Regardless of this fact, the Canadian government has supported the biotechnology industry for over twenty years by allowing them to test grow their seed in Canada and by giving the public the message that GE foods are safe to eat. Furthermore, the government has never agreed to mandatory labeling of GE products, thus giving consumers no visible choice in what they eat.

Well, biotech firms beware! A grassroots campaign to declare municipalities and regional districts GE free is growing across British Columbia.

Although still in its infancy, the movement is receiving widespread support from farmers, environmentalists, food democracy advocates, organic businesses, Greenpeace and the Council of Canadians. Inspired by the story of Saskatchewan farmer Percy Schmeiser who was successfully sued by the large biotech firm Monsanto for illegally growing their patented seed on his land when in fact it had freely blown into his ditch and self-propagated, movement supporters are working municipality by municipality to keep this same story from happening to BC farmers.

The idea of GE free crop zones is to keep regions free of any sort of propagation or cultivation of genetically engineered organisms by individuals, farms or agricultural corporations.

Here in the West Kootenays, a dedicated group of individuals including Aimee Watson, Jon Steinman, Sandi McCreight, Kim Charlesworth and Andy Morel have begun to organize a GE Free Kootenays Campaign with the ultimate goal of having Regional Districts and municipalities pass resolutions defining their areas as GE Free. These resolutions would in essence be a red flag to anyone interested in growing GE seeds in the designated area; it clearly demonstrates they are unwelcome.

On July 10th, they held their first public event to launch the Campaign and the turn out was excellent. Close to 250 people attended the event at the Brilliant Cultural Centre at which Percy Schmeiser shared his personal struggle.

The first part of the process will be to define the Campaign area. This will be largely dependent on the interest of individuals in the sub areas of the West Kootenays: Grand Forks, Kaslo, New Denver, Creston, etc… These different areas have different agricultural make-ups and industries thus the strategies to be used will vary by area.

Currently, Creston is the only area in which it is believed that GE crops are being grown and so in this area it will be important to present these farmers with viable market alternatives. One model that can be looked to is Community Supported Agriculture in which the consumers pay for a share of a farmer’s produce or grain at the beginning of the growing season to help the farmers when they most need the funding and to take some risk with the farmer, and then the consumers receive their share of the crop when it is ripe. This year, a group of three farms in the Creston area are working together in this way to produce diverse organic grains for people in the region and demand has been exceptional: 200 shares were sold at the beginning of the season and more people put their names on an alternate list.

People who are interested in helping the Campaign in some way can stay up to date by checking the Kootenay Food Strategy’s website: www.kootenayfood.ca and by attending the next meeting tentatively scheduled for August 20th. Further times and details of the meeting will be available on the website and announced in local newspapers.

The book is called Animal, Vegetable, Miracle by Barbara Kingsolver, in which she documents a year spent with her family on their farm in Vermont eating nothing but local foods. It finally dawned on me that all these years I have been riding my bike for transport, diligently recycling and reducing packaging in an effort to reduce my ecological impact, but my food has been coming from thousands of kilometers away. I’ve been creating a massive carbon footprint and allowing our local food systems to deteriorate and our local food growers to go out of business. But the most surprising thing is that rather than feel daunted by these realizations, I mostly just felt inspired to change.

By the end of the book I had made a decision to be eating 80% local within a year. My summer became focused on preparations for this transitions and exploring the barriers to sustaining myself on mainly local foods. Would I slowly waste away as others ate avocados in front of me, or would my life become full of canning bees and 100 mile diet potlucks?

As it became increasingly obvious that eating local is more than a part time job and requires planning and sacrifices that most of us are not accustomed to, I became more interested in looking at how I could get involved with what is already being done in my community. Encouraging the return of local food systems is something that concerns all of us and will take a realistic community-based approach with input and efforts from many sources, and seems like the most positive way to address my concerns for the global challenges that we all face today.

In researching what is being done towards this goal I have been overwhelmed with a sense of gratitude towards those who have kept our local food systems active to the degree that they are, giving the late-arrivers something to work with. Many people, businesses and organizations have been working tirelessly and with little recognition on these issues before they were hip and sexy.  This includes health food stores, writers, environmental groups, radio show hosts, organizers, lobbyists, seed savers and most of all the farmers and gardeners.

