Follow Me Foodie: Fresh from your local BC farm

The Parker’s Summer Fling salad is made with greens from the local Vancouver farmers market. Mijune Pak

Follow Me Foodie: Fresh from your local farm

By Mijune Pak , Follow Me Foodie – WE Vancouver
Published: September 11, 2013 1:00 PM
Updated: September 11, 2013 3:37 PM

September 8 to 15 is the fourth annual Farmers’ Appreciation Week which celebrates local food and farmers, and addresses issues facing the local food system.

BC farmers’ markets are hosting activities from farm tours to antique farm equipment displays in celebration.

According to the 2011 Canadian Census of Agriculture, the average age of farmers in BC is higher than the national average. As they get older, the total number of farmers is decreasing. That’s why the BC Association of Farmers’ Markets is emphasizing the need to support young farmers since they are the future to sustaining an “eat local, buy local” food moment and system.

Only five per cent of the land in BC is appropriate for farming and only one per cent of this represents the best soil. Our farmers produce almost half of the food we eat in BC and resources and farmland are scarce.

Farmers produce quality products at affordable prices using sustainable practices, and they rely on public support from chefs and consumers. They supply farm-to-table restaurants and offer Community Shared Agriculture (CSA) — a model where consumers purchase a share of the anticipated harvest in advance, to help farmers early in the season with start-up costs. In return shareholders get weekly supplies of fresh produce.

Here are just a few of the many farms selling quality produce at local farmers’ markets: Read the full article.

See more Follow Me Foodie stories from Mijune in the WE Vancouver:

 

4 Comments

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published.