Good Food Box keeps breaking records!

For December's Good Food Box, we packed 505 orders - a record high for us!

In this box, we featured sweet potatoes from Richardson's Farm in Dunnville.  Special thanks to James, the farmer for making the trip just for us.

As usual, we couldn't run this project without our volunteers.  A big thanks to teacher, Turner from Blythe Academy in Burlington, who arranged a group of his dedicated students to help.

Big thank you to all our volunteers, volunteer drivers, site coordinators, supporters, funders, our fresh produce guy - we are super, super grateful!
We finished our Good Food Box with a great December pack- see you in the new year!

Improving Access to Healthy Food in Hamilton with "The Easy Box"

The Hamilton Good Food Box Network was established in 2011 to make fresh fruits and vegetables more accessible for all Hamiltonians.  Since then, with the help of volunteer packers, drivers, site coordinators and others the program now packs and distributes Good Food Boxes to over 350 families and individuals each month.  The program allows people to buy a share of fresh, seasonal produce for only $15 which has a retail value of $25-35!  To learn more about this exciting Hamilton Eat Local initiative click here.

Not everyone can afford to participate, however, and it's clear that among all Ontario Works recipients, single people are worst off because they end up having to live with a substantial income shortfall of $144 every single month -- that income deficit makes it next to impossible for OW Singles to afford a healthy balanced diet.  Click here to view the video Unequal Access to Healthy Food by Project Video.

A group of concerned citizens formed the Nutritious Food Plan Committee (NFPC) in order to find and promote ways to address this serious problem.  A special Good Food Box program was proposed

Good Food Box is moving on up!

Our popular Good Food Box program has been steadily growing and it's popularity increasing as more folks are spending $15 once a month and receiving a big bag full of fresh produce, shipped to community pick-up sites in bins of two.  The number of pickup sites, where people pre-pay for their box and pick up is also increasing.   We are also introducing a "local only" box that features Ontario produce, called the Hamilton Eat Local Box (aka The HELo Box).

Today, was a day of and "hellos" and "see you soons" at the end of the volunteer-driven Good Food Box packing day.

We said a gentle farewell (only temporarily) to our beloved Crystle, who has been in charge of communication for the Good Food Box as well as being our Pack-site Coordinator Extraordinaire.  Crystle is leaving us for a brief time to go on maternity leave.

And we said hello to our brand new-to-us conveyor to make packing and shipping our boxes easier!  Well, perhaps this second update is more thrilling for us and our team of volunteers but we are so happy that we wanted to share the news.

We had this system, seen above, we would line up large plastic totes with wheels and place bins (that held Good Food Boxes) on top.  We would then wheel the large gray totes up the line where volunteers would add items to each Good Food Box.  It worked, up to a point -- but then wheels started to come off and we began to dream of a conveyor belt.

This month, for our pack in October, we finally used our new conveyor for the first time.  And we are delighted.  This helps us move  the boxes much more efficiently and means there is less bending for our volunteers too.

So a special thank yous to our supporters: Councillor McHattie and his team.  As well as
Hamilton Community Foundation and the Healthy Community Fund  These funders are key to our growing success.

And of course, our volunteers.  We have a whole team of dedicated volunteers that help us and we cannot thank them enough!

Speaking of volunteers....

We pack boxes on the 3rd and 4th Wednesday of every month, which keeps us busy, so we're looking for volunteers of all kinds as well as volunteers who can use their vans or trucks to deliver the boxes to various sites across Hamilton.  If you can help, contact Juby at jlee@environmenthamilton(dot)org

Simpler Thyme Organic Farm is keeping it simple!

Thanks to funding from the Hamilton Community Foundation, we boarded a school bus with folks from the Riverdale and Westdale area and headed to Simpler Thyme Organic Farm.  We met farmers, Ann, Bill and Charles and they took the time to give us a hands-on tour - talking about growing our own food, showing us the leafy greens from their cold houses and their the veggie garden complete with fruit trees.

We came just in time as they experienced the first frost of the season and the first freezing, so it was the last market day for them.

This is an amazing farm, as they farm very small scale, giving them the freedom to try anything.  Alongside their established cold houses, maple syrup bush, 3 acre veggie garden, fruit trees, they also talked about the challenges, for example, they had to let go of their cattle, as the dry summer caused the price of straw bales to increase, when the cost rose from $2 / each last year up to $8, meant that it was too expensive to keep their cows.

