Iambic Cafe | food & poetry, but mostly the poetry of food

Oysters, Abattoir, perennial food crops and Eco-Fair

Apr 14

All blissfully quiet at my end of the Gorge these days, now that Craigflower Bridge has been closed for rebuilding and traffic re-routed. I was gratified to learn that not only were there viable oyster beds in the Gorge, but the planners had taken steps to relocate and preserve them so that the construction does not do away with this rare species (for the next eight months or so). These are our native Olympia oysters, not the Pacific upstarts introduced from Japan that now dominate the West Coast’s shoreline and oyster farming operations. I happened to pass what I assume to be the relocation action as it was unfolding and snapped them at it.

Meanwhile, I’ve been spreading myself thin in recent weeks, trying to keep up with different social media (Twitter, Facebook and most recently Pinterest), working on some of my own writing, and going nose to grindstone with my holistic nutrition studies. We’re deep into preventive nutrition this month, studying up on nutritional approaches to digestive, blood sugar, cardiovascular and arthritic conditions. Quite a ride.

On Friday I returned from Nanaimo via Salt Spring Island where the community abattoir was officially launched with an open house in the drizzly rain. I’d visited earlier this year but was interested to have a look at the finished structure. There is more work to be done if larger animals (cattle) are to be slaughtered here, but it’s up and running for poultry, rabbit, goat and lamb. It’s going very well so far: an arrangement with a local farmer has meant all the offal and skins are being composted, which has taken one of the main economic headaches for an abattoir out of the picture, and has solid community support – no small achievement for this kind of business.

Saturday I took in a workshop on perennial fruit crops at ALM Farm in Sooke, in which farmer Jordan took us for a tour of the farm’s apple, pear, fig and plum trees, kiwi vines, strawberries, raspberries, rhubarb, Jerusalem artichokes, hazelnuts, gooseberries, herbs and asparagus before I had to whistle off to take my place behind my books, alongside the Haliburton farmers at the Reynolds School Eco-Fair . It was a lively and well-attended event with speakers including Green Party leader Elizabeth May and Brandy Gallagher from O.U.R. Ecovillage, and lots of well-chosen information tables, including Pedal to Petal, LifeCycles, Growing Young Farmers, Organic Gardeners Pantry, BC Sustainable Energy Association and more. The Hali stand was peddling organic food boxes (CSA subscriptions), seeds, plants and good advice.

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Save seeds, save the world

Mar 28

Last night’s talk by Vandana Shiva left a sold out auditorium at the University of Victoria humming with righteous energy.

She reported with eloquent passion on the state of food in the world today, leading with the unfortunate news of the “Monsanto protection act” which Obama signed only a couple of days ago, and which protects the biotech industry from any liability for the harm it may cause.

And biotech is causing great harm. It has not increased yields or fed more people or reduced the use of chemicals in agriculture. The yields are the same, for it is the nature of the seed, not the pesticide technology that governs yield; 90% of the GM soy and corn crops grown are not grown for human consumption, but for animal feed or fuel; and now that Roundup has created Roundup-resistant weeds, the biotech crops need to be doused in Agent Orange to keep the weeds down. The fact remains that the vast majority of people, globally, are being fed by small farms, and this remains the only hope for feeding the world in the future.

She acknowledged that we are living in tyrannical times, but said there was still much we can do. The small rebellions can be the most satisfying. When the British tried to place a monopoly on salt in India, Gandhi’s response was to wade into the ocean and show that nature provides what we need. Similarly, when multinationals inject genetic material into plants and claim ownership, they are playing god. Our individual response should be to save seeds, she says. Even something in a flowerpot on your balcony will do it.

And there was much more, of course. Watch for a video record of her talk which I’m told will be posted on UVic’s website next week.

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Full steam ahead: a week of talks!

Mar 19

Lots going on this week. If you’re in town I hope you can make it to one or more of these different events!

On Tuesday evening, March 19, look for me in Fernwood, where I’m talking urban agriculture at Fernwood U. Cornerstone Cafe, 1301 Gladstone Avenue, Victoria, at 7pm. (Free!)

Friday night, March 22, I’ll be reading at Planet Earth Poetry alongside Rosemary Griebel. Moka House Cafe, #103-1633 Hillside Avenue, Victoria, at 7:30pm. (Nearly free – just $3)

Saturday afternoon, March 23, I’m on the Food Writing panel at the WordsThaw Spring Writing Symposium, hosted by the Malahat Review, an all day affair that runs 10am until 10pm at the University of Victoria, Human & Social Development Building, Room A240. ($40-50, but you get a whole day of literary fun for your money)

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Meeting one’s maker – an act of exceptional good taste

Mar 17

One of Haliburton Farm's donations

Life in the salad bowl continued last Monday when I was privileged to spend a day volunteering in the kitchen for the Meet Your Maker Vancouver Island event. Organized by Farm Folk City Folk, it was the first time it had been offered on the Island, and it was a staggeringly good affair, at least from where I was standing (and peeling and chopping and arranging and carrying and washing and slicing).

Around 80 food producers (farmers, fisherfolk, processors) and food buyers (from restaurants, delis, grocery stores) converged on the Saanich Fairgrounds for a day of networking and information exchange. Participating producers were invited to donate their wares which local chefs turned into the most extraordinary potluck lunch I’ve ever had the good fortune to sample. We kitchen volunteers were kept busy for four or five hours arranging, heating, cooking and/or simply laying out the wares that arrived in a steady stream starting at 8am.

Here’s a small sampling of the wonders that came our way… Squash soup from Haliburton Farm, mixed roasted vegetables, oysters from the Gulf Islands, Fry’s Bakery sausage rolls, raw veggies from Saanich Organics, Madrona Farm and other local farms, crab legs, focaccia from Il Forno di Claudio, lots of Natural Pastures, Moonstruck, Salt Spring & Kootenay Alpine cheeses from Niagara Grocery, a salumi platter from The Whole Beast, and phyllo halibut parcels and smoked canned salmon.

Below, Haliburton Farmer Nate from New Mountain Farm; luscious lemon bars; baker Byron Fry and chef Dwane MacIsaac find their zen at the start of the long buffet.

As I overheard someone say, gaping at the bounty heaping their plate, it’s hard to believe in food insecurity when you see this small sampling of what can be produced on Vancouver Island. Which, need we remind ourselves, is small scale agriculture by necessity.

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Long lost blogger: farmers & food

Mar 16

Chef Dwane & Farmer Robin

It has been quite the delicious craziness over the past couple of weeks which has kept me away from this blog and out in the edible world enjoying lots of food and food talk. Here’s one of the events I was party to.

Farmer 2 Farmer was a modest little conference held back on March 7. Robin Tunnicliffe, from Saanich Organics, was behind much of it, and Dwane MacIsaac of the Island Chefs Collaborative led the kitchen. The registration was around 100 in the week leading up, and the organizers prepared for around 120. But on the day there were more like 200 farm and food folk in attendance, chewing the fat over issues like options for farm labour, organic certification and creative fundraising solutions for farming, as well as more hands-on info on poultry nutrition, choosing berry varieties and techniques for direct marketing farm products. Most interesting to me (tethered much of the morning to the registration desk, and later to the book signing table after a short stint explaining Haliburton Farm‘s development in the context of a workshop on farm succession) was the generous lunch rolled out by members of the Island Chefs’ Collaborative. Bread from Byron Fry, Salumi from Cory Pelan and assorted wizardry from David Mincey and Dwane MacIsaac, with seasonal produce from local farms (squash, lentils, roasted beets, rutabagas, garlic), meant some pretty nifty loaves into fishes work and a good feed for all those extra bodies.