Great Canned Goodness

The Tofino Community Food Initiative has been working hard, preparing holiday goodies for you. Please come and visit our booth at this weekend's craft fair at the Weigh West. Although the craft fair is on Saturday (1 to 7) and Sunday (11 to 4), the TCFI will only be there on Saturday so get there early to ensure you won't miss out on such delectable (and well-named) treats as:

A Hint of Mint Organic Strawberry Jam

Sunset Point Pickled Kelp

"Tastes Like Apple Pie and Ice Cream" BC Apple Butter

"Can't Get Enough Of It" Spicy Tomato Chutney

Star Struck Pickled Port Alberni Beets

and much more. See you there!

All proceeds to support the TCFI's work in our community.

2nd Annual Edible Garden Tour!

2nd Edible Garden Tour Poster

Take part in this well-loved tour and you will be surprised and inspired by the abundance of food that is grown by Tofino's dedicated gardeners. In true Tofitian style, each gardener approaches the challenges of growing on the wet coast with wonderful creativity and individuality. Enjoy the beauty, share tips, ask questions and make new friends!


Thursday September 9th
11am - 7pm

Map:

Edible Garden Tour Map

Okanagan Fruit delivered to Tofino and Ukee!

Hi everyone,

Just wanted to let you know that you can order seasonal fruit from an Okanagan farm by the case load and it will be delivered here weekly! Woohoo!

Here is the website, check it out:

OK Fruit

Garden Party - Tomorrow!

We hope to see you at the garden party tomorrow (Sunday, June 27) afternoon. It is a fundraiser for the community garden. The tea will be held in the garden at 380 Gibson St. — rain or shine (we have lots of tents on stand-by). The tea includes sweet and savory goodies, hot and cold tea, entertainment and garden games. Tickets are $12 in advance, $15 at the garden gate and $5 for children ages 10 and under. You can get tickets at Green Soul Organics, Chocolate Tofino, Storm Surf or from Adrienne (ak_mason@telus.net) or Leah (tofinolocalfood@yahoo.ca). There are sittings at 1 and at 3, but if either of those times don't work, please come when you can. Hope to see you tomorrow!

Thank you for the great fundraiser!!!

Thanks to everyone for coming to the "Let's Get Dirty" Short Film Fest at Shelter the other night!! It was such a great success thanks to you and we raised nearly $800 for the community garden!! The budget for the garden is about $23,000 and we need about $15,500 more (rain water collection system is expensive!). We have a bank account at the CIBC in the name of the Tofino Community Food Initiative if you or anyone you know would like to make a donation to the project. Thanks again everyone!!! Sppecial thanks to Shelter Restaurant (Jay, Shawna and all the staff) and the illustrious MC of the evening, Doug Wright!

"Let's Get Dirty" Short Film Festival

Join the TCFI at Shelter on April 7th for 4 wonderfully inspiring short films, local food and drink specials, and great raffle prizes. Funds raised will go towards the creation of our first community garden up at the Wickaninnish Community School. Special thanks to Shelter for graciously hosting this event!

The following 4 short films will be featured:

1) Homegrown Revolution

"In the midst of a densely urban setting in downtown Pasadena, radical change is taking root. For over twenty years, the Dervaes family have transformed their home into an urban homestead. They harvest nearly 3 tons of organic food from their 1/10 acre garden while incorporating many back-to-basics practices, as well as solar energy and biodiesel."



2) Looking at the UBC Farm

"This film looks at the teaching, learning, urban agriculture and community development that happens in the 24 hectare space called UBC Farm / Centre for Sustainable Food Systems, which is under threat of development."



3)Indigenous Plant Diva

"In the language of the Squamish Nation, Cease Wyss was given the name 'T'Uy'Tanat', meaning 'Woman who travels by canoe to gather medicines for all people.'
In director Kamala Todd's lyrical portrait, Wyss reveals the remarkable healing powers of plants growing among the sprawling urban streets of downtown Vancouver.
Whether it's the secret curl of a fiddlehead, the gentleness of comfrey, or the blood red streaks of frog leaf, plants carry with them millennia of wisdom, communicated through colour, texture and form. Cease Wyss has been listening to this unspoken language, and is now passing this ancient and intimate sense of connection to her own daughter, Senaqwila."



4) A well-Watered Garden

"The film at the centre of this film is part of a faith community called Jacob's well in Vancouver, Canada's downtown east side. This neighbourhood has complex difficulties including extreme poverty (the poorest postal code in Canada), drug addiction (more than five thousand needle users), widespread disease (highest HIV & AIDS infection in the western world), and prevalent mental illness (estimated more then 50% of area resident).The Jacob's Well community has a unique, relational approach to sharing life with residents of the neighbourhood through visiting people, gardening, gathering around the table, worshiping, praying and serving."

Europe loses battle on GM foods

This is very bad news for North America. Europe has traditionally raised the bar higher than Canada and the USA but when the European Parliament President says the battle cannot be won so they must give in....that's not good. In fact it is terrible--terribly weak! Here is the link to the article: News link

The Plight of the Family Farm

Check out some short videos here.

Life in Iowa can be punishing. Many Iowans expend their lives sweating over soil and spilling the blood of livestock; they endure the hardships associated with a life inextricably bound to the ups and downs of nature. Today, those challenges and a shift in our nation's economy have pushed the youth of rural communities to migrate to the metropolises of America. Those left in the wake of this out-migration continue their lives, seemingly unchanged from the generations that preceded them, and entombed in obscurity.

The tension of contemporary rural life plays out here: the struggle of a family farm to continue, disenfranchised youth, the slaughterhouse, migrant labor, and the aged fading from Iowa's mythical landscape. Through their stories we gain insight to a way of life that is disappearing, a culture that could be lost forever.

As "community" continues to be homogenized in zones of urban sprawl across the globe, we must consider all that we are losing—development should not come at the expense of more fragile communities.

Tla-o-qui-aht Community Traditional Foods & Medicine Workshops!

Join Gisele Martin and the Tla-o-qui-aht for a workshop promoting healthy lifestyles and traditional knowledge. A healthy meal with traditional foods will be provided. Workshop discussions include traditional food and medicines, harvesting, hunting and preparation. Alternative forms of healing and health care will also be introduced.

For Tla-o-qui-aht community.

1st workshop:
Date: Monday Feb.15th
Time: 10 am-4pm
Location: Long Beach Golf Course.

2nd workshop:
Date: Tuesday Feb.16th
Time: 10am-4pm
Location: Opitsaht Community Hall

Door prizes will be given!

------------------------------------------

3rd and 4th workshops are being planned for our urban members:
Port Alberni on Thursday Feb.25th,
Nanaimo on Friday, Feb.26th
(locations to be announced)