Tag Archives: UBC Farm

UBC Farm’s 2010 FarmAde Event

Today is UBC Farm‘s annual FarmAde Open House and I’m heading over. I’ve been out to the farm a few times and this time I’m going to take in one of the farm tours, rain or shine.

Friday, September 17th
3:00 – 5:00 pm
UBC Farm Shuttle Bus Map

There’s lots going on, including:

  • Live music
  • A BBQ for everyone, literally (vegan, veggie and beef burgers)
  • Produce market of farm-fresh corn, other veggies and fruits
  • Adult entertainment (beer garden featuring local beer and a beer-making workshop)
  • Supervised kid’s area with face painting
  • Farm Tours and more… (details)

If you can’t make it out to the farm today, you can still take a video tour below to learn what happens there and why efforts to save UBC Farm continue to be important.  We’re not out of the woods yet in the battle between short-term real estate value vs. long-term, food security value.

An Evening with a Lunatic Farmer

In collaboration with UBC Farm, Barbara-Jo’s Books to Cooks is pleased to announce a fund raising evening with Joel Salatin, holistic farmer, author, educator and activist. Join them for an educational, humourous and inspiring evening with Joel as he discusses his family’s logical, “beyond organic”, sustainable approach to farming, and his new book, The Sheer Ecstasy of Being a Lunatic Farmer.

Monday, September 27, 2010 @ 7:00 pm
H.R. MacMillan Building, 2357 Main Mall, UBC  Map

On Polyface Farm in the Shenandoah Valley, Virginia, Joel and his family nurture a non-industrial, food production oasis. Instead of conventional methods of farming that include overcrowding, medication and processed feeds, the Salatins debunk all conventional food production with their refreshing paradigm that respects the natural physiology of animals, the land, the rhythms of nature and human connectedness to it all. A key personality in documentaries such as Fresh and Food Inc. and in Michael Pollan’s book, The Omnivore’s Dilemma, Joel has been instrumental in supporting a new sustainable food production movement.

Tickets for this event are $45 and will include a signed copy The Sheer Ecstasy of Being a Lunatic Farmer. Proceeds of ticket sales benefit UBC Farm. Tickets are available exclusively through Barbara-Jo’s Books to Cooks. Please call 604-688-6755 for more information and to purchase tickets.

Follow Local Ingredients on the Way to Being Dinner

The 100-Mile Diet Society of Vancouver has launched a fun, short, animated film, Home Is Where the Food Is, which follows every ingredient of a delicious and simple meal to its source.

“I visited a dairy farm, a mill/bakery, and a busy marina, all on Vancouver Island, and all within my 100-mile radius. I also spent time in the kitchen with Tina Biello, a busy working gal who makes time for her food, from growing her own veggies to learning about the production of local food for her favourite family recipes,” says animator Jody Kramer. “My film will make you feel hungry.”

The 100-Mile Diet Society and the Centre for Sustainable Food Systems at UBC Farm have joined forces to explore how sustainable agriculture can help reduce climate change and nurture the environment.

Michael Pollan at UBC Farm

I had a chance to take in the UBC Farm Fundraiser with Michael Pollan last weekend, a well attended event for all ages.

Not yet having read In Defense of Food — my newly autographed copy is now on the top of my stack of 20+ must-reads — it was interesting and novel to hear his abbreviated version of how we’ve come to be in this place where we need, as he put it, an investigative journalist to tell us what and how to eat.

It IS more than a little odd that in a few short decades we as a society have moved so far away from the land and any sense of the source of our food.

During his humorous and sometimes tongue in cheek presentation, I was gratified to hear Pollan talk about many of the things that I’ve come to believe about the value of choosing more local food options — even without me having read his book:

  1. Eating food, real food not “food-like edible products,” has a huge impact on our overall health.
  2. Farmers markets build community. Research shows people have 10x more conversations at a farmers market than in a grocery store. I have experienced this on a regular basis.
  3. Many worldwide issues are addressed in shifting to a local food focus, including reducing greenhouse gasses and carbon footprint, reducing health issues, creating sustainable farming…
  4. And my favourite, no one idea will be the solution to our ills, we need to use multiple approaches: urban farming, organic, sustainable farming practices, innovation, etc.

I don’t believe in having a narrow approach or that the same approach will be right for everyone (i.e. I am not, and do not believe I ever could be, vegan). It’s not about finding THE answer, it’s about finding AN answer. And another one, and another one.

