Farmers and Food Buyers Hook Up at Local Foods Matchmaker Event”Speed dating” event equals economic development for VermontRandolph, Vt – The first Vermont Foods Matchmaker took place at the Three Stallion Inn in Randolph on October 29th. The event brought together over 40 buyers, from the state’s largest supermarkets to its finest restaurants as well as non profit groups such as the Vermont Foodbank, to talk one-on-one with Vermont food producers interested in finding new customers. It was a chance for food producers to explore their options in wholesale or indirect markets, while buyers learned their own options for sourcing closer to home.The Agency of Agriculture also found enthusiastic partners with their co-sponsors the Vermont Grocers’ Association, Vermont Fresh Network and Vermont Hospitality Council.”The idea for hosting this event began to form during a working day devoted to exploring ways to get more local foods into state government facilities this spring,” explained Helen Labun Jordan, with the Vermont Agency of Agriculture. “We heard from many buyers that they would like to find more local options, they just needed an efficient way to have those conversations with interested producers.””Today’s event was super. The topics were relevant and the energy was tangible. Buyers and sellers were connecting-a number of new relationships were formed. I commend the VT Agency of Agriculture for spearheading this event. Statewide collaborations like this are essential to developing a viable local food economy,” commented Meghan Sheradin, Executive Director of the Vermont Fresh Network.”The timing of this event is perfect considering the increased interest in purchasing local,” said Jim Harrison, President of the Vermont Grocers’ Association. “The forum provided an excellent opportunity for our supermarkets, Co-ops and individual markets to make new contracts and to meet new suppliers.””Vermont’s agriculture and food industries are an important sector of our economy. The Vermont Specialty Food Association estimates there are nearly 400 food-related companies in Vermont generating $1 billion in revenues annually,” said Mike Quinn, Vermont Commissioner of Economic Development. “Providing producers with an opportunity to sell to these companies is a way to strengthen both sectors.”The Matchmaker model, which is essentially speed dating, has many advantages for building business relationships. Sellers sign up for 10 minute sessions with buyers, based on a pre-published participant list. Each seller gets a full 10 minutes to make their pitch, so they have time to explain advantages of purchasing local product and address concerns like distribution, volume and price.Bill Suhr, owner of Champlain Orchards commented, “It’s a rare opportunity to have a mix of buyers and sellers in one place with time set aside to focus on local foods. Setting up a meeting with just one of these potential buyers could have taken my business all day. Now we’re all in a room and the potential momentum is incredible.”More than 40 buyers and over 70 sellers participated in the event. The response was greater than anticipated and the event was met with overwhelming enthusiasm.”Based on the great response we received this year, we will certainly look into making this an annual event. The goal was to create opportunities for farmers, food producers and buyers to contract with each other to get more local foods in more outlets,” said Deputy Secretary of Agriculture Anson Tebbetts. “The key is to put more local foods on more dinner plates to support Vermont farmers and the Vermont economy.”
