October 27, 2022 Leave a comment

FARMER’S LOG, SEED DATE OCTOBER 26, 2022

It’s time to wrap things up on the farm. We had our last market of the season on Saturday and final CSA pickup the week before. Even though our plants aren’t melting away like they usually do at this time of the year, they have stopped producing and are ready for their next stage of life and death in the compost.

While Fresh Roots winterizes the farms, we are also looking for someone to replace me during my parental leave in 2023. This person will be starting early in the year and working all season, overlapping with my return at the end of the summer. I’m hoping to find a person who will want to continue working with Fresh Roots for many years to come after I’m back. So, in an effort to recruit someone awesome, I’ve decided to use this blog entry to give a little breakdown of my position during peak season, and make it easier for folks to imagine themselves here.

Farm Manager: Season Overview

The FR core team spends the winter strategizing on how to make things smooth, fun, and true to our overall mission. This makes spring feel totally fresh and exciting. The first thing the farm manager does is review the crop plan, count the seeds, and place a seed order. Then, there’s organizing the spaces, figuring out what compost and amendments are needed, and spending more money (provided by early season CSA purchases) on all the good stuff. Seeds for our long-season crops need to be started either in the ‘grow-op’ in our storage space at the office, or in the prop house in the courtyard of David Thompson. Direct seeding starts at the end of February, so a portion of the farm’s beds need to be prepped and amended in preparation.

Next is hiring the farm team. The team looks a little different every year depending on where we are farming, but for the Vancouver site, I hire the following positions: 1) Market Lead, 2) David Thompson Field Lead, 3) Van Tech Field Lead, and 4) SOYL Jr Market Assistant. There may also be volunteers, interns and LFS students who need to be onboarded, too.

By May, all these folks should have their schedules and start a 5-week training program to get familiar with their responsibilities. This means that by the middle of June and the start of the CSA pickup, the staff and volunteers know what’s up and can graduate to beginning their leadership phase. This marks the start of Peak Season when we all need to work together as an oiled machine to meet our goals. By the first week of July, our summer youth internship program starts up, and SOYL youth will be directed by the farm workers in farm and market tasks for 6 weeks.

A Week in the Boots of a Farm Manager

Here’s what my week looked like in 2022’s peak season, keeping in mind that 2023 may look differently depending on which markets we sign-up for, how we structure our CSA, and who is helping us harvest:

Monday: Admin and Communications

This work can either be done on the Fresh Roots computers in our office or from home on the farm manager’s personal computer. I usually work from home with my cat on my lap and a steamy mug of tea.

Email, orders, payments, newsletters, blog
Data entry of harvest, sales & CSA records from the previous week
15-minute visits to the sites to see what veggies are coming up and making lists of what needs to be done
This week’s harvest planning for CSA and Market. Record plans in the Harvest Plan and CSA Plan documents
Field work plans for the week plus delegation of seeding & transplanting plans and ensuring data entry has been done
Work plan emailed to all the farm team including links to Field Work, CSA & Harvest Plans
Communicating in slack with all the other departments in Fresh Roots about what kids can do on the farm, and where we might need help. This means making clear plans with facilitators and managers in: Experiential Learning (EL), Sustainable Opportunities for Youth leadership (SOYL), & our Administrators (ED, Ops, and Comms).
Fresh Sheet for EL so they can plan their farm lunches for day camp (feeds 40 kids)
Expense reporting
Review & approve the farm team’s hours if it’s the end of a pay period

Tuesday – Harvest Day

730am: meet at David Thompson to harvest tender veggies
1130am: ICC cooler – drop off harvest and eat lunch
1-3pm: Van tech harvest of fruiting veggies / hot crops
3-330pm: drop off harvest at the ICC cooler

Wednesday – Market Day & CSA Pickup #1

730am: harvest flowers & any remaining harvest needed for CSA or Market
1130am: pick up our bread order and maybe mushroom order
Lunch!
1-330pm: help set up the market (operates 3-7) with the Market Lead and whoever is helping out that day; either another farm team member, SOYL Youth, or volunteers

Thursday – Harvest Day

730am: David Thompson
1130am: ICC Cooler
Lunch!
1-3pm: Van Tech
3-330pm: ICC cooler

Friday – Field Work, Remaining Harvest & CSA Delivery for Pickup #2

730am: complete any necessary harvest for CSA Pickup / Saturday market. Otherwise field work! 230 CSA Delivery to Collingwood Neighbourhood House for their “Community Care Veggie Box” program
330pm: finished!