Now I’m really looking forward to sinking my teeth into In Defense of Food

UBC Farm 2009 Season Kick-Off Event

The Centre for Sustainable Food Systems at UBC Farm and the 100-Mile Diet Society are celebrating the Farm’s first market of the year and the official launch of the Vancouver 100-Mile Diet Foodshed Map.

Saturday, June 13
9:00 am – 1:00 pm
UBC Farm, 6182 South Campus Road Map

Mark Bomford, UBC Farm Program Coordinator and Kelly Kuryk, Foodshed Project Coordinator will be speaking about the unique collaboration between the 100-Mile Diet Society and the Centre for Sustainable Food Systems at UBC Farm, synthesizing action, research and education.

As the only working farmland within the city of Vancouver, the UBC Farm is an urban agrarian gem, featuring a landscape of unique beauty and productivity. Currently, it is highlighting how sustainable agricultural techniques can reduce the negative impact of the food system on climate change and the environment.

Everyone welcome! Fun for the entire family, including farm tours, live music, a 100-mile pancake breakfast cooked by local chefs, fresh, local produce, garden tool sharpening (bring your tools!), bike tune-ups, local artisans, baked goods, children’s activities, and more.

UBC Farm Fundraiser with Michael Pollan

Not to be missed, the final in a series of six Provenance: You are What You Eat, is “UBC Farm Fundraiser with Michael Pollan” of the bestseller, “In Defense of Food”.

Saturday, June 6 at 1:00 p.m.

The series concludes with an afternoon presentation and book signing with author Michael
Pollan, on tour with the paperback edition of “In Defense of Food”. At this fundraiser for UBC Farm, Michael will share his manifesto for eating: “Eat Food. Not too much. Mostly plants.”

Guests will receive a copy of “In Defense of Food” and will have the opportunity to have books signed by Michael.

“Understanding the Provenance of Produce”

Don’t miss out on Part 4/6 of Provenance: You are What You Eat, co-hosted by FarmFed and Barbara Jo’s Books for Cooks.

Wednesday, May 20, 6pm
Mark Bomford, Program Coordinator for the Centre of Sustainable Food Systems at UBC Farm, will be the special guest this evening. Mark has been immersed in creating sustainable food systems for the last 14 years and has worked in various roles including growing food and managing food-centred organizations both locally and internationally.

Learn tips for buying sustainable produce and taste delicious, seasonal canapés complimented by vinaroon wines.

“Understanding the Provenance of Meat”

It’s not too late to get in on a stellar line up of presentations on sustainable food systems, brought to you by FarmFed and Barbara Jo’s Books to Cooks.

Understanding the Provenance of Meat, session 3 of 6 in the Provenance: You Are What You Eat series gets underway on May 5th at 6:00 pm.

At tonight’s event, Anthony Nicalo will be joined by Jason Pleym, founder of Two Rivers Specialty Meats, a purveyor of fine meats that are free of antibiotics, hormones and chemical free additives. While you may already know that all meat is not created equal, Jason will shed light on what is really going on in grocers and butcher shops.

For details on all the remaining sessions, including the big wrap-up UBC Farm Fundraiser with internationally renowned Michael Pollan, visit FarmFed online.

To purchase tickets call Books to Cooks at 604.688.6755.

I can’t make the event tonight, but if you attend, let me know how it goes.

Community Supported Agriculture (CSA)

In my attempt to purchase organic produce whenever possible, I often come up against two things: produce flown in from Mexico (not exactly environmentally sensitive) or prices that necessitate re-mortgaging the condo to afford it (not tempting). Finding a good-quality, consistent source of organic produce can be a challenge.

I was very interested, therefore, to learn of a new-to-me concept in produce: Community Supported Agriculture. Instead of a small farm only selling their harvest through farmers markets or retail outlets, they divide the harvest into manageable parcels (for example, 60 shares) and pre-sell the parcels to the local community. Harvest shares are often delivered to a pick-up point each week.

Many of these farms are family-owned and several are certified organic. Harvests usually begin in May, run through October (18-20 weeks), and shares are approximately $500-600 for the entire season. Some farms even offer egg shares, as well, for an additional fee.

So, if this concept is as attractive to you as I found it, take a look at the following farms and see if CSA is for you:

Nathan Creek Organic Farm is in Langley and offers many drop off locations throughout Metro Vancouver. The farm expanded last year and now offers 100 shares.

Klippers Organics Farm is in the Okanagan but offers four pick up locations around Vancouver. This is the farm’s first year with a CSA program.

UBC Farm also offers organic produce and is entering its fifth season. Pick up is at the farm.