Farmers and Food Buyers Hook Up at Local Foods Matchmaker Event
January 1, 2021
4. Deshaun Watson, Texans Watson led the Texans to the AFC South title for the second straight season, and his numbers are almost identical to last season. In the first round against Buffalo, Watson has a chance to erase the sting of last year’s wild card clunker in the loss to the Colts and set up a rematch against Baltimore and Lamar Jackson. That is a continuation of what was a spectacular college rivalry. The Ravens, however, won the regular-season matchup 41-7. Can the Texans rise to that level with Watson? 5. Aaron Rodgers, Packers Rodgers needs a second Super Bowl ring to silence the critics. Green Bay finished 13-3 this season and will have a first-round bye, but it will likely face New Orleans or Seattle in that game. The Packers have not had a first-round twice under Rodgers. The first led to a shocking loss to New York in 2011-12. The second was a win against Dallas in 2014-15. Rodgers had a 95.4 quarterback rating under first-year coach Matt LaFleur. He’s 36, so it’s fair to wonder how many more opportunities like this are left. 6. Ryan Tannehill, Titans Tannehill is an unrestricted free agent next season, so he’s out to prove he can be a franchise quarterback — a career-long quest that could land him on a third team in eight seasons. Tannehill got hot in the second half of the season for Tennessee. He threw two or more TDs in nine of the Titans’ last 10 games. Tennessee is just a 5.5-point underdog in New England. Could he be the one to end the Patriots’ run like we all predicted in August? (Getty Images) https://images.daznservices.com/di/library/sporting_news/9a/9d/deshaun-watson-010220-getty-ftrjpg_1w6j2ytxmpvrj1xqb5924p6i2k.jpg?t=1729841591&w=500&quality=80 (Getty Images) https://images.daznservices.com/di/library/sporting_news/ba/55/jimmy-garoppolo-110419-getty-ftrjpg_1tt8iwg55oen013kxl4jimvvq8.jpg?t=942559719&w=500&quality=80 (Getty Images) https://images.daznservices.com/di/library/sporting_news/cd/f4/patrick-mahomes-101319-getty-ftr_119qz7c7v9krc1x2rh5vc3kp0h.jpg?t=-960293051&w=500&quality=80 7. Patrick Mahomes, Chiefs Last year’s MVP led the Chiefs to the AFC championship game in his first playoff run. They will be expected to close the deal this year knowing they got the bye after finishing the regular season on a six-game win streak. Mahomes is healthy, but his numbers weren’t off the charts during that win streak with the Chiefs finding ways to win without being so reliant on their quarterback. New England likely will visit Arrowhead Stadium in two weeks. A loss there would be more damning for Andy Reid, but the hype around Mahomes would be dialed back a bit, too.8. Lamar Jackson, Ravens We mentioned Jackson will likely be the MVP, and he’s taken the league by storm with a season that included 3,127 passing yards and 36 TDs with 1,206 rushing yards and seven TDs. It’s an unbelievable year that continues with home-field advantage, and Jackson can show what he learned from last year’s wild-card loss to the Chargers. There is always pressure to reach the Super Bowl. Jackson often gets compared to Michael Vick, who was 2-3 as a starter in the postseason. Jackson will do better than that, but it starts with getting that first playoff win. There is more pressure on Jackson than the next quarterback on this list simply because expectations are higher. 9. Josh Allen, Bills Allen can relate to that. He was in the same draft class as Jackson, and he has the Bills back in the playoffs for the second time in three years. He’s proven his worth with a 15-12 record as a starter and led Buffalo to a 10-win season. The Bills have not won a playoff game since 1995, however, and Allen is tasked with breaking a string of five consecutive postseason losses. The feeling that Buffalo is just be happy to be there won’t last forever. 1. Jimmy Garoppolo, 49ers San Francisco quarterbacks are held to a higher standard in the playoffs. The 49ers have been the No. 1 seed eight times – and they won Super Bowls with Joe Montana three times and Steve Young once in that spot. The 1987-88 divisional round loss to Minnesota is still talked about. The other three bye-week QBs have MVP credentials, assuming Jackson wins the award. Garoppolo can prove he belongs with the big boys and follow the lead of those immortal San Francisco QBs. 2. Kirk Cousins, Vikings This is Year 2 of that infamous three-year, $84 million contract, and Cousins has yet to win the NFC North or a playoff game — which Case Keenum accomplished in 2017. The Vikings are stuck on the road as eight-point underdogs against the Saints — the largest spread of wild-card weekend. Cousins does not have to lead Minnesota to the Super Bowl. But if the Vikings get blown out here, the same old questions are coming in the final year of his deal. 3. Carson Wentz, Eagles Wentz is making his first playoff start, and this comes in the shadow of the last two playoff runs with Nick Foles. Of the 12 quarterbacks in the playoffs, Wentz was the highest draft pick at No. 2. He’s 32-24 as a starter, but the results have been up and down this season. A victory against the playoff-seasoned Seahawks would keep the boo birds off Wentz’s back, but at 27 years old it’s time to make that happen.