Saturday – VFM Market

OFF!

Sunday – Everybody takes a day of rest!

OFF!

Wrapping Up the Season

Once the farm team’s summer contracts are over – usually at the end of August – one of the workers will stay on through the fall to help wrap up the CSA & markets and to winterize the farm. In 2023, I’ll be back to help the acting FM wrap things up. Together, we’ll write the crop plan for 2024 and work on the end-of-season reporting. We’ll also staff any remaining markets together, likely adjusting our schedules to Tuesday to Saturday.

There are many other pieces of work that aren’t explicitly outlined in my weekly schedule – like all the planning and training that happens, community outreach events, volunteer events, tours, and workshops I lead. These bits and bobs are usually crammed into Mondays or Fridays, or woven into harvest days. Volunteer and youth training is also delegated to the farm team members during their field work time. Overseeing the schedules of each farm team member can be a jigsaw puzzle, noting that each member has their own domain to manage and it’s up to the Farm Manager to make sure responsibilities are fulfilled and deadlines are being met so we can meet our CSA and Market commitments. It’s also up to the Farm manager to make sure that mentorship is happening across the organization – so that the farm team members are supported and empowered to teach youth the skills they’ve acquired in their first 5 weeks.

Peak Season is incredibly dense but it’s a lot of fun. All of the folks working on the farm are youth – from the farm team to the 4-year old campers in the EL program. There is so much life and energy to play with in this job, and I hope whoever is looking for that kind of fun will apply!

– Farmer Camille

Do you have what it takes to be our Acting Good Farm Manager in 2023? Apply here: https://freshroots.bamboohr.com/careers/53

August 17, 2022 Leave a comment

FARMER’S LOG, SEED DATE AUGUST 12, 2022

Here I am, about two weeks late, at 6:30am on a Friday making another attempt at August’s farm blog. It’s not that I don’t enjoy telling a story – those who know me or have sat at a table in one of the restaurants I’ve worked at have their ears coated in my poetic wax. I just haven’t had a minute to catch my breath. It’s peak season!

If you follow FR on the socials, you may have learned that I have a growing obsession with flowers. Nicole (the David Thompson Field Lead) and I have been churning out about 15 bouquets every Wednesday to bring joy to our market stand. It has been a blast to share these blooms with our marketgoers at the ICC – and see their eyes light up when they land on the bursts of colour by the till. I’m hoping that next year we can get SOYL participants learning about flower arranging – and maybe bring in an expert at the beginning of the season to lead a workshop. If you know an expert florist or are one yourself and would love to lead a workshop with youth next summer, please reach out to me – camille@freshroots.ca! We would also love to install some garden-helper mushrooms in the woodchip & straw paths (I’m thinking King stropharia and oyster) so if you’ve got some spawn, let me know.

SOYL just wrapped up their last day yesterday! 6 weeks of youthful exuberance filled the beds at Van Tech and now those sweet almost-adults have left us in the dust. To commemorate, our final Community Eats lunch on Wednesday was epic: everyone gorged on handmade tacos with extensive fillings and then two vegetable cakes: one chocolate zucchini; the other beet and oat. We then rounded out the very last SOYL-attended market at the ICC. Fresh Roots feels completely different without the youth buzzing around, so I’m thankful that EL still has camps for another 2.5 weeks. Overhearing the young kids’ hilarious conversations in the shade of the cherry blossom trees at David Thompson is the cherry on top of harvest days. Here’s an example I pulled from our #overheardatcamp channel on slack:

“Chef doodle I want to eat your face off because everything you make is so yummy”

Or, perhaps, about a really big pregnant (?) ant: “she could be moving house or mad”

I especially enjoyed the pregnant comment, as I am housing a sweet little human in my own body, and agree that yes, being pregnant sure has made me mad, especially while harvesting on black plastic in a heat wave. My ankles will never be the same again.