As farmers, they have decided to focus on growing food for themselves and for their on-farm market that, when open during the growing season, will allow buyers access to 100 different varieties of fresh produce.  They are keeping it simple in order for their farm to stay dynamic :)

Left photo: Farmer Bill shows us what leaf matter turns into after one year.Right photo: Farmer Charles and one of their ducks meets a couple of our younger participants.  

They treated us to hot soup (two kinds!) and fresh corn bread - a treat that we welcomed.
Thanks to Ann, Bill and Charles for taking the time to tour us around - they always welcome our groups and give us so much of their time.  Thanks to Shahira for connecting us all to the participants and of course, thanks to all the participants who joined us!  Special thanks to Hamilton Community Foundation for their support!

Here is a little more about the farm:

Simpler Thyme Organic Farm
Ann Lanigan
1749 Hwy 6 North, RR 2
Hamilton, ON  L8N 2Z7 (near Freelton)
905-659-1576    
simpler_thyme@hotmail.com

Offer seasonal Community Shared Agriculture (CSA) as well as workshops on our farm.  They grow a great variety of organic vegetables and small fruits, as well as eggs, herbs and maple syrup (seasonal).  The farm market is open on Thursdays from May to November 1st, from sun-up to sundown.

Rural Routes to Plan B Organic Farm

The skies cleared in time for our Rural Routes today.  Thanks to the Hamilton Community Foundation we partnered with Neighbour to Neighbour Centre  and brought a bus to Plan B Organic Farm.

Thanks to Farmer Melanie for a fantastic tour!

A field of greens, including Arugula - while they will not grow in frost, they will not be damaged by the cold. 

The skies cleared and it turned out to be a sunny day!

A huge thanks to Plan B for hosting us, Neighbour to Neighbour for partnering with us and the Hamilton Community Foundation for their support.

We'll be hosting an October Rural Routes to Plan B Organic Farm, that is open to the public. Sat. October 20th. 10:30am.
Tickets are $5 for seniors / $7 for adults.
Tickets available at Homegrown Hamilton - 27 King William and is the pick-up location to get on the bus.
Rain or shine.

Cooking From Scratch - using the Good food Box!

Two of Environment Hamilton's initiatives, Good Food Box and Greening Sacred Spaces are presenting....

Cooking from Scratch (with Good Food Box contents): Local Chefs to lead the sessions.

The Good Food Box is a non-profit fresh fruit and vegetable distribution program. It makes healthy fresh food affordable and accessible to everyone. For only $15 you receive a box of fresh quality produce worth $25 or more. GFB buys food at wholesale prices, wit

 h a preference for Ontario farmers. Read here for more about the Good Food Box.

The sessions are led by a ‘chef’ (a different one for each session) who will plan a menu and she will have two assistants.
Start: 5:30 pm, cooking together until 6:30 and end with a communal meal.

Where: Friends Meeting House, 7 Butty Place, Hamilton.
Wednesday, September 19th
Wednesday, October 17th
Wednesday, November 21st
Register for a session by September,12th to avoid disappointment.
Maximum number of participants 8
Bring your appetites and your willingness to learn.
FREE!
Contact Beatrice             905 549 0900       or email bekoko@faith-commongood.net

  

What do you know about Alpacas? We now know more thanks to John the farmer from Alpacas from 8th and Mud

We braved the rain and doom and gloom of the predicted forecast and heading to Alpacas on 8th and Mud Street. as part of our September Rural Routes.

We had a blast. Farmer John lead us around his beautiful farm, sharing his knowledge, telling stories and entertaining us with interesting facts about his life raising Alpacas.

At this farm, they raise Alpacas for the fibre and process the fibre, from washing, drying, turning it into yarn - they do it all plus process for other similar farmers in the area.

At the farm, they have Muscovy ducks, the ducks eat the slugs that carry parasites. If the Alpacas ingest the parasites, it can make its way to the Alpaca's brain and kill them. So the ducks are there to protect the Alpacas from tiny but deadly foes.

Another threat are coyotes. This is one of their guard dogs that protect the Alpacas from the coyotes that will kill for fun and not food.

Photo credit: Silva and Marilyn F.

HUGE thanks to John for spending his birthday with us and touring us around his lovely farm.

Thanks to:

- Silva and Penny, from the farm for all their help and knowledge.

- Smart Commute Hamilton for their support.

- First Student Canada - for their patience!