All 12 of the quarterbacks in the 2020 NFL playoffs have something to prove. Whether it’s a six-time Super Bowl winner like 42-year-old Tom Brady, an electrifying probable first-time MVP in 22-year-old Lamar Jackson or any of the quarterbacks in between, a championship would silence the critics. Seven of the quarterbacks in this year’s playoff field have yet to win a playoff game. Here are those quarterbacks, sorted by age from youngest to oldest:QBsAGEMVPPLAYOFFSSUPER BOWLLamar Jackson2200-10-0Josh Allen2300-00-0Deshaun Watson2400-10-0Patrick Mahomes2411-10-0Carson Wentz2700-00-0Jimmy Garoppolo2800-00-0Kirk Cousins3100-10-0Ryan Tannehill3100-00-0Russell Wilson3108-51-1Aaron Rodgers3629-71-0Drew Brees4008-71-0Tom Brady42330-106-3Knowing that, Sporting News ranked the 12 playoff quarterbacks by those with the most to prove against those who have less on the line in these playoffs. NFL POWER RANKINGSEvery playoff team’s real chances to win Super Bowl 54 (Credit: Getty Images) https://images.daznservices.com/di/library/sporting_news/7c/bc/russell-wilson-getty-ftr-110319_kyalf3ltes413htqeef9n4nz.jpg?t=869938310&w=500&quality=80 10. Russell Wilson, Seahawks Wilson is in the first year of a four-year, $140 million deal, and now he’s tasked with leading another Super Bowl run. It won’t be easy out of the wild-card slot, and a win against Philadelphia would set up a rubber-match with the 49ers. Seattle has not advanced to the NFC championship game since the 2014-15 Super Bowl run that ended at the goal line against New England. Can Wilson get another shot with the return of Marshawn Lynch? 11. Drew Brees, Saints Brees’ contact is up at the end of the season, and he will turn 41 during the playoffs. He’s 8-7 all time in the postseason, and the Saints have endured back-to-back heart-breaking playoff losses the last two seasons. Brees has so many NFL records, but keep in mind he was a snub on the NFL 100 team. Another Super Bowl run out of the wild-card slot would prove that list wrong and perhaps keep Brees in New Orleans for another year or two. 12. Tom Brady, Patriots Brady has nothing left to prove in New England. He’s 30-10 all time in the postseason — an absurd stat no matter how many times you look at it. The six-time Super Bowl winner also will see his contract end at the end of the season, and it’s not unfathomable he ends up somewhere else if the Patriots decide to move on. New England lost three of its last five games and did not beat any of the other AFC division winners in the regular season. Can Brady pull off a run outside of the comforts of Gillette Stadium?
“We don’t play as good as our rivals, that’s why we lost,” said a downbeat Tabarez after the 2-0 defeat.France went through after goals from Raphael Varane and Antoine Griezmann, after a mistake by goalkeeper Fernando Muslera, secured victory.“The boys really gave everything, but France were able to control the match very well,” added Tabarez.“After the second goal, there was a huge gap between the teams.”Asked about his frustration at going out of the tournament, the 71-year-old said it should be stressed how far La Celeste had gone in the tournament compared to others.“There are many countries that belong to the world of the footballing elite but left the tournament before us.”On his future, Tabarez said: “I still have a contract but I am not going to speak about this, it’s not for me to decide.”Asked about Muslera’s howler, Tabarez said simply: “Only those who don’t do anything don’t make mistakes.”0Shares0000(Visited 1 times, 1 visits today) 0Shares0000Oscar Tabarez saw his Uruguay side slip to a 2-0 loss to France to bow out of the World Cup © AFP / Martin BERNETTINIZHNY NOVGOROD, Russian Federation, Jul 6 – A disappointed Oscar Tabarez conceded that his Uruguay side were second best in their World Cup quarter-final loss to France on Friday, which saw the European side progress to the last four.The veteran coach, who has been in charge of Uruguay for 12 years in his second spell as national coach, also refused to comment on his future when asked by reporters.