Although our youth programs are trickling to an end, there are lots of things on the horizon. On Wednesday, August 17th, the ICC and Fresh Roots are going to be hosting guest vendors at our market. There will be Mexican food, Egyptian hand pies, local tea, and natural soaps and cleaning products. For more information on these vendors tune into our socials @freshrootsfarms

The farm team is wrapping up their CSJ contracts, which breaks my heart as well. But it means that mid-August is the end of our seeding and the start of putting the beds to sleep for the winter. We will be sowing cover crop, unfolding silage, planting garlic, and mulching with straw. It reminds me of bears building a den for the winter. The prospect of the fall with sweet cool wind on the horizon and mushrooms popping up is a real delight, being a fall baby myself. I’ll also be taking a week off to revitalize in the cedars for my birthday, which I am coveting with my whole heart.

Working with youth on this farm is inspiring, wonderful and hilarious. That said, being a non-profit that relies so heavily on Canada Summer Jobs grants to employ Fresh Roots’ farm staff is an epic challenge. Especially with this season being so late. The limitations of CSJ end dates mean that we are only half way through our 20-week CSA and haven’t harvested a single red heirloom tomato while our workers’ contracts are wrapping up. In Vancouver, Fresh Roots grows tomatoes in the field, without a cover, so this wretchedly slow start to the season has prevented most of our fruiting veg from ripening. And although our markets have been busy and sell out, we have only half the stock variety we usually do, so our sales remain about 30% lower than last season. So with the implications of the weather and being a non-profit urban farm, I’m anticipating a huge harvest on my hands through the fall while my baby belly waggles between my squat legs. I am crossing my fingers that the rest of the core team isn’t too bogged down with their own work to come and help out in the field while I acknowledge the huge loss of skilled farm labour fading away with the cornucopia of fall harvest on the way. In any case, I am certainly working hard to earn my maternity leave.

Hopefully I will be able to tune in again sooner than 6 weeks from now, although we all know that a farmer’s hands are more than full during the summer here in the PNW. Until then, relish the joy of sweet summer stone fruit juice trickling down your chin and swimming in our gorgeous waters.

– Farmer Camille

August 12, 2022 Leave a comment

Attention Foodies This Urban Farm Fundraisers Dinner Menu Looks Spectacular

Eat charcoal hummus! Think of the children!

By Alyssa Hirose

Jul 4, 2022

Vancouver nonprofit Fresh Roots is best known for their farming-focused youth programs—summer camps, in-school workshops and other organized educational activities that encourage kids to get their hands dirty. So you probably wouldn’t expect their fundraiser to include rainbow trout ceviche, wine-macerated figs and burnt onion charcoal hummus.

But the urban farm society’s annual fundraising dinner isn’t made by the kids (there must be some kind of legislation around children and wine-macerating, anyway). It’s done in partnership with local chefs, and this year’s spread includes dishes by Robert Clark and Julian Bond of Organic Ocean, TJ Conwi of Ono Vancouver and Brockton Lane of Sirius Eats food truck. Plus, there’s goods from 33 Acres, Wards Cider, Edna’s Non-Alcoholic Cocktails, Earnest Ice Cream and Kafka’s Coffee.

A snapshot of the 2019 dinner.

The event, called “Before Sunset,” is on Thursday July 7 from 4:30pm to 7:30pm. Eventbrite tickets are priced from $134 for adults and $28 for children under 12. Here’s the full menu:

Drinks:
33 Acres of Sunshine French Blanchè and Ocean West Coast Pale Ale
Wards Hard Apple Cider
Edna’s Paloma and Mojito Cocktails

From chefs at Organic Ocean:
Spot Prawn Carpaccio, Hokkaido Scallop Ceviche on cedar planks

From chef at Sirius Eats food truck:
Beet Ceviche
(marinated Kwantlen Polytechnic University (KPU) Farm beets and carrot aguachile)

Sirius Veg Burger
(Oyster and King Farm mushrooms, mini bun)

Rainbow Trout Ceviche
(chlorophyll aguachile, KPU farm herbs)

Farmcrest Chicken Slider
(crisp chicken, pickled KPU farm radish)

From chef at Ono Vancouver:
Rainbow Trout Roulade (smoked salmon mousse, Haida Gwaii kelp dust, nori, rhubarb wild-berry jelly, bannock crackers)

On the grazing table:

