Locavore News – Events by Elbert van Donkersgoed
Posted: March 26, 2010
Categories: News from Sustain Ontario
- Public Consultation Sessions re: Toronto Food Strategy
- Edible Cities: Can Urban Agriculture Feed Us All? March 29, Kitchener
- Nutrition Month Campaign, March 29, Woodstock
- Local Food Connection: Farmer Food Buyer Networking Event, March 29, London
- Community Food Hubs Seminar, April 7, Toronto
- Food Inc. Coming To Huron County, April 15, Goderich
- Walkable Local Foods: Local food buying clubs, April 27, Kitchener
- Savour Stratford Perth County Culinary Festival, September 25-26, Stratford
Perspectives on good food and farming
March 26, 2010
***NEW***Value Plus – Your Path to Farm Success coming to BC March 26th!
The global marketplace is no place to be selling an undifferentiated product. The price takers, those who don’t have the power to set prices for a specialty product, are vulnerable financially and are at the whim of supply and demand. Those who have diversified have added value to an existing product and will be able to ask more for that product or service. Quesnel, BC. Canadian Farm Business Management council website
***NEW***Public Consultation Sessions re Toronto Food Strategy
Public consultations on the Toronto Food Strategy are posted on the Food Connections website. If you are interested in attending any of the sessions, reply to contact name associated with the event, or contact Yusuf at the Toronto Food Policy Council: 416-338-7936 for further information.
Seedy Saturday, March 27, Cowichan (BC)
Come for a great selection of seeds from local seed vendors, as well as a chance to “seed swap”, meet local farmers and other “foodies”. We will also be hosting a workshop “Starting with Seeds”. Find out what crops are suitable for our island coastal climate and how and when to plant. Learn several methods of seed starting techniques and recipes for making different soil mixes. Details Cowichan (BC) Green Community.
Edible Cities: Can Urban Agriculture Feed Us All? March 29, Kitchener
The next event in the Roundtable’s Healthy Food System series at Kitchener Public Library is Monday, March 29, 2010, 7-9pm, at KPL Main Branch (85 Queen St N, Kitchener). Join us for an informative session on urban agriculture, including green roofs, community gardens, SPIN (small-plot, intensive) farming, urban homesteading, urban forests and wild harvesting, as we explore how urban agriculture can be a solution for creating sustainable cities and feeding us all. Healthy Food System Series.
Nutrition Month Campaign, March 29, Woodstock
A series of awareness events are being held over the next month in a push to encourage local residents to include fruits and vegetables in their diets. This year’s national Nutrition Month campaign focuses on educating people about the benefits of healthy eating, and how to plan and prepare healthy meals. On March 29 from 7 p.m. to 8:30 p.m., a free education session will be held upstairs at Hurley’s Independent Grocers in Ingersoll, featuring guest speaker Ann Slater of Ann Slater’s Organic Vegetable Farm. Slater said local produce doesn’t disappear when the weather turns cold. Woodstock Sentinel Review story
Local Food Connection: Farmer Food Buyer Networking Event, March 29, London
This event connects farmers and food buyers into the local food market place. It is for farmers interested in finding out more about selling into local food marketing opportunities. It will be of interest to chefs, caterers, food retailers, processors, distributors, food-service and institutional food providers looking to offer more local food. Details on the website of London Economic Development Corporation.
Greenbelt after Five Years Summit, March 31
Wednesday, March 31, 2010, Four Points By Sheraton 3530 Schmon Parkway, Thorold. Details.
Community Food Hubs Seminar, April 7, Toronto
Towards Sustainable Food: An Introduction to the BRASS Research Centre and the work of the BRASS Food Group with Alex Franklin and Julie Newton (Cardiff University). Wednesday, April 7, 2010, 10AM-11:30AM, Oakham House, 63 Gould Street in the Oakham Lounge (2nd Floor) (http://www.ryerson.ca/maps/) Community food hubs are increasingly being employed by sustainability advocates as a model for coordinating the supply of food from groups of local producers to consumers. As well as reducing food miles and providing new economic opportunities, food hubs can also be used to promote connections between consumers and proximate rural productive spaces.
