Summary & Presentations

Click here to view photos from the conference

Opening Keynote Presentation

Margaret Webb
• Think Big, Canada Powerpoint

Starting Out

Larry Bockus (Moderator), Jeff Burke, Brendan Grant, Dan Vanlenthe
Jeff Burke - Brule Creek Farms

The following are a few points that I would either consider very important when starting a business or would do differently next time:

1. When writing up the business plan over-estimate costs and under-estimate revenue.

2. Order supplies, equipment, etc. ASAP (I ended up waiting for some things that took a long time to come in).

3. Understand all the regulations (it's more difficult to change things afterwards than to do it right the first time).

4. Everything will take longer than you think, so don't set your self up for some strict deadlines or contracts.

5. Be flexible and don't think that the business plan is set in stone because not everything will go as planned.

Brendan Grant – Sleepy G Farm

Three things I would reconsider are:

1.  Equipment needs and wants
2.  Pasture logistics
3.  Location and layout of growing areas

Dan Vanlenthe – Squash Queen

1. Watering systems
2. Time is a commodity
3. Burn out
4. Being a commercial grower but not growing a commercial product

The Capacity of Our Regional Food Shed

Catherine Schwartz-Mendez (Moderator), Dr.Will Wilson, Rudy Buitenhuis, Peter Katona
• Local Food Production Powerpoint
• Making the Local Food Connection Powerpoint

Realities of Farming

Peggy Brekveld (Moderator), Deb Cornell, Kevin Belluz
• Realities of Farming Powerpoint

Wild and Indigenous Foods
Rick Neilson (Moderator), Dr. Ken Deacon, Daniel Gladu, Mary Bea Kenny

Edible Weeds, Dr. Ken Deacon

I HATE weeding our garden, but I LOVE those first spring salads and when we have had our fill of greens I LOVE freezing the surplus for the winter. When I discovered that the earliest edible greens in the garden were the weeds that I hated, it changed my outlook entirely. We now broadcast weed seeds in the autumn to ensure an abundant crop the following spring.  We now use our entire garden space for the production of greens which means we do have enough to freeze.  After these first greens are harvested we plant our other vegetable seeds for the summer with no affect on overall productivity.  Some weeds are left undisturbed to increase in size in the areas where we plant frost sensitive seedlings, such as tomatoes and peppers.  Other weeds are left as a seed source for the following year.  The change in our approach to gardening has added interest and food to our lives.

Learn about some of the common edible weeds found in almost every garden in Thunder Bay.  With almost no effort you too can be eating your first garden salad in April.

• Edible Weeds Powerpoint

The Mushroom Hunter, Daniel Gladu

Have you ever wanted to learn more about foraging for wild mushrooms?  Or are you a passionate mycophile (lover of mushrooms)? Part of this session focused on a brief walk into that mysterious world of mushrooms. Along the way participants looked at five common, delicious and easy to identify mushrooms found in Northwestern Ontario, including the Morel, the Oyster, the Puffball, the Chanterelle and the Shaggy Mane. Participants got practical advice on how to identify each, where to look, and how to eat them. They also explored some of the pitfalls when hunting for mushrooms and how to avoid them, including notable poisonous varieties. Mushrooms are but an extension of a much bigger organism that thrives invisibly beneath the soil. They are notoriously stubborn to grow and hard to study, but fun to pick. Wild mushroom hunting can become an enjoyable pastime, a serious source of food, or even income. Learning how to pick and identify mushrooms can be a daunting, but by sharing stories and learning from each other all of us can become better at it. Daniel Gladu is a passionate mycolophile and biologist; he has been cooking, growing and hunting mushrooms for ten years. He and Rick Neilson organize a yearly mushroom hunting course near Stratton, Ontario.

• The Mushroom Hunter (PDF)

Edible Species in the Region – Mary Bea Kenny

This talk focused on edible species in our region and how to identify them.  It included some comparisons regarding non-edible / poisonous plants that people should be aware grow in close proximity and look very similar. 

• The Mushroom Hunter (PDF)
• Bush and Bog: Plants to Eat

The Northern Greenhouse

LeeAnn Chevrette (Moderator), Leo Hunnakko, Arjen Debruin, Carol Ford and Chuck Waibel

GH365 Prototype, Cold Climate, Solar Energy Greenhouse - Leo Hunnakko

This session got underway with a brief look at some of the history of ‘cold climate greenhouses’ of note being winter crops grown as far back as the 1980’s in Northeast China. Self-sufficiency was also touched on as an important aspect of the feasibility study Mr. Hunnakko is undertaking; that is, the ability to grow vegetables year-round in a cold climate region with little supplementary heating and electrical consumption.
           