Bannock flatbread

Wine-macerated figs and fruit

Squid ink soil and burnt onion charcoal hummus

“Textures of Fresh Roots Farm” veg, and lacto-fermeted veg

Pickled, roasted and raw KPU Farm veg

Oyster and King Farms mushroom conserva

Crackers, olives, vegan charcuterie, cheese and spreads

For dessert:

Earnest Ice Cream sandwich

Kafka’s Coffee Roasting Horchata Cold Brew

Of course, you can donate to the nonprofit any time of year, but this is an extra-special (and tasty) way to show support. It’s the first time that Fresh Roots has hosted the dinner in-person since 2019, thanks to the COVID pandemic.

The dinner takes place outdoors on the urban farm at David Thompson Secondary, so guests can walk around and see the grounds for themselves. There’s live music from Sam Parton of the Be Good Tanyas and art activities for the youth (and young at heart) too. Get your tickets here.

https://www.vanmag.com/Attention-Foodies-This-Urban-Farm-Fundraisers-Dinner-Menu-Looks-Spectacular

August 12, 2022 Leave a comment

Fresh Roots Summer Fundraiser: Before Sunset

June 7, 2022

Foodgressing Vancouver

Fresh Roots Urban Farm Society is excited about the return to in-person events and can’t wait to see you at this year’s summer fundraiser, Before Sunset, on Thursday, July 7.

Celebrating nature’s bounty on the verdant farm grounds of David Thompson Secondary School in Vancouver, Before Sunset is an early-evening event from 4:30 to 7:30pm. Early-bird tickets, which are available until June 20, start at $100 for adults and $25 for kids and include activities, live music, food, and drink.

Before Sunset attendees will soak up summer’s splendour en plein air, drinking in the magic of golden hour while enjoying a festive meal centred around incredible locally sourced and crafted fare. Guests are encouraged to mingle and wander through the schoolyard farm, a direct connection with the environment in which the evening’s food was grown. Highlights include a grazing table and tasting plates prepared by beloved chefs TJ Conwi (Ono Vancouver), Robert Clark and Julian Bond (Organic Ocean), and Sirius Craving food truck, plus beverages from 33 Acres Brewing Company, Wards Cider, and Edna’s Non-Alcoholic Cocktails, as well as a sweet finish by Earnest Ice Cream and Kafka’s Coffee Roasting.

Fresh Roots Before Sunset Menu

33 Acres of Sunshine French Blanchè, and Ocean West Coast Pale Ale Wards Hard Apple Cider Edna’s Paloma, and Mojito Cocktails (non-alc)

Spot Prawn Carpaccio
Hokkaido Scallop Ceviche

on cedar planks By chefs Rob Clark and Julian Bond | Organic Ocean Seafood

Beet Ceviche

marinated Kwantlen Polytechnic University (KPU) Farmbeets, and carrot aguachile

Sirius Veg Burger

Oyster and King Farm mushrooms, mini bun

Rainbow Trout Ceviche

chlorophyll aguachile, KPU farm herbs

Farmcrest Chicken Slider

crisp chicken, pickled KPU farm radish

By chef Brockton Lane | Sirius Eats Food Truck ~

Fresh Roots Grazing Table

squid ink soil, and burnt onion charcoal hummus
textures of Fresh Roots Farm veg, and lacto-fermeted veg
pickled, roasted and raw KPU Farm veg
Oyster and King Farms mushroom conserva
bannock flatbread
wine-macerated figs and fruit
crackers, olives, vegan charcuterie, cheese and spreads

Rainbow Trout Roulade

smoked salmon mousse, Haida Gwaii kelp dust, nori, rhubarb wild-berry jelly, bannock crackers

By chef TJ Conwi | Ono Vancouver ~

Earnest Ice Cream Sandwich

Kafka’s Coffee Roasting Horchata Cold Brew

In addition to a delicious feast, guests can enjoy fun farm-based education and art activities, plus a slate of live entertainment including a soulful performance from Sam Parton, a founding member of the Be Good Tanyas.

Funds generated by this highly anticipated annual event directly benefit Fresh Roots’ youth programs, which empower young people to connect with both their community and the food on their plate. Fresh Roots participants learn how to grow and sell food through planting, harvesting, and working at farmer’s markets. They develop valuable farming and entrepreneurial experience while also nurturing their self-confidence and ability to work effectively as a team.

