DEL MAR: Thinking 'green' at the county fair

July Fourth attendance sets record

By RENEE HAINES - For the North County Times | Saturday, July 5, 2008 6:19 PM PDT ∞

DEL MAR ---- From going green at home to eco-friendly string bikinis, the focus was on environmental awareness Saturday at the San Diego County Fair.

Michelle Portuguez, a merchandising and marketing major at Palomar College in San Marcos, directed an Eco Fashion Show at the one-day Enviro-Fair at the Del Mar Fairgrounds.

"Organic's very big right now," Portuguez said. "I would love for everything we wear to be made from organic or recycled materials."

Portuguez, a summer intern at the fair, persuaded seven fellow interns to model bikinis made of eco-friendly bamboo and soybean fibers, dresses made of hemp, and recycled shirts, jeans and handbags.

 Eco-friendly clothing from Reverie Boutique in downtown Escondido won applause from fairgoers, as did recycled clothing and handbags from Retrofit Designs and Salvation Sacks of San Diego.

The models-for-a-day showed off the Reverie line to surfer/singer Jack Johnson's song, "The 3 R's" (Reduce, Reuse, Recycle).

The three R's also were the topic of presentations by the California Center for Sustainable Energy and brochures handed out by Enviro-Fair vendors.

Sara Snow, host of the Discovery Channel's "Get Fresh with Sara Snow" television show, urged fairgoers to shop organic at farmers markets.

"When you go to the farmers market, you're able to ask the farmer how he grows his food," Snow said. "You can't do that in a grocery store."

Snow said it's important to ask questions at the markets because many small farmers are growing organic crops, but can't afford the high cost of obtaining a U.S. Department of Agriculture "certified organic" certificate.

The San Diego County Water Authority's Teresa Penunuri was handing out prizes even for wrong answers to how much water can be conserved by cutting a shower short. (Answer: 2 1/2 gallons per minute).

"We're just here to teach people about water conservation," she said. "The most important thing is that they learn something."

Next door at the fair's daily flower show, several fairgoers were stopping to smell the prize-winning rose of Dwyn Daniels Robbie of Del Mar, who won "best of day" honors for most fragrant flower.

Other best of day winners Saturday included John Gilruth of Fallbrook for orchids and Alan and Geri McCarron of Cardiff-by-the-Sea for gladiolus.

Best of day honors for medium and large dahlias went to Francisco Sanchez of Del Mar and Ciro Sanchez of Encinitas, respectively.

Long lines at the entry gates Saturday marked the closing weekend of the county fair.

A total of 87,176 visitors attended this year's fair July Fourth, beating the one-day attendance records set for 2007 (85,449) and 2006 (86,262), fair officials reported.

County fair crowds have yet to beat the one-day attendance record set a decade ago, when 101,867 fans crowded the fairgrounds on July 3, 1998, when Van Halen performed.