And of course, to our Rural Routes participants who were brave enough to attend despite the nasty forecast!

Getting to Know Our Farmers

Welcome to our "Farmers' Profile" post - we'll be highlighting specific farmers in our area as a way to get to know our farmers a bit better and this is our first profile!

Special thanks to Tracy who is pulling these profiles together. And thanks to Plan B Organic Farm!

Farmer Profile of Plan B Organic Farm

What do you grow?

We grow approximately 30 acres of certified organic vegetables each season on our farm in Flamborough, and on another rented property down the road. We sell our products mainly through our weekly, year round, CSA program. We have nearly 800 families subscribed to our program in the summer season! We also sell our produce weekly at the Dundas Farmers' Market in Dundas, and Dufferin Grove Park Market in Toronto. We've just started a new market in Burlington, on Brant street at Centro Gardens, Fridays from 11-2.

What is your farm story?

While working on an urban gardening project in 1996 Alvaro Venturelli & Melanie Golba came up with the wild idea of starting their own organic CSA farm! They convinced Alvaro’s brother Rodrigo to join in and and in the spring of 1997 Plan B Organic Farms was born! We thought the name “plan b” really conveyed our intention of providing our community with an “alternative” food source to foods produced through “conventional agriculture” aka plan a.

In 1998 we moved to our beautiful 50 acre sandy and rocky piece of land in Flamborough, Ontario. The first 5 years we worked the land by hand, learned that there was a lot to learn about growing vegetables, but with the support of family and the local community we made it work. We continue this work still with this mission in mind:

• Grow delicious, high quality vegetables, herbs, and fruits using certified organic farming methods that are in harmony with our environment.

• Provide freshly harvested, certified organic produce at affordable prices to local households.

• Work in partnership with other local organic farmers to reliably provide our shareholders with the variety of crops that our region offers.

• Create a place where our community can come to learn about organic farming, the source of our food, and the natural cycles of our bioregion.

Did this year’s late frost affect your crops? In general, how do you feel about the volatility of the farm as a business from season to season?

Our crops definitely suffered in the drought this year, but with intensive planting techniques, growing things close together, and drip irrigation that conserves water by watering right onto the soil, we managed to make it through the drought into this late summer rain we've been having, glorious! Climate change definitely adds a new dimension to the already volatile nature of farming as a business, but organic farms are very adaptable.

How do you market yourself, and why do think your method of selling and marketing fits with your vision of a farmer’s role in the local community?

Our farm is a "multi-farm CSA" we set up this model in order to "grow what we grow best" and then support other local organic family farmers in Southern Ontario by purchasing their produce to supplement our CSA shares. In this way, we have become a local organic food hub, redistributing local organic food from farmers who are further afield and getting their goods into the GTA through our CSA system.

Can you please share a recipe with us that you are particularly proud of?

We grow about 3 acres of amazing garlic each year, it's one of our specialties, so I recommend roasting it, chop off the tops, soak in olive oil, roast at 350F until soft, then eat it on bread, add to salad dressings or anything else you can think of!

What do you love most about farming?

We love farming, we are doing this because we think it is so important that there are farms to serve our local community, and show them that organic is possible, even on a medium-large scale! One of the main challenges of farming is making it work as a business. There are few financial supports, government, charitable or otherwise for people wanting to start or run a farm business like ours, making it a big burden on us and on our family to keep the farm running, this is a challenge we hope to overcome in coming years.

What advice would you give to a new or young farmer/grower?

Make a good financial plan before you start! Think about your personal needs as far as living situation, housing and factor that into your plans. There are some great workshops available at Farmstart, called "Exploring Your Farm Dream" and another one called "Holistic Farm Management". Might be good to try these out!

Contact:

Plan B Organic Farm

1377 5th Concession West


Branchton ON N0B 1L0

(905) 659-2572


info@planborganicfarms.ca

www.planborganicfarms.ca

Rural Routes Visits Waterhall Farm!

Environment Hamilton hosted another great Rural Routes trip last Saturday when we visited Waterhall Farm.  However, Waterhall is not a typical 21st century farm.  And I'm not just saying that because they sell antiques from centuries past.  Although, their Antiques store is a must see as the old relics are situated alongside a tranquil indoor pool.