Partners of Fresh Roots 2022 Before Sunset fundraiser include: Organic Ocean, 33 Acres Brewing Co., Edna’s Non-Alcoholic Cocktail Company, Wards Cider, Ono Vancouver, Sirius Craving, Spud, KPU Farm, Oyster and King Mushrooms, Fraser Valley Seafood, Spread ‘Em Kitchen Co., Earnest Ice Cream, Kafka’s Coffee Roasting, Maenam, Seasons Bakery, Katharine Manson Communications, Modo Co-operative, East Van Graphics, plus more generous donors to be announced in the days to come.

Before Sunset tickets are on sale now until July 6 via Eventbrite, and priced at $100 for early-bird adults (increases to $125 after June 20), $25 for kids, and $200 for VIP packages.

August 12, 2022 Leave a comment

Grab Tickets for the Before Sunset Outdoors Dinner

By Scout Editors

Jun 6, 2022

The Fresh Roots ‘Before Sunset’ schoolyard dinner spreads across the fields of David Thompson Secondary schoolyard Thursday, July 7th.

Besides a bunch of fresh, expertly prepared food and drinks, Before Sunset guests will also be invited to enjoy live music, take tours of the on-site farm gardens, and participate in some fun activities. We think that the real thrill, though, is the idea of piling into the David Thompson Secondary schoolyard after all of the students have cleared out for the summer, to spend a few hours connecting with friends and other members of the food-loving community. Scout got a sneak peek of the evening’s dinner spread, and we’re already sold. Check it out for yourself below:

Fresh Roots Before Sunset Menu

33 Acres of Sunshine French Blanchè, and Ocean West Coast Pale Ale
Wards Hard Apple Cider
Edna’s Paloma, and Mojito Cocktails (non-alc)
~

Spot Prawn Carpaccio
Hokkaido Scallop Ceviche on cedar planks

By chefs Rob Clark and Julian Bond | Organic Ocean Seafood
~

Beet Ceviche
marinated Kwantlen Polytechnic University (KPU) Farm beets, and carrot aguachile

Sirius Veg Burger
Oyster and King Farm mushrooms, mini bun

Rainbow Trout Ceviche
chlorophyll aguachile, KPU farm herbs

Farmcrest Chicken Slider
crisp chicken, pickled KPU farm radish

By chef Brockton Lane | Sirius Eats Food Truck
~

Fresh Roots Grazing Table
squid ink soil, and burnt onion charcoal hummus
textures of Fresh Roots Farm veg, and lacto-fermeted veg
pickled, roasted and raw KPU Farm veg
Oyster and King Farms mushroom conserva
bannock flatbread
wine-macerated figs and fruit
crackers, olives, vegan charcuterie, cheese and spreads
Rainbow Trout Roulade
smoked salmon mousse, Haida Gwaii kelp dust, nori, rhubarb wild-berry jelly, bannock crackers

By chef TJ Conwi | Ono Vancouver
~

Earnest Ice Cream Sandwich
Kafka’s Coffee Roasting Horchata Cold Brew

Early Bird tickets, available until June 20th, are $100 per person. For those who have been saving up to splurge, there’s also a $200 VIP option that comes with special perks and a ‘goodie bag’. Regular ticket sales ($125 per person, $25 for kids) are technically open right up until July 6th, but we seriously doubt they’ll last that long… so don’t risk disappointment by putting off securing your spots! Head over here now. Bonus: all funds from the event go towards continuing Fresh Roots’ awesome hands-on farming programs for youth (find out more).

https://scoutmagazine.ca/2022/06/06/grab-tickets-for-the-before-sunset-outdoors-dinner-now/

July 18, 2022 Leave a comment

FARMER’S LOG, SEED DATE JULY 1, 2022

WOW, welcome to the busiest moment at Fresh Roots. The week of July 4th is when all of our summer youth programming starts up – SOYL Internships in Vancouver, Delta & Coquitlam – and the EL Summer Camp at David Thompson. It’s also the week of our epic, annual fundraiser, where we haul together to fund our humongous programs, farm, and community work. Even though the sun is only mildly sticking his head out, we are sweating!