Showing progress photographs, participants followed the process of building such a prototype greenhouse examining the most salient features from the ground up. These included site preparation, footings, framing, heat retention wall, south glazing, insulation, fan and vent, interior and exterior finishing. They also got to see the guts of the solar thermal installation i.e. the collectors, hot water tank, plumbing hook-ups and planter table features. This was follwed with a look at the datalogging apparatus-- function, accuracy and purpose. Finally and most importantly participants got to view a wide range of healthy vegetables growing inside a snow-laden greenhouse.
           
The presentation ended with what is foreseen as future applications for such a prototype, cold climate, solar thermal greenhouse. These range from remote First Nations communities; farmers wanting to extend their growing season; community food initiatives and even residential houses wherein our homes become places where we grow much of what we eat.

Moving Beyond the EIS

Rudy Buitenhuis, Peggy Brekveld – Co-Presenters
• Moving Beyond the EIS Powerpoint
• Thunder Bay Agriculture Powerpoint

Where’s the (Local) Beef?  It’s Here…(and Lamb…and Elk…and Pork!)

Janice Piper (Moderator), Deb Cornell, Bill Groenheide, Rob Walsh

Deb Cornell, Rainy River Elk Company

• Started with 21 Elk in 1995. Presently 125 Elk and we produce 45 per year. We have not added additional elk on to the property since 1998 to prevent spread of disease. Use artificial insemination to expand the herd.
• Each animal is double tagged and documented. We maintain records with the Canadian Food Inspection Agency (CIFA) and participate in a Certification Program t declare us free from chronic Wasting Disease (CWD).
• Elk eat grass as a staple. In summer they are rotted among seven large paddocks with natural pastures; in winter they are fed round bales of local hay. All elk are hand –fed a grain ration at varying times of the year that is specifically mixed to meet their nutritional needs. This practice also trains them to come when called.
• Elk are not given hormones, steriods or antibiotics in their feed.

Why Eat Elk Meat?

• Long considered the premium “venison”
• Part of the traditional diet of North-western Ontario for thousands
• Because of the high intake of grasses, their little marbling in their meat. Compared with traditional domesticated meats this means:
• lower saturated fats (a diet high in saturated fats can raise your risk of heart disease)
• higher in polyunsaturated fats (good fat)
• lower in cholesterol
• higher in essential fatty acids which are important in the human immune system and in heart health
• higher in protein
• Elk is generally interchangeable in beef recipes. However, it is a lean meat, that can be cooked as “rare as you dare” and should not be overcooked.

Rainy River Elk Company products are available at Farmer’s Markets in Northwestern Ontario.

• Pork as Your Dinner Powerpoint
• Where's The Local Beef Powerpoint

Food Preservation

Diana Bockus, Rick Neilson (Co-moderators), Marianne Glazier

With a three month growing season here in Northwestern Ontario, where would we be if it weren’t for canning, drying, freezing, pickling and fermenting- a diverse array of food preserving methods with deep cultural roots connecting us to our ancestors, natures rhythms and our own basic needs? By preparing and storing an adequate supply of food for the years to come, our needs are ensured from the unexpected crop failure or erratic environmental factors. And by using different food storage methods we are allowed to procure a diversity of foods to meet our nutritional needs as well as reap the success of bumper crops. Highly perishable foods can be kept for extended periods of time without all the chemicals and preservatives found in commercially availably, refined, nutritionally devoid foods most commonly available. Imagine the benefits of devoting some time and energy to creating your own food preserves?! Not only are you reducing your ecological footprint by investing your own time and energy but you will inevitable become connected to layers in your community that will enrich the diversity of your life and deepen cultural roots- and you get to eat great nutritious food!

Food Justice: Where Production Meets Politics

Gwen O’Reilly (Moderator), Jenn Maki, Janet Gordon

Gwen O’Reilly

Food has become a commodity - one that many people can no longer afford.  But food and clean water should be considered a basic human right for all people - this is the basis for concepts like food security and food sovereignty.  It is not possible to separate food security from economic security - for most, they are irrevocably linked.  And rates of economic insecurity correspond directly to people who face marginalization due to race, ethnicity, disability, gender or class.  Inadequate welfare rates are as much an issue for the food movement as loss of farms and farmland. Food security is therefore a social justice issue, and the food security movement must consider more than the means of production and distribution - it must address issues of social inequity. 

Jenn Maki/Janet Gordon

Food security is a social determinant of health. Research has found a high prevalence of food insecurity among residents of remote First Nations. Data regarding the cost of eating and some staple household items were collected from three remote First Nations in the Sioux Lookout Zone using a modified Nutritious Food Basket survey. Using items captured in the Nutritious Food Basket, the monthly cost of eating for a reference family of four in the three communities was $1382.44, almost 200% more than the cost of eating in the NWHU catchment area and over 250% more than that reported by Toronto Public Health. The population demographics and household composition differ from both national and provincial averages. With a greater population in the 0-19 age group and larger households, the cost of feeding a family is likely even higher. Measures need to be taken quickly to alleviate the financial burden of healthy eating on First Nation families, and improve health status.