Waterhall stands out among the cash crops and factory farms of the 21st century raising instead an incredibly diverse selection of flora and fauna.  John Flechl, who gave us an enlightening tour of his farm, wants to offer customers unique products and experiences and in the process we all benefit as crop rotation and crop diversity help eliminate the need for pesticides, prevent the soil from being depleted and drained of nutrients and protect the farm from vulnerability to unexpected weather or pests.  On top of all that Waterhall is helping preserve the biodiversity of our plants and is providing people with a richer variety of nutrients.

While Waterhall farm is not yet certified organic they are operating in accordance with organic values.  Flechl says he prefers to stay away from herbicides because he's not sure what effect these chemicals  have on our health.  Instead, the Flechl family use people power and smart design to eliminate weeds and do the work required to have a flourishing farm.  On that note, Waterhall loves company so if you would like to come by and help out on the farm you are more than welcome.

Waterhall also has a petting zoo and a growing variety of unique animals including rare breeds of miniature horses, goats, rabbits, pigeons, turkeys, chicken and even a resident peacock.  The animals are not grown to be eaten but they do help the farm function and provide nutrients for the soil.

Rural Routes would like to give a special thanks to Waterhall Farm and Brock Road General Store for letting us park our bus in their parking lot.  Don't miss our next trip to Alpacas from 8th and Mud.  Tickets are available at Homegrown Hamilton (at 27 King William St) $7 for adults and $5 for seniors and children.

Crop Mob at Heart's Content Organic Farmstead

Last Sunday Environment Hamilton tagged along on a Crop Mob organized by Mac Farmstand to Heart's Content Organic Farmstead.  Volunteers with a desire to learn more about organic farming were given the opportunity to spend a day on the farm.  We started out with a tour of the farm.

 After the tour we spent the day pulling weeds until it started raining.

During the rain we took shelter inside and helped prepare garlic for the market.

Heart's Content is an interesting farm which already operates through farmers' markets and through their CSA, which delivers weekly or bi-weekly shares that members pick up at Homegrown Hamilton, the Brantford Farmers' Market or at the farm.  Farmer Richard Turnstall also works as a Naturopathic Doctor and runs his clinic at the farm as well. 

Heart's Content is working to move beyond the confines and limitations of modern industrial farming and our greater economic system.  Their newest project is a community land trust where they are planning to buy and preserve land just outside of the green belt with help from community bond holders who will see a 4% return on their investment in the form of organic food.  For more information contact Ella Haley at ehaley1[at]gmail.com.

Visit to McMaster’s Community and Teaching Garden

Mike Lee chats with Karen and the interns

Mr. Mike Lee gave Hamilton Eat Local’s Karen Burson and the Environment Hamilton summer interns a tour of the McMaster Community and Teaching Garden and were we ever impressed!   The garden was started in January of this year, and in that short amount of time it has flourished under his hands into a producing food hub.  The garden is laid out in three triangles separated by water permeable walkways. One triangle is a raised bed, made of pressure treated wood, so the bed has a liner.  Companion planting plays a role in this great garden, with marigolds interspersed among the many different types of tomatoes and peppers, eggplants, beans, Swiss chard, chives, oregano, rosemary, beets, basil, and a pumpkin plant.  The garden is located right next to an outdoor sitting/teaching area.  Mike hopes for plans to better develop this area to better promote the space, and use it for workshops as well. Some of the food produced goes to the Mac Farm Stand, and a scale is on its way so the garden can track its net product weight. The money made from sales goes directly back into the garden. In the fall, Mike hopes to supply some fresh produce to one of the near-by cafés on campus in the coming fall.

The raised bed and permeable pavement.

Mike Lee and the garden’s volunteers maintain the garden, weeding, watering, and whatever else the plants might need. Having no past gardening experience, Mike has done wonders with the garden, and states “there is so much to learn”.  Mike sees the garden as a pilot project: if it is successful Mike hopes the university will start larger projects.  He has identified many areas that would be ideal for potential urban agriculture and campus farms.   The plans for the immediate future are to have several courses and professors become involved in the garden in integrated science programs doing project-based learning.  Mike hopes to coordinate with next year’s summer day camps and high schools that need volunteer opportunities.  

Hamilton Eat Local looks forward to the future of this garden and is excited to see where Mike will take it next.  “I have had a few spots in mind for a project just like this in the core,” says Project Manager Burson, “But while we’ve had other major projects on the go we haven’t been able to start one.  Having the right partners in place would change all of that, and I have to say I’d love the idea of collaborating on a teaching garden as a research project with McMaster or with Mohawk College”.  Let’s see what ideas will take root this winter!

