Food is central to any culture. GO, the Going Organic network in Alberta, is sharing its culture with the launch of GO – a Culinary Community. This cookbook profiles members of the organic community, who share their connection with food, as well as their recipes.
The community is a broadly based group of people who want to see organics bloom in Alberta. They include organic farmers, gardeners, chefs, retailers, businesses and, of course, eaters from around the province and some from Saskatchewan.
Profiles of the GO Alberta community are inspiring.
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Trevor Aleman is a market gardener near Lethbridge whose commitment to organics was emphasized when his first child was born with a cleft palate. He found out that this condition has been linked with herbicide use.
Val and Dave Bogen, grain farmers near Vegreville, Alta., tell of their switch to organics after they found pesticide spraying was interfering with Dave’s health.
Ron Berezan, who owns an organic gardening and landscape business, has a vision of empowering others to become urban farmers to grow their own organic food. Velma Bissoondath, a Calgary artist, finds that GO helps her explain to her friends and family why sustainable and healthy food is so important.
Patricia Shapka, owner of Sunny Boy Foods in Camrose, is dedicated to food that is “fun, nutritious, and … taste(s) great.”
GO – a Culinary Community includes at least one recipe submitted by each of the profiled members. These are as diverse as the profiles and include appetizers, entrees, desserts, food for vegetarians and omnivores, food to appeal to children and for elegant dining.
GO will launch the new book at its conference in Camrose March 11. Chef Wade Sirois of the Infuse Catering company in Calgary and organizer of the event Forage – Farm to Fork Foods to Go, will share his passion for organic and local cuisine. In his foreword to the book, he says our food defines us.
A book launch is only part of the GO conference. A variety of presentations will provide professional development for organic farmers, as well as a learning experience for gardeners and others interested in rural sustainability.
The conference will also provide abundant networking opportunities and chances to build community.
A number of organic groups are partnering with GO to host events that cluster around the main conference. A transition workshop March 9-10 will appeal to producers who are considering converting to organic production.
This workshop provides the information needed to get started, including economics, marketing, agronomy and livestock production. It is led by Steve Snider, GO president and master farmer.
March 12-13 features a western Canadian value chain workshop for producers with new ideas or products, and an organic standards workshop and training session for organic certifiers and inspectors.
Wendell Berry, in the book Pleasures of Eating, tells us that “eating with the fullest pleasure – pleasure, that is, that does not depend on ignorance – is perhaps the profoundest enactment of our connection with the world.”
With its new book, Going Organic reminds us of this connection with the earth, with food and with each other.
For more information on the GO conference or the book launch, visit www.goingorganic.ca.
Brenda Frick, senior research and extension associate for Organic Agriculture Centre of Canada at the University of Saskatchewan, welcomes comments at 306-966-4975 or organic@usask.ca. OACC articles are archived at www.oacc.info.