So it seems that there are several options for courses of action for individuals concerned about the future of our food. We can:

- grow more food ourselves, on our own land or on land belonging to others. Next month’s article will include a write-up on who around town is spearheading efforts towards community and school gardens, backyard-sharing and mentoring.

- clearly indicate with our voice and our food dollars that we want to support others in their efforts to grow more food. While it is pretty much impossible to decide in March to eat local, it is possible to let vendors, even conventional grocery stores, know that it is important to you where your food is coming from and that you are willing to base your food decisions on distance traveled and not just price. Lately I have made an effort to buy what could be local (sunflower seeds instead of almonds, quinoa instead of rice) to show businesses that they can support local growers. If we are choosing a menu item because it has the most local ingredients, we can let the restaurant staff know why we picked it. We can join groups like Community Food Matters so as to get more connected with what is happening in our community and to put our voice behind local food initiatives. And we can talk to people – friends, family, coworkers, neighbours – about the celebration of life that we experience when we eat local.

Stay tuned for an update next month on some of the projects to get involved with that will be going on this year.

Valerie for Community Food Matters

1.    Grow Something Edible
Planting seeds, starts or other edible living things in and around your home (wild yeast cultures or sprouts count too) are great ways to have fresh, delicious food on hand. Plus, it’s cheap. Seed packages start at less than a dollar; soil or compost can be purchased (or found) at pennies per pound, and water in the form of rain or out of the tap are both economical choices. Aside from an investment of time, growing your own food requires little else.

The rewards of growing your own food are almost endless, but include: less time spent driving to the store, fresh ingredients on hand at all times, an understanding of the seasons, which can help you eat better tasting food (see #2 below), and carbon sequestration in its most delicious form, food.
No matter what your living situation, it is possible for you to grow some food at a very low price premium. Do you live in an apartment with no sunlight or fixed windows, or worse yet, a basement apartment? Never fear, many cities have community gardens that make it possible for city slickers to grow a little food on the side. Rent a spot for yourself, or split one with friends. It’s a great way to raise some edibles while hanging with your friends.

2.    Eat Seasonal Food
Food is at its most affordable when it is purchased in season. Not surprisingly, fruits and vegetables are also at their most flavourful and freshest when they are in season. Find out what’s in season in your area at which time of year, and harvest!

As this year’s growing season draws to a close in many parts of the country, people are harvesting their summer and fall crops. This is a great time of year to preserve, dry and can (more about that later), but it’s also a great time to taste the bounty of fresh, delicious food that is out there.

3.    Cook at Home
Food is more expensive when you eat it at a restaurant. I know, I know: “But I can’t cook!” In most cases, if you can boil water, you can cook a meal at home that will be satisfying, tasty, comfortable, and cheaper than going out to eat. Plus, you can keep some leftovers for tomorrow’s bag lunch.

It’s true, restaurants have a few things that your kitchen and dining room (most likely) don’t: ambiance, sommeliers (fancy wine folk), draft beer, live music, fancy china, and exotic ingredients. These things are great for special occasions, or when you just feel like gettin’ fancy and out of the house.

However, most of us eat our meals out at a burger/pizza/burrito joint, or in the car on the way home. This kind of eating out usually doesn’t have most of the aforementioned luxuries, and has few of the comforts associated with eating at home.

When you cook at home, you decide how spicy your tacos are going to be, or how much chocolate to put in the brownies, or when the spaghetti is al dente. You’ve got all of the freedom, and you can eat dinner in your pyjamas or a tuxedo if you want to, eat by yourself without feeling embarrassed, or have twenty of your closest friends over to enjoy a meal with you, and watch a movie later with all the money you saved.

4.    Shop at Farmers’ Markets
Local food is fresher than non-local food because it doesn’t have to be picked long before its peak ripeness and shipped cross-country. To boot, if you buy food in season at Farmer’s Markets, you’re probably saving money and getting fresher food than if you were to shop at the Big Box Mart (BBM).

In addition, you might be able to form a relationship with the farmer that grows the food you’re going to eat. They’re usually happy to answer questions about their farming practices, and some farmers may even let you in on information about their harvest calendar to give you a jump on when the freshest tomatoes will be ready, or when the corn is coming to market.