Food Inc. Coming To Huron County, April 15, Goderich
A film coming into Goderich next month has drawn some attention from the president of the Huron Federation of Agriculture. Food Inc. is an Oscar-nominated film on the food industry in the U-S. Wayne Black hasn’t seen it yet – but reviews suggest it’s taking a pretty negative look at the industry. He thinks it may not be a bad idea for farmers to have a look at the film. Black says as long as consumers and farmers watch the film with an open mind – realising it has a specific slant on the industry – it could generate some good discussion.The screening of Food Inc. in Goderich on April 15th is sponsored by the Huron-Bruce NDP. CKNX Radio 920AM Wingham story
Walkable Local Foods: Local food buying clubs, April 27, Kitchener
Want to be able to walk to pick up local foods? It is possible! Uptown Waterloo has a food buying club that makes eating local convenient and fun for its 500 members. Your neighbourhood can have one too. Come find out how to set up a local food buying club in your neighbourhood. Tuesday, April 27, 2010 ,7-9pm, KPL Main Branch, 85 Queen St N, Kitchener. Healthy Food System Series.
Taking Root: 5th National Farm to Cafeteria Conference, May 17 to 19, Detroit
Farm to Cafeteria programs are taking root in schools, hospitals, colleges, daycares, and other institutions. Come to Detroit for the 5th National Farm to Cafeteria Conference to learn how you can start and scale up a program in your community. Join us for trips to local farms, school lunchrooms and processing facilities; workshops on issues such as federal and state policy, experiential education, sustainability and economic development and sessions geared towards youth, producers and food service providers. Conference website.
***NEW***2010 National Summit on a People-Centred Economy, May 30 – June 1
From cooperatives that have existed for more than a century, to the latest innovative social enterprises, citizen-led efforts to build a people-centred economy are rich in their history and diversity. In the face of recent economic turmoil and growing ecological crises, these approaches are more relevant than ever. The 2010 National Summit on a People-Centred Economy will be an unprecedented gathering of leaders and representatives of the community economic development, cooperative and social economy sectors to build a common agenda and mobilize action for a secure, sustainable economy that puts people and the planet first. Carleton University, Ottawa, Ontario. The Canadian CED Network conference website.
Workshop on Economics of Local Food Markets, New Jersey, June 15 & 16
Local Food Markets is a high-visibility issue area distinguished by a number of economic and marketing questions that demand research-based answers. The goal of the workshop is to highlight current research and bring together researchers, extension educators, private sector participants, and policy makers to exchange ideas and develop a common set of priority research and education needs for local food systems. The synthesis of ideas that result from this workshop will be disseminated in a variety of relevant outlets to encourage collaboration on local foods research and extension. The format will include two thematic sessions emphasizing rural and urban local food issues. Each session will begin with a presentation by an invited speaker selected for expertise in practical or theoretical aspects of local food markets. About the workshop.
Growing Power’s National-International Urban & Small Farm Conference, September 10 to 12, Milwaukee
Come to Milwaukee and help grow the good food revolution. Hosted by Growing Power—a national organization headed by the sustainable urban farmer and MacArthur Fellow Will Allen—this international conference will teach the participant how to plan, develop and grow small farms in urban and rural areas. Learn how you can grow food year-round, no matter what the climate, and how you can build markets for small farms. See how you can play a part in creating a new food system that fosters better health and more closely-knit communities. Conference website.
Savour Stratford Perth County Culinary Festival, September 25-26, Stratford
Renowned Canadian chefs, award-winning food writers, local farmers and artisans, exclusive Ontario VQA wines, craft brews and Stratford’s musical artists invite you to come join them to celebrate glorious food. Wander farmers markets in search of edible treasures, hands-on culinary demonstrations for adults and kids, outdoor musical concerts, street carnivals, theatre and an authentic Perth County BBQ. Continue with more concerts, street carnivals, culinary demonstrations and York Street Tasting with over 30 chefs paired with 30 local producers and VQA wines for an afternoon of sampling and imbibing in tents. It all happens in Stratford’s historic downtown shopping and garden district. Details on the Savour Stratford website.
Faith and the Future of the Countryside 2010, November 3 to 5, Swanwick, Derbyshire, UK
A major ecumenical conference exploring the sustainability of rural communities and their churches, and making recommendations for their future. This event will also mark 20 years from the publication of Faith in the Countryside and the completion of the Archbishop’s Commission on Rural Areas. Four conference themes of rural communities, economy, environment and rural church reflect the breadth of issues covered in the original report. Church of England website
AND in case you have time
McDonald’s Burger Domination: A Tale of Conflicting Maps
Looks like someone needs to go back to that 6th-grade map-reading lesson. A few days ago, Consumerist had a blog post showing an interesting map alleging to show the concentration of fast-food burger joints across the U.S. The Consumerist post is based off an “Infographic of the Day†post from the magazine Fast Company. The map appears to show a far less dominant market position for McDonald’s than many had assumed. So Good Blog proves that it still does.