Speaking of the weather, wasn’t that nice to get some vitamin D over a handful of days this past month? The dramatic shift between constant, cool moisture and then a high of 34C meant all our daikons bolted, resulting in a pitiful 30lb harvest from 65 feet of plants. That said, our lettuces, brassica greens, and salad radishes have been absolutely radiant, and peas are coming in a rather late but epic wave of sweet, verdant pods. Rubicon Napa Cabbages were excellent, too.

While it’s been wonderful to swim in greens and tender radishes, we are so ready to reap the fruit of our labour. Many of our fruiting veggies are still a month behind, and aren’t showing signs of speeding up much. In an effort to try to stimulate faster growth, we planted most of our hot crops into black landscape fabric and installed low tunnels to mimic greenhouse conditions. Summer Squash looks like it might be ready for CSA in a couple of weeks but tomatoes definitely won’t hit the market until August. And peppers & eggplant — eek — maybe not until September.

Our markets have been going very smoothly. It’s been wonderful to stock it brimming with tasty plumage and come back with very little that didn’t find a home. However, did you know that every single morsel that comes back to our cooler is recovered either within the organization through our community eats program, or shared with South Van Neighbourhood House or Collingwood Neighbourhood house? Literally nothing is wasted. Being in an urban setting, connected with many food security organizations means that it’s easy to revert our market returns to mouths, and I’m so thankful for it.

The farm team is finally complete with our newest member, Freshta. That reminds me – I ought to introduce the amazing folks that make up this season’s high-functioning, incredibly talented and hilarious team.

Elina Blomley

They/She

Market Lead

Elina is studying food/agriculture at SFU and brings a whimsical and hilarious slang to the team. They are highly organized, have a keen eye for detail, and are just a delight to work with.

Nicole Burton

She/They

David Thompson Field Lead

Nicole hails from the farms of Ontario, where the roads are wide and the summers are hot. She’s got an expertise in growing crops for seed as well as managing a market garden. Her cool-as-a-cucumber approach puts us at ease when things feel tight.

Sam Tuck

He/They

Van Tech Field Lead

Sam braved the desert heat at Solstedt Farm in Lillooet last summer. He’s passionate about Indigenous Uprising and teaching the team a lot with his sharp anti-racist lens.

Freshta Mohibi

She/Her

Market Assistant

We are blessed by this SOYL alum and ray of sunshine. Freshta is the newest member of our team and comes from a large, loving family that grew up tending to an apricot orchard.

Stay tuned for updates next month on how our fundraiser went, and what’s new and in season on the farm.

– Farmer Camille

April 20, 2022 Leave a comment

What to do this Earth Day?

By Andrea Lucy, Experiential Learning Program Lead

Hip hip hooray for Earth Day! On April 22nd, over 1,000,000,000 people around the world will take action to protect the planet. This 52nd annual Earth Day is a reminder to treat the planet with respect, kindness, and care for our current and future communities.

There are many ways to participate in Earth Day (and every day) digitally and in-person:

Great Worldwide Cleanup

Like Hansel and Gretel, humans leave a trail of breadcrumbs in the form of trash. It’s a very material reminder of our collective impact on the planet. All around the world, neighbours get together on Earth Day to clean up beaches, parks, rivers, and more. Or, try “plogging”, the popular new exercise started in Sweden of picking up trash while you jog. Bonus: you help clean up plastic pollution. Double Bonus: you get added stretching and strengthening.

Cleanups Near You

Restore Our Earth Lessons

Calling all teachers: Learn about restoring our earth while restoring our hope! This is a great learning resource created by the Earth Day Network covering, five opportunities for restoration over five days. The lessons include the topics: ecosystem services, carbon cycle, food sustainability, ecosystem restoration, and civic engagement. There are activity suggestions for elementary and secondary grades.

Restore Our Earth Education Lessons

Letters to the Earth

What world are you dreaming of for your future? What are your fears and hopes? Letters to the Earth offers community and education toolkits to create your letter in whatever way feels powerful to you, then share it with those who need to listen. Their education toolkit includes prompts, science experiments and drama activities to help classes get started. Send your letters out in a letter-writing campaign to politicians to let them know why they should care, what you want (like a wishlist), and what they should do now.