Knowing the people that grow your food, on a personal level, also provides a little extra security if, say, jalapenos are not available at the BBM due to an outbreak of foodborne illness, and you’d like to make salsa that night for a dinner party. Your local farmer might just have a few spare jalapenos on hand, or know someone who does.

5.    Join a CSA
Developing that personal relationship with local farmers can go one step further with a harvest box from a Community-Supported Agriculture (CSA) farm. In this case, farmers will sell you a share in their produce for the growing season at a flat rate, and you’ll get a box each week with whatever is freshest on their farm. CSA’s have grown in popularity in recent years, and many farms have long waiting lists.

Some people go in on harvest boxes together to save money, and for those who can afford the investment up front, it ensures that you’ll be able to eat your veggies all year long. Some farms even have an instalment payment plan or plans for low-income folks who are interested.

It may be too late to join up this year, but it’s never too late to get to know your local farmers, and when signup time rolls around in the spring, you’ll be on a first-name basis with them.

6.    Cook Simple Meals
If you’ve been cooking for years from gourmet cookbooks that require 15 to 20 ingredients per dish, simple meals may not be in your habit. However, cooking simple dishes may be your ticket to great food at a low price, with tons of flavour. If you start by selecting foods that are in-season or were preserved in-season, simple recipes show off the delicious, fresh ingredients. High-quality ingredients don’t need a lot of dressing up to taste good, so less is more in their case.

7.    Have a Potluck
Inviting your friends over for a shared dinner, or meeting at a local spot (park, church hall, etc.) is a great way to share good food and stay on a budget. There is a bounty when everyone participates, and you can get a much greater variety of good food when you’re joined by 10 others. If you all plan to share your leftovers, there may even be enough for a late-night snack or lunch the next day.

Eating together with friends also connects us with our most basic of human needs, harvesting food and sharing it together with those in our “clan”. We’ve been doing it for thousands of years. Why not make it a regular event, and act like humans together?

8.    Buy Local Foods
Getting to know your local producers connects you with your food in a unique way. When you know what’s in season in your area, and you know the people who make it on a personal level, the food becomes much more than just sustenance, but is also a community-building event. Knowing the people that produce local food also builds ties in the local community.

By trading your money (that you earned in the community) with local producers of food, you’re keeping the money in your community, not sending it off to the corporate headquarters of BBM. You can find local bakeries, coffee shops, breweries, vegetable markets, ethnic food stores, etc. that are owned by individuals in your community by consulting the phone book, local message boards, or a community hall or meeting place. Look for the local folks, and support your neighbours!

9.     Use the Whole Thing
Cook a whole chicken. Roast for dinner one night, chicken soup from the stock the next, and pulled chicken tacos the third night, chicken salad sandwiches for lunch the third day. Four meals from one chicken, and that’s without using the bones!

Seriously though, this is a very economical way to cook, and one that is totally enjoyable. These things take time, but the holidays are a great time to practice, and the more you do it, the better you’ll get at it.

The point is, with a few additional ingredients, you can “stretch” the meal out to three or four day’s worth of food and not really feel like you’re eating the same roasted chicken four days in a row. This is frugal and ‘Good Eats’.

10.    Dry, Preserve, and Pickle
We people must preserve food to survive, especially in rough climates. Pickling, drying, or freezing is something that anyone can do, and drying and freezing are two of the cheapest and easiest methods.

Almost anything can be prepared, then frozen, and many things can be frozen whole or raw and added to prepared foods after thawing. Preserving food is a great way to make your food dollars go a little bit further, and you can save your fresh produce for a rainy (or snowy) day.

Adapted with permission by Creative Commons.

As we start to be more aware of where our food is coming from and attempt to reduce its carbon footprint, one of the movements sweeping the continent is the ‘Backyard Chicken’ craze. What could be more local than going outside to gather fresh eggs for breakfast? According to chicken lovers, chickens are easy to care for, and as well as providing eggs also eat some of our kitchen scraps, produce compost for our gardens, act as pest control, are educational and fun!

