Farmers Market Fun!

Hamilton Eat Local was delighted in joining farmers and eaters at the opening of the Hamilton Mountain Farmers’ Market last Saturday. Plenty of fresh local produce was available, including rhubarb, fiddleheads, and sweet potatoes. Beautiful Ontario fresh tomatoes, asparagus, spinach and apples filled vendors’ tables. There was an assortment of bedding plants, flowers, and fresh herbs; as well as other goods including maple syrup, honey and apple cider. All the vendors at the market are also the growers. The number of farmers will increase as more seasonal products are available.

The Hamilton Mountain Farmers Market is open every Saturday, from 7am to 1:30pm until November and is located in the parking lot of Sacred Heart Church – Viewpoint and Mountain Park Avenue.

Thanks to our volunteers Laura, Jarah and Bronwyn for helping Hamilton Eat Local to distribute maps and special thanks go to Laura for taking such great photos and writing this blog entry!

Hamilton Eat Local is out and about this weekend!

We will be at two very fun and exciting events on Saturday May 23, 2009.

Check out the 4th Annual Tastes of Downtown Walking Tour organized by Goodwill. We will be handing out maps at the registration desk at Hamilton Police Services on 155 King William Street. For more information see: http://www.goodwillonline.ca/news/2009%20Goodwill%20Restaurant%20Walking%20Tour.pdf

Hamilton Eat Local will also be at Festival of Hearts from 12-4pm at the Eva Rothwell Centre planting seeds with kids in a gardening workshop. Other activities for the children are: crafts, sports, yoga, and much more!

We will update you on how each event went!

Come celebrate the Opening Day of the Hamilton Mountain Farmers Market with us!

"The Market with a Beautiful View" is back! The Hamilton Mountain Farmers Market is opening for 2009. On Saturday May 16th, check out the delicious, locally produced food, grab a copy of Hamilton Eat Local’s brand *new* 2009 Hamilton Eat Local Farm Map and Directory, stay for the free tea / coffee and enjoy the view. The Mountain Farmers Market is open every Saturday from May 16th to November – 7am to 1:30pm. It is located in the parking lot of Sacred Heart Church – Viewpoint and Mountain Park Avenue. For more information, check out: www.concessionstreet.com
Hamilton Eat Local is looking for volunteers to help distribute maps. Contact Juby, Communications Manager at 905-549-0900 or email jlee.eatlocal(at)environmenthamilton.org if interested.

Thanks for coming out to the Pancake Breakfast and Map Launch Party!

Thanks for joining us at the Bread & Roses Cafe on May 1st for what turned out to be a lively, well-attended celebration of local food and local farms. Chef Lisa's pancakes received rave reviews (as usual) and everyone left smiling.

Special thank yous go to Morden's Organic Farm and Lincoln Line Orchards for supplying many of the delicious ingredients, and to our excellent team of Hamilton Eat Local volunteers.

Even the aprons were a hit! Check out the next day's Hamilton Spectator article:

http://www.thespec.com/article/558941

On that page you will find a link to the online version of our map! We're also busily updating our online farm listings.

See you at the next adventure...

THE MAP IS BACK!!! -- Join us for Fun and Pancakes as we launch the 2009 Hamilton Eat Local Farm Map and Directory, Third Edition

Friday May 1st
10- noon
Bread & Roses Cafe / Sky Dragon Centre - 27 King William Street

Hamilton Eat Local is delighted to announce the map launch of The 2009 Hamilton Eat Local Farm Map and Directory, Third Edition. This year our launch event "Local to theCore" will be celebrated with a delicious pancake breakfast (as locally sourced as possible - of course!) at the Bread & Roses cafe. The menu will feature fluffy, light, organic spelt pancakes (you MUST try Chef Lisa's pancakes!) served with real local butter, maple syrup and local organic apple compote to top off the meal. Fair trade / organic coffee / tea will be available as well. Hamilton Eat Local and Bread & Roses Cafe are pleased to offer the breakfast at a mere $5 per person. No RVSP necessary.

At approximately noon, join us as we wind down with a delightful film about food. Breakfast will be followed by a screening of Pixel One's incredible visual feast: the Canadian documentary film "Tableland", which celebrates the field-to-table connection in a way that might leave you hungry for more pancakes!

Hope to see you there!
Karen and Juby are looking for volunteers to help launch the 3rd edition of the Hamilton Local Farm Map and Directory. We are looking for volunteers to help with the launch. We need help with the breakfast and to hand out maps. Please contact Juby at
jlee.eatlocal@environmenthamilton.org or call the Environment Hamilton office at 905-549-0900. Thanks very much for your support!

Slow Food & Ancaster Old Mill's "Sunday Supper"

In an effort to protect heritage breeds, Slow Food is pleased to induct the Tamworth pig to Canada's Ark of Taste. Join us and Slow Food leaders from across Canada for a family style dinner that celebrates the best of spring.