Letters to the Earth Toolkit

Celebrate with Food, Art & Activities

Celebrate Earth Day with experiential activities created by Fresh Roots. Try our famous salad dressing, learn how food and climate change are connected, contribute to scientific research, and create art with food waste.

Fresh Roots Earth Day Activities & Recipes

Feel Empowered by Soil

It’s stressful and scary to learn about and experience climate change. Looking for a shimmer of hope? Some of us at Fresh Roots have been learning more about sustainable agriculture practices that care for the soil ecosystem. The neat added benefit? Healthy soil sequesters (removes) carbon dioxide from the air and stores it. Scientists estimate that if more farmers care for their soils with sustainable practices, climate change can actually be reversed. Care for the soil, and it will care for you!

Soil Carbon video by Soil Food Web School

What are you doing to celebrate Earth Day today and every day?

December 28, 2021 Leave a comment

And That’s a Wrap for 2021!

Thank you so much for your ongoing support. As we reflect on the past year, we’re proud of the community we are growing with you. We see so much hope for the future in the kids and youth we get to work with. Experiencing what is possible through engaging youth and the community in growing food on schoolyard farms is incredibly energizing.

The hope we see and feel is because YOU are part of the progress we are making. Fresh Roots is fortunate to be part of an interconnected and supportive community of individuals, businesses and organizations who are re-imagining food education and community-based learning. Through deepening our relationships with you all and with the land upon which we are privileged to work, we are learning and innovating. We’d like to share some highlights from the past year and some of the ways we engaged with kids, youth and the community:

SOYL (Sustainable Opportunities for Youth Leadership) we welcomed 65 high school youth in Vancouver, Delta and Coquitlam for 6 weeks of contributing to farm work, learning from local knowledge keepers about the land upon which our programs take place, cooking and sharing meals with each other and the community and co-running our weekly farm markets.

LunchLAB Community Eats was one of the biggest highlights of the 2021 season. Getting to cook and share food again after a pause last summer due to COVID-19 restrictions meant so much to everyone at Fresh Roots where harvesting food and preparing and sharing meals is a foundational part of our programming and an extra special treat for little and big kids alike. With our partners at Growing Chefs, we adapted our educational, in-school meal program, LunchLAB, to be included as part of the summer SOYL program. We hired 3 Chef Educators who worked with rotating cook teams of 5 SOYL youth two times per week to prepare lunch for 40 of their peers. Lucky Fresh Roots staff and community guests! Along with Growing Chefs, we were also able to restart our LunchLAB program at Total Education Secondary Program this fall, serving delicious and nutritious chef and student prepared meals to students and staff in school!

Summer Camp and Experiential Learning programs engaged learners from grades pre-K through 12 in 11,000 hours of learning on the farms and in the community! We expanded to 9 weeks of summer camps doubling the number of kids from 125 to 286. We hosted field trips for over 60 classes from local elementary and secondary schools on the farms and brought our Farm 2 You workshop program to over 30 classes and day camp groups.

- Gatherings cautiously returned this fall and we were thrilled to support Vancouver Technical Secondary School in preparing food for both the Grade 8 Welcome Orientation Lunch (350 parents and students) and the Indigenous Family Gathering (100 community members). For both events, SOYL Alumni and youth volunteers pitched in to prepare and serve food to their community.

Farms and Markets were bustling this 2021 season! We grew over 150 types of plants using organic practices which made their way into the community through 4 weekly markets in Vancouver, Coquitlam and Delta, 65 CSA Veggie Box shares, events and gatherings and donations to local neighbourhood houses.

Lastly, we’ll share a few last words from some of the folks who speak to our programs from their own lived experiences:

SOYL made me realize that whatever I end up doing needs to have some way of connecting it to the Earth and the land we are coming from because you can’t really accomplish any sort of justice without including ecosystems because everything is connected.

SOYL Youth 2021, Vancouver

Kudos to the Delta SOYL Team and all the SOYL staff! Cam has absolutely loved this experience. We so appreciate that this opportunity is available to him. He has become more confident, independent, met new friends and his anxiety has become way less! He has learned great responsibility and skills that will serve him well in the workforce. He also loves to cook and having exposure to a chef and vegan recipes has been awesome. This has been amazing for him as a person. Thank you to you and all of the leaders. Your hard work has really paid off!!!