There are several cities in Canada and many on the US who now have municipal bylaws that allow the keeping of backyard chickens; Nelson is not one of them. Currently Page 7 Section 12 of the Animal Control By-Law 2333 it states that ‘No Animal or Poultry, except for a dog or cat, shall be kept or harboured within the Municipality.’ Some of the municipalities allowing chickens include New Westminster, Burnaby, Gibsons and Victoria, and their bylaws generally don’t allow roosters and have provisions for limiting the number of hens (often 6), the minimum distances from buildings (25 to 50 feet) and often the condition in which the coops must be kept.

Taking the bylaw literally, cats and dogs are the only animals allowable in city limits. What about hamsters, guinea pigs and parakeets? I have requested from the city the history behind the bylaw. It is quite possible that cows, pigs, horses, geese and chickens were treated as ‘livestock’ and ruled against at a time when Nelson wanted to go from being ‘rural’ to being ‘urban’. If that is the case then it was never specifically chickens that were banned, but farms in town.

If we were to look putting in place a bylaw that allows chickens in town, there are several concerns that would need to be addressed:

Noise – Chickens don’t make much noise. Roosters make noise. Although the presence of roosters is beneficial to a brood of chickens by keeping control and enhancing egg production, it seems obvious that they can’t be kept in town. Many people don’t know what 6 chickens sound like. If they had a chance to hear them would probably have their fears alleviated. In fact, many people would find the clucking of a small brood of chickens to be immensely comforting, and the sound of a chicken laying- nothing short of a joyful event.

Smell – So far of the random sampling that I have taken on this issue, smell seems to be the biggest concern. Many people have smelled large chicken enclosures and think that they can expect this from an enclosure with 6 chickens. Perhaps they have not had experience with such a thing. Generally, enclosures of hundreds of any creatures in which they live in close quarters will tend to be smelly. This would also be true of dogs, cats or humans, all of whom are actually legally allowed to live within the city limits.

Straying Chickens – When you put creatures inside fences sometimes they get out. Perhaps those that have seen the film ‘Chicken Run’ think that chickens are adventurous. In my own experience, the ones that fly the coop run around their own pen on the outside. The Victoria bylaw allows for wandering chickens to be impounded. ($6 impoundment fee)

Disease – Good care and attention to hygiene are generally what promotes health in any animal. Unlike their battery-farmed counterparts, backyard chickens would not live in cramped conditions and have their immune system compromised with antibiotics. There are many websites and newsletters now that give helpful tips on urban chickens, such as having specific chicken-tending footwear, minimizing the number of people having access to the hens, etc.

Cruelty or Neglect – We all know what it’s like to get enthusiastic about a new project only to let it gather dust in the corner after buying all the materials. This is my biggest concern in getting involved in trying to create an environment where city folk can legally keep chickens in their yards. When we keep animals in captivity we are responsible for their health and welfare. In taking on this project we will be doing our best to provide realistic information about what is involved in keeping chickens, and resources to help in chicken-handling. There are many free websites at this point help us with our burning chicken questions. It is important for everyone involved to realize that a bylaw allowing chickens in town would not supersede the provincial laws of the SPCA and that they could still be called upon in the event of suspected neglect or cruelty.

Some considerations for the prospective chicken owner:

Chickens need a house. They will go there by themselves at night so you probably need only close the door rather than round them up. The house needs to be raccoon and skunk proof, so it either needs a solid floor or the coop needs a wire fence dug down about a foot. Once again, the internet is an amazing resource, with free plans for chicken tractors and forums for follow-up questions.

Chickens needs food. Allowing them to forage can be beneficial as they eat bugs, but most of us city dwellers don’t have a big enough space to have a rotating chicken run and some folks may value their grass. Chicken food can be purchased, and they will eat some of our kitchen scraps that we would normally compost. There are websites that go into greater detail.

Chickens deserve love and attention. If people are thinking of chickens as egg factories I would hope that they would find a local farmer to buy their eggs from and leave the chicken-keeping to those who like their weird little chicken eyes and their funny walk. Owning chickens is a similar level of responsibility to owning a cat. Chickens are generally destined for the soup pot. Whereas if I find that my sentimentality is reserved for the poor creatures raised in battery farms whose massive steroid filled breasts are too much for their little chicken legs, many people are not accustomed to killing what they have looked after. So far, the bylaws that I have read from other towns have not really specifically addressed this

I can’t think of any other reasons not to have chickens in town. Can you?