Sunday May 3rd, 2009 - 7pm.
Ancaster Old Mill, 548 Old Dundas Rd, Ancaster, ON.

Please purchase tickets in advance.
$95 per person.
Wine, tax and gratuity included.
To reserve your tickets call 905-648-1828.
info@ancasteroldmill.com.

Menu:

• Red Fife Wheat Ciabatta

• Wild Leek & Nodding Onion Soup

• Spit Roasted Tamworth Pork

• Gravenstien Apples with Tarragon

• Roasted Jerusalem Artichokes

• Rhubarb & Apple Strudel

• Fresh Turned Maple Ice Cream

• Paired with Regional Niagara wines....

The Fossil-Fueled Sandwich with Rebecca Hosking in "A Farm for the Future" from the BBC's "Natural World"

Hosking (left) went back to the farm when her father (right) and uncle were too old to keep it going -- and a year later she felt compelled to tell the story of the past, present and future of farming in the United Kingdom. Our story isn't likely to be that much different.

The "fossil fuelled sandwich" is deconstructed in a clip that'sonly about two minutes long, and it gets the peak oil message across pretty succinctly.

Just click on the link below to view this incredible 50-minute documentary from the BBC series Natural World! Thanks to Kenrick C. from Dundas In Transition for providing it.

http://lets-doit.ca/farm.html

"Kids In The Kitchen" gets the whole community out for a day of healthy fun!

Farmer/volunteer Sandy Morden of Morden's Organic Farm and Nutri-Spring Farm offers the kids a tasty lesson in indoor herb gardening. Thank you so much, Sandy for donating your time, and special thanks also go out to Sharon Clugston of Sherlea Acres for donating the really cool popping corn on-the-cob!

We've got some fun pictures of Hamilton Eat Local at the Eva Rothwell Centre for The Junior League of Burlington & Hamilton Second Annual "Kids In The Kitchen" Event - Moooo! The "Eat Local" room was a hive of activity, with groups of kids learning about herbs, watching Greenbelt Kids videos courtesy of TV Ontario, planting their own begonias and getting their photos taken with our fibreglass cow "Leilani". Super-volunteer Corinne Lyne did an amazing job of co-coordinating the space -- thank you!

Hamilton Eat Local at Food and Drink Fest 2009!

Hamilton Eat Local was delighted to participate in the 4th Annual Food and Drink Fest over the weekend. We had a great time handing out 2008 Buy Local! Buy Fresh! maps, farm brochures and greenbelt guides. A big thank you to the City of Hamilton and Tourism Hamilton for generously sponsoring a table for us. Thanks also to Chris Krucker of ManoRun Organic Farm for "manning" the table for us on Sunday, since eating locally is all about being up close and personal with our farmers.

In the photo above we have three women who are part of the local food movement. Caroline Merritt, Project Manager of the Ottawa St Farmers Market, Business Development Consultant in Economic Development & Real Estate Division for City of Hamilton Susan Coverdale and our very own the ever-smiling Karen Burson, Eat Local's Project Manager.

The event was well-organized with great food samples from local restaurants, an impressive array of wines and beers to sample. The lovely live music, the popular food demonstrations and various draws for amazing prizes were all part of the magic. Attendance was up from last year to the point that all of the 2009 sample tickets were sold out by Saturday night! Luckily, some leftover 2008 tickets were available. We are definitely excited to be there again next year!

Promoting Local Food in Recent Budget Announcement

Environment Hamilton/Hamilton Eat Local Applauds Provincial Push to Promote Ontario Food Products -- Visit Dilly's "Ontario Only" Local Food Stand at the Downtown Hamilton Farmers' Market

April 2, 2009 – Hamilton, ON: More Ontario foods will be available in our public institutions thanks to an increase in funding announced by the provincial government as part of the 2009 budget.

The brief statement, released by Ontario’s Ministry of Finance has allocated $8 million annually starting in 2009-2010 for the promotion of Ontario food products to the broader public sector including hospitals and schools. Environment Hamilton / Hamilton Eat Local views this initiative as part of a broader movement by our government. In 2004, the provincial government unveiled “Ontario Buys” a program that oversees the reduction of public sector costs through local procurement policies and redirects those savings to front line costs. To date, Ontario Buys reports that $45 million dollars have been
redirected to front line services. The recent budget announcement is another step in the right direction.

Karen Burson, Project Manager for Hamilton Eat Local, applauds the government’s decision to promote Ontario food products: “Support for our local farmers and producers leads to the creation of more green jobs in our community”. This budget announcement also comes at a time when the City of Hamilton, like many other urban centres, is experiencing a steady decrease in the number of regional farms. “We need to solidify the link between farmers and public institutions so that farmers have assured markets and so that people in our community have access to safe, local food. By promoting local food procurement policies, we also create the potential to improve the viability of Hamilton area farms, thus creating a more sustainable rural economy.”