Josie Zhan, Parent of Cameron SOYL 2021 Delta Mentor

With the state of the world today, specifically climate change, we need to find ways to be resourceful and knowledgeable of our food sources. Students need to learn how to treat our earth so that we may reap the rewards of its gifts. This program inspires students to learn and enjoy all aspects of where their food comes from and the delight of tasting it.

Gaye Dalla-Zanna, Grade 7 Teacher, Farm Observers Program

We’re closing out this year with ever-present natural disasters and crises dominating news threads. Messages tell us to be worried, scared, sad, and that we need to act now. And while there is no doubt urgent work is needed, Fresh Roots is growing the next generations to be best equipped to navigate the changes to come. We do this by supporting the self-determination of kids and youth to build lasting relationships with people, places, and food. We see them growing their confidence in discovering more about themselves and their role in the community.

So, thank you. Thank you for believing in Fresh Roots and our vision for Good Food For All. We are incredibly grateful for you, our community and your continued support.

With gratitude,

Alexa, Executive Director

To DONATE and receive 2021 tax receipt visit: freshroots.ca/donate/

November 30, 2021 Leave a comment

A Shout Out to Our Partners on Giving (Back) Tuesday

This Giving Tuesday we’re taking a moment to pause and highlight some of the many community partners working with us toward a more food secure future and Good Food For ALL. Fresh Roots is part of an interconnected and supportive community of small local businesses, non-profits, and organizations that is re-imagining food education and community. We are incredibly grateful for the diverse perspectives and energy everyone brings to the table (and farms). Through deepening our relationships with our community and with the land we work with, we are learning and innovating together!

We invite you to check out our partners listed below and learn more about their products, fundraisers, and the work they do.

Flavours of Hope – They are currently fundraising for Dream Cuisines 2022. Consider donating to help them reach their $4000 goal!
South Vancouver Neighbourhood House – Help SVNH spread joy and healthy food for 320 families in South Vancouver by donating items to their wishlist and money to buy fresh meat, eggs and more.
Ono Vancouver – A meal for you supports meals for your community. Check out the Ono Vancouver and website to get to know Chef TJ and for more information about the amazing work they do and where to pick up their delicious products.
Il Centro Italian Community Centre – Check out their 2021 Christmas Market coming up on December 12th, 11 am-7 pm. Visit their website for a busy calendar of events at the always bustling Il Centro.
Delta Farm Roots – Farm Roots Mini School is an innovative, one-of-a-kind school that directly links students to the multifaceted agricultural industry.
CERBC – Climate Education Reform BC is leading the Reform to Transform campaign which is advocating for climate change education in British Columbia’s K-12 educational system.
Growing Chefs – Too many kids don’t know where food comes from or have access to healthy, whole food. They’re on a mission to change that. Both Growing Chefs! and Fresh Roots work together to bring LunchLAB to life where student chefs prepare and serve a delicious lunch to their peers and teachers with the guidance of a knowledgeable chef-in-residence.
Legends Haul – At Legends Haul, their mission is to change the food ecosystem one haul at a time. They offer consciously sourced ingredients from hyper-local farmers, producers, restaurants, and business owners from across BC.
Organic Ocean – Created to foster a sustainable, vibrant, healthy seafood industry, in which fishermen would be fairly rewarded for their investment, effort, and personal risk.
Poplar Grove Winery – Is one of the original five wineries on the Naramata Bench. Tony and Barb Holler purchased the winery in 2007 with the long-term vision and commitment to building one of the most respected wine-growing estates in Canada. The family philosophy: great wine brings us together.
Coho Commissary – Exists to nurture dreams, supercharge small businesses, and innovate the food and beverage industry with the goal of creating a positive and long-lasting impact on their friends, neighbours, and the place they call home.
City Reach – Serves thousands of vulnerable individuals, children and families across Greater Vancouver. Specializing in meeting tangible needs through food security initiatives, CityReach provides a network of support through a variety of programs and community events.
Cedar Cottage Neighbourhood House – is a community-based organization serving the Kensington/Cedar Cottage neighbourhood. It was built from the vision and dedication of volunteers who gave their time and support to make the organization and this community a better place to live.
Vancouver Board of Parks and Recreation – is the