Locavore News by Elbert van Donkersgoed
Posted: September 23, 2009
Categories: Food in the News / News from Sustain Ontario
Perspectives on good food and farming
Youth and the food agenda
More than 70 people crammed into a Toronto City Hall meeting room last week for the launch of what they believe to be the world’s first youth food policy council. The Toronto Youth Food Policy Council is now recruiting members who are interested in food policy, food security, urban agriculture, farming and related topics. Toronto Star story.
Wide array of foods to be found within 100 miles
Buying locally grown and raised food seems to be gaining in popularity if the number of people attending the second annual 100-Mile Diet event in Grafton Sept. 13. Northumberland Today story.
4.5 million apples lost
Provincial officials have signed a declaration recognizing The Blue Mountains, West Grey and Grey Highlands as disaster areas after F2 tornadoes struck the area on Aug. 20. Barrie Examiner story.
Miller Calls Charging For Grocery Shelf Space Legalised Extortion
The chair of the Parliamentary Agriculture Committee doesn’t like the idea of large grocery store chains charging for shelf space. Bruce-Grey-Owen Sound MP Larry Miller says suppliers often have to buy shelf space in the stores to get their products out to the consumer. CKNX Radio (Wingham) story.
Treatment too tough on produce and its growers
Fruit and vegetable grower association chair says marketplace abuse is growing. Association chair Brenda Lammens says the board recently agreed to document farmers’ stories and present them to the Ontario government later this year. Better Farming story.
Pork producers urged to consider domestic market
Local was the focus at a meeting last week organized by the political action committee of the Perth County Pork Producers. Speakers told the group to use Ontario’s large population base to bring profit back to the red meat sector. Better Farming story.
Local Food Going Mobile in Ontario
Ontario consumers will have the opportunity to taste and discover more about great Ontario food products available to them when the ‘There’s No Taste Like Home’ Mobile Educational Trailer visits their community. The trailer, outfitted with a fully equipped kitchen, will be used to promote buy local through cooking demonstrations and tasting opportunities at industry, community and school events across the province. The Ontario Cattle Feeders’ Association developed and operates the trailer with support from the Ontario Market Investment Fund program. Press Release on Canada Views.
Showing support for local farmers
The Food Partners Alliance of Simcoe County is a group of volunteers working across the region to mobilize support for the agricultural community. The theme of this education initiative is Bringing Local Food Home. The County of Simcoe is pleased to be a partner in this important initiative, to educate residents and build support for local farmers. The county looks forward to an upcoming delegation to the human services committee, where members of the alliance will present a proclamation for World Food Day on Oct. 16. Tony Guergis Warden, County of Simcoe writing in the Innisfil Scope, Innisfil, Ontario
Directory of FRUITS & VEGETABLES in ONTARIO Updated!
The REALLY Made In Canada ™ Canadian Business Directory has been updated to include the latest local listings for Fruits & Vegetables in Ontario, Canada. These local Ontario business listings are just some of the over one million Canadian businesses and organizations providing Canadian goods, Canadian services, and Canadian products included in this online “Made In Canada†directory. REALLY Made IN Canada website.
A new entrant primer
A new program launched by the Dairy Farmers of Ontario (DFO) is offering new producers assistance in getting into the dairy industry. DFO announced the New Entrant Quota Assistance Program (NEQAP) in April 2009 as part of the organization’s harmonized quota policies – a package that includes a number of changes to Ontario’s current quota policies. The goal of the program is to help new entrants get a start in the dairy business and establish a successful and viable farm in both the short and long term. Farmer.com story.
He cooks local, but this book is about to go global
While not many of this country’s food critics have eaten Jeff Crump’s cooking at the Ancaster Old Mill near Hamilton, his new book has already caught the eye of Michael Pollan, Ruth Reichl and other food celebs. The cookbook, which is as much of a manifesto as you can get from a sweet-tempered, laidback small-town Ontario guy, aims to shorten the food chain by shining the spotlight on Canadian farmers. For one, eating local is hardly a passing fad – it’s the way our species has eaten for 99 per cent of its history, he says. For another: “We’re fighting the good fight,†he adds. “We’re talking about food that’s produced fairly and sustainably – and that’s delicious. Who’s going to argue with that? Who’s going to say they don’t like good food?â€Globe and Mail story.
Warm delicious cookies, your way in just minutes!
Mix-ins have been a staple in many ice cream shops for years already, allowing customers near infinite possibilities in designing their own creamy confection. Now bringing comparable potential to the world of cookies is Toronto’s Sweet Flour Bake Shop, which lets patrons design their own baked treats and eat them fresh from the oven just two minutes later. More than 15,000 possible combinations face Sweet Flour customers, who begin by choosing the cookie dough base they’d like: original, peanut butter or oatmeal. Springwise Newsletter story
A-maze-ing recovery
Facing the decline of his family’s small farm on Wolfe Island, Garth Walker and his family were forced to get creative. An American small farm success story inspired Walker and his wife, Marianne, to turn their farm into a tourist attraction. “We went on the Internet and read about a small farm in Oregon that was doing a corn maze,” he said. “The first year they had 5,000 people come to visit. “We thought if they could get that many people, we could do that as well.” With that, the Walker family entered into the world of agritourism with the four-hectare Corn Maze on Wolfe Island, currently in its ninth season.Kingston Whig Standard story.
Ontario-Quebec deal should bear fruit for producers
A sweeping trade agreement between Ontario and Quebec is welcome news for agricultural producers across central Canada, farm leaders in both provinces say. The two provinces committed to working on several partnerships, including the introduction of legislation that would smooth the production and sale of agricultural goods and livestock. The two provinces will invite businesses, including farm groups, from both sides of the border to comment on proposed legislation that may have an impact on the province. AgriSuccess Express story.
To Grow the Greenbelt in Brant County
We call upon the Ministry of Municipal Affairs and Housing to include Brant County in the Greenbelt in order to protect prime farmland, wetlands and the Galt-Paris moraine and natural areas. We ask that the Ministry consider this request from residents, citizen groups and conservation bodies. Petition created by Sustainable Brant.