Do you think it is a good idea? Are you interested in getting involved in this issue?

People are needed for assistance in making a presentation to city council on this issue, gauging public opinion before-hand and as experienced chicken owners could provide support for new urban farmers, if we do in fact bring in a bylaw in Nelson allowing us to keep chickens in our yards.

Please contact valsanderson@hotmail.com with any feedback that you have on the issue.

We in Canada are definitely a bit challenged to find fresh local foods in the dark months of winter. We can choose to buy ‘closer’ to home, try to eat more seasonally, and support farms and products with a great reputation and sustainable practices. Unfortunately, what is usually offered to us is bland, out of season food, available at all times, relatively inexpensive and of questionable origin and growing practices. Take the tomato. This is certainly a national year round favourite. Tomatoes are available at all times of the year, imported from the US, Mexico, and as far away as Turkey. This delicate fruit has to travel long distances to make it to our winter salads and sandwiches here up North. It’s no wonder that farmers around the world have taken to growing tomatoes that travel well, over other characteristics, to assure a ‘healthy’ harvest and return on investment.

In his book The End of Food: How the Food Industry is Destroying our Food Supply author Thomas F. Pawlick interviewed several growers and agronomists at the University of California to find out what the most desirable characteristics are when deciding on varieties of tomato to grow on a large scale. Here is the top seven- note where flavour and nutritional value appear on the list:

1. Yield
2. Large size
3. Firmness of skin (able to withstand thousands of pounds in transportation)
4. Disease resistance
5. Heat Tolerance
6. Consistent shape
7. Consistent ripening time

That’s right; flavour and nutritional value are not considered a desirable characteristic, though the growers aren’t to blame. The average tomato in the winter will travel at least 1000 miles to get to Canada. When there is demand for tomatoes in the winter, we get them, no taste and all. Though just look at how perfect they are. Even in the heat of summer, when local produce abounds in most communities in the country, conventional grocery stores tend to lean in the direction of carrying products of huge scale agriculture producers to meet the demand of our appetites and our wallets. Although many of these products may be grown in Canada, they still must be shipped across the country and be able to travel well. But how does this affect diversity? According to Thomas F. Pawlick there are at least 6000 North American tomato varieties known. Of this about 15 of these make it to big time production, all sure to withstand huge distances and storage conditions, and most likely exhibiting those top seven characteristics. However it is not just the tomato that suffers the demands of a never-ending season. Demand for the cheapest, at all times of year, reduces variety to the tough skinned few for the majority of our produce.

If you have had enough of cardboard vegetables that have had their fair share of food miles, there is a solution: local, fresh, heritage varieties, warmed by our summer sun. You may never go back. Small farms are able to grow different varieties of produce because their products do not have to endure long travel and storage times. Taste and nutrition can again be a priority in the growing of food. Farmers who grow for local markets have much more freedom when choosing varieties of fruits and vegetables than farmers who grow for export. In turn, we get more variety in tastes, textures and more nutritional value. We can encourage our farmers to grow these lesser known varieties by purchasing them when available. Celebrate the diversity, and the new flavours. Farmers who grow for local markets need not grow varieties of food that travel well or last for weeks on the grocery store shelf. Produce grown for local markets ripens with its roots in the soil, securing the most nutrients and developing the most complex and rich flavours.

Our local farmers are constantly experimenting with new varieties, and reintroducing long-forgotten strains, though supply will only be based demand. We, as consumers must support this return to growing variety in the Kootenays. In Nelson we are so very fortunate to have 2 weekly Farmer’s Markets throughout the harvest season and a year round community owned natural foods Co-op, regularly offering local, fresh, different, delicious and nutritious produce. Challenge yourself to eat more locally grown produce this harvest season when at its height of freshness and look for those most unfamiliar. Visit the markets, meet the farmers, and try some heritage potatoes, peppers, yams, garlic, Asian greens, and Romanesco broccoli. If you are lucky you may find some unique tomatoes as well. Enjoy the Harvest.

Learn more about eating local and challenge yourself to eat more local food this harvest season, visit: http://www.kootenayfood.ca