Peppers, eggplants, and tomatoes in the community garden.

Lynn Ogryzlo was a hit at the Dundas Farmers Market

Lynn Ogryzlo was a welcome addition to the Dundas Farmers Market last Thursday during their regular hours of operation from 3pm to 7pm.

Lynn stayed busy with the many market goers who showed genuine interest in easy recipes made with local ingredients from her Ontario Table cook book.  Here she has a fan sign part of the longest table cloth in Ontario.

Market manager Lisa Anderson works very hard for the dedicated customers at the Dundas Farmers' Market.  In this photo she is preparing samples of an heirloom tomato salad with a basil vinaigrette straight from page 64 of the Ontario Table.  Every ingredient used is from Ontario and the majority of the ingredients in our dish came straight from the Dundas Market!

The $10 Challenge

"If every household in Ontario spent $10 a week on local food, we’d have an additional $2.4 billion in our local economy at the end of the year. Keeping our money circulating grows those dollars to $3.6 billion and creates 10,000 new jobs" according to "numbers... compiled by Dr. Kevin Stolerick of The Martin Prosperity Institute, University of Toronto, and Doug Vallery of Experience Renewal Solutions, Toronto" for Lynn Ogryzlo, author of The Ontario Table.

Ogryzlo is a passionate locavore and she has challenged us all to take the $10 Challenge.  In her recipe book, The Ontario Table, she makes it easy to go well beyond $10 worth of local ingredients by providing countless mouth watering recipes made strictly from produce available in Ontario.  She also has an monthly $10 Challenge magazine full of recipes and interviews and information about local food.  Here is July's issue:

Open publication - Free publishing

Ogryzlo will be attending the Dundas Farmers' Market this Thursday from 3-7 to sell and sign recipe books.  Many of the market vendors will be participating and will explain what the $10 Challenge could mean for their business and our community.  Keep an eye out for givaways provided by the amazing market organizer with help from the market's generous vendors.  The Dundas Farmers' Market is conveniently located in Municipal Parking Lot 7D at Hatt Street and Miller's Lane. 

Lavender & Music - fundraiser for Mark's Preece's Family House

Weir's Lavender Lane had a busy weekend -on Sat. July 14th, they took part in the second Farm Crawl and on Sun July 15th, they hosted Lavender and Music, a fund raiser for Mark Preece Family House, a space where folks can stay when they have families in Hamilton hospitals.

What a fundraiser! What better way of spending a Sunday then to support a fantastic organization like Mark Preece, listen to top-notch musical acts, munching on locally produced sausages from Dearsley's Meats, sitting under some tree-shade, surrounded by lavender plants?

We caught only a few of the music performers but if Trio Argento, David Lum and R&R were any indication of assortment of music -then guests that came anytime between 1-5pm, all heard amazing music.

We stopped into their farm store, the refreshing and relaxing lavender scent makes you want to stay there all day. It was tempting to buy one of everything - from lavender plants, essential oils, body care line, to culinary lavender - all their products made on-site.

Overall, we had a fantastic time! This fundraiser was relaxing and well-planned. Great job to the organizers who pulled together a very enjoyable outing! Well done!

McMaster Teaching and Community Garden

McMaster recently unveiled their new Teaching and Community Garden!  The project is part of the university's sustainability initiative.  The garden is located on the north side of the General Sciences Building, across from the Refectory. Weekly volunteer gardening sessions will take place throughout the growing season and workshops are anticipated to being in August.  Keep tabs on their website for more information on how you can get involved.

Sit, Enjoy, Listen, Relax at Ancaster Farmers Market

Ancaster Farmers Market is unique in the extent to which they make their market a complete experience for Ancaster's many locavores.  As well as a wide selection of farm vendors Ancaster also hosts many ready to eat prepared items and provides plenty of seating and tables to enjoy it all.  A particularly popular spot is a wrap around bench built from salvaged lumber around one of the market's towering trees.

While chowing down on some delicious delicacies patrons enjoyed some fantastic live music.  The first act was Mike McCurlie playing some fantastic covers including some skillful renditions of Tom Waits tunes that were especially appreciated by an anonymous Environment Hamilton summer intern.  Mike normally performs with his group Banned from Heaven.  The second act, Mark Fletcher switched it up with some Celtic music played on the Scottish smallpipes, the mandola and an Irish flute.  Mark often plays alongside his band Rant Maggie Rant.

