While the publicity ride was meant to highlight issues facing local farmers, it also landed me a new job as Regional Manager of the Growers Collaborative, a farm-to-institution distribution company. After building the sales and capacity of the Growers Collaborative and making more than a few mistakes I decided that I needed an education in business. So I enrolled in an MBA program at Bainbridge Graduate Institute. And now I'm here - loving Seattle.
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UPCOMING EVENTS: Food Lust!
June 26 - Special screening of “Food, Inc.” 7pm at the Egyptian Theater, sponsored by Whole Foods MarketJune 27 - “Chef in Residence” kicks-off at University District Farmers Market with Jason Franey from Canlis, 10am-12pm
June 27-28 - Celebrate 100 years of history at the “Down on the Farm Celebration” at Wilcox Farm
June 28 - Berry Spectacular Celebration marking the 10 year anniversary of the West Seattle Market
July 4 - Time to BBQ!
July 13 - Tilth Farm Walk at Let Us Farm in Oakville, WA 12:30-4pm
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RECIPE OF THE WEEK: Garlic Scape Pesto
Garlic scapes are the twisty, bright green stalks of spring garlic, often topped with a bud that resembles a Russian Orthodox church "onion" dome.Garlic scapes can be HOT and pungent with garlicky goodness, so be careful before spooning too much onto your pasta. Like basil pesto, you can freeze this concoction for later use...maybe in the winter as a reminder of spring.
Ingredients:
- 1 pound garlic scapes
- 1 cup grated parmesan cheese
- Olive oil (about 1/2 to 1 cup)
- Pine nuts if available
