August 1, 2012 Leave a comment

Fresh Roots in Globe and Mail Honey Article

“This year, beekeeper Fred Davis, who manages hives in Toronto for Casa Loma and the Canadian Opera Company, has taken urban agriculture a step forward by introducing a community-supported agriculture (CSA) model to his growing business. His hive-share program helps to turn honey-lovers into virtual beekeepers.

It’s the latest in a line of innovative local food initiatives, such as Vancouver’s Fresh Roots Urban Farm, which grows produce in downtown schoolyard “market gardens” and sells it via CSAs, Common Roots Urban Farm in Halifax, which is making productive use of post-demolition downtown land left empty, and Ontario’s Monforte Dairy, which sold multiyear CSA shares to raise funding to build its facility after being turned down for bank loans.”

Read the full article here!

June 15, 2012 Leave a comment

Market Garden to be a Canadian First

“The Vancouver board of education plans to create a school market garden to educate, nourish and inspire students in the city’s east side.

The garden will be developed at Vancouver Technical secondary on East Broadway in September under a new agreement between the board and Fresh Roots Urban Farms, a non-profit society that promotes urban agriculture to feed Vancouver residents. The deal was described as the first of its kind in Canada.

The Van Tech garden will cover about 1,000 square metres of land and is expected to yield thousands of kilograms of vegetables, including Asian greens, salad greens, beets, carrots and garlic, Fresh Roots director Ilana Labow said in an interview. The sale of those vegetables, including for use in school cafeterias, is expected to cover all costs, she added.”

Read the full article here

June 13, 2012 Leave a comment

VSB and Fresh Roots Partner to Create Large School Market Garden at Van Tech

Media Release

VSB and Fresh Roots Partner to Create Large School Market Garden at Van Tech

Vancouver, BC (June 13, 2012) – The Vancouver School Board and non-profit Fresh Roots signed a partnership agreement paving the way for a quarter acre landscaped school market garden. The agreement is the first of its kind in Canada.

“We’re combining local food, urban agriculture and education at our schools,” says Kevin Millsip, Sustainability Coordinator for the VSB. “The work we’re doing on urban agriculture is important and we’re very happy to work with Fresh Roots to take farm to school to the next level.”

The school’s market garden will be specifically designed to provide both an educational space where students can learn about agriculture and gardening while growing Asian greens, salad greens, beets, carrots, garlic and a variety of other vegetables that grow in parallel to the school year. By synchronizing the growing season of the garden with the school year, organizers say students will reap the benefits of a fall and winter harvest.

“Hundreds of children in schools in Vancouver eat our schoolyard grown veggies with huge smiles on their faces because they learn and play in the spaces where their food grows and know their farmers,” said Ilana Labow, a Director with Fresh Roots. “We are so excited to grow a large-scale hands-on learning classroom that will make it possible for thousands of children to share in the same experience.”

School Board officials say the partnership opens up a whole range of possibilities at a time that the district is seeking new ideas to repurpose existing land and facilities in lieu of declining enrolment and fiscal challenges.

“This is a wonderful example of the VSB taking an unusable space and repurposing it into something that’s aesthetically pleasing, educationally engaging and sustainable,” says Rob Wynen, a School Trustee with the Vancouver School Board.

Fresh Roots has already collaborated with the district on a pilot garden project at Queen Alexandra Elementary. The scale of the Van Tech project is expected to dwarf the Queen Alexandra pilot. Fresh Roots organizers say a future market garden is already being planned for David Thompson Secondary.

Photos of the groundbreaking available. For more information or to arrange an interview:
Kurt Heinrich
Public Relations and Media Specialist

April 27, 2012 Leave a comment

Meet Your Farmer on May 2nd

Hello Fresh Roots 2012 CSA Members!

We are so excited you are joining our 2012 CSA! We are anticipating an abundant growing season and enjoying delicious veggies with our neighborhood community.

This year we will have forty-five members for our weekly CSA (community shared agriculture) program. We are thrilled that you are one of them.

We will be hosting a second Meet Your Farmer evening, for those of you that were unable to attend the first, introducing Fresh Roots farmers, staff, growing plans, etc. to all of you. There will be light refreshments available. Feel free to bring food, or wine and beer. It will also be a chance for CSA members to meet one another before the season begins.

When: Wednesday May 2
Time: 6:30pm-8pm
Where: 1595 E 14 (btw. Commercial Dr and Woodland)

If you have any questions, please call Ilana at 778-862-FARM.

Looking forward to sharing a delicious growing season with you! There are still a few CSA shares left – it’s not to late to join.

The Fresh Roots Farm Team

More photos from our Meet Your Farmer Night #1…