At it's heart, Ancaster is an authentic farmers market and now is the time to pick up fresh produce.  Berry Fresh Farms are harvesting some new additions including peaches and corn!

Waterhall Farm is also a regular in Ancaster.  As regulars to the Hamilton Eat Local blog know, Environment Hamilton will host a bus trip to Waterhall on August 18th at 10:30 am.  Visit Homegrown Hamilton to purchase your tickets before they sell out.

Normally, access to the farmers market is off 37 Halson Street between the Church and the Parish Hall every Wednesday from 3-7pm.  However, on July 25th, 2012 the market will be located behind the Ancaster Public Library in the Village Green Park.

We Love Fenwood and Scotscraig Farms!

Despite thundering storms first thing in the morning Rural Routes participants came out in droves on Saturday.  Our first stop was Scotscraig Farm.

Malcolm and Cam along with their two industrious farm workers Kim and Elysia pose in front of our heroic HSR transportation after generously showing our group around the farm.  Some of their organic veggies are grown in a greenhouse while others are grown in their fields.

Scotscraig also raises some farm animals including chicken and sheep.

 

After Scotscraig we made our way over to Fenwood Farm where Carol showed us how they raise chickens, turkeys, emus and grow soy.

First we saw the emu which is a real strange bird that sounds like the tyrannosaurus rex in Jurassic Park and live in female dominated family structures where the male birds spend most of the time sitting on large emu eggs.

We also got to see the turkey chicks which will be ripe and ready for Thanksgiving and Christmas.

Fenwood Farm was nice enough to BBQ some turkey hot dogs which the farm dogs were quite interested in.

Don't miss our next Rural Routes bus trips to Waterhall Farm on August 18th and Alpacas from Eighth and Mud on September 8th (date changed from September 1st!).  As usual, tickets are available at Homegrown Hamilton, 27 King William Street.  The bus departs at 10:30 am sharp outside Homegrown.

Rural Routes is still on today!

We are pressing on and visiting local organic farms: Scotscraig and Fenwood Farm today.

Rain or shine is our motto! Lets hope it starts to shine soon :)

Hamilton’s Eat Locallers Are Inspired!

Thursdays Toronto Eat Local Tour was absolutely inspiring.  A select group of determined and conscious food revolutionaries woke up bright and early to catch the 7:40 Go bus into Ontario’s capital.  

At 10 we arrived at the Stop and were given a tour.  The tour started with a larger tour of the Wynchwood Barns, which used to be a facility in which the TTC used to repair their streetcars.  Now the barns are home to art studios, residents and a variety of other organizations and corporations including the Stop.

The Stop is a phenomenal hub for community activists and volunteers.  The number of programs and services are endless and there are many new projects coming out of the woodworks.  They offer after school programs and a summer camp, community action organization, community cooking, a food bank, family support, sustainable food systems education and a venue for urban agriculture with a greenhouse and a number of internationally inspired community gardens.  

As well, at the stop there is an outdoor oven, a farmers market and they raise funds by serving a fantastic dinner one night a month.  Our guide Elizabeth talked with us non-stop about the programs and services provided by the Stop for an hour and a half and we could tell that she was only scratching the surface.  For inspiration oh how to make your community a healthier, richer, greener, more sustainable place the Stop is a great place to start.

After the stop we took a streetcar and a bus over to Foodshare which is located at and integrated into a local public High School.  There our guide Opal directed us toward the kitchen which whipped up a healthy, affordable, fresh and tasty lunch inspired by Spanish cuisine.  Foodshare also hosts a greenhouse with many interesting things growing.  Perhaps the most impressive aspect of Foodshare is their ability to deliver 4000 good food boxes a month to residents across Toronto.  The facility includes conveyor belts, a refrigeration room and they recently acquired two new refrigerated to add to their fleet.  All of which is operated by a large group of hard working volunteers.

Hamilton has our own Good Food Box program and we are working to grow as large as they have become in Toronto!  Order your own Good Food Box or Eat Local Box to save money, eat healthier and help expand this fabulous program.  Find your local Good Food Box site and order now!

Finally, we finished off our tour at the Dufferin Grove Organic Farmers’ Market.  We learned about how this farmers’ market is transforming their neighbourhood and how they have managed to grow and survive over their 10 years in the community.

To help support local farmers, eat local food and support ethical food systems consider shopping at one of Hamilton’s many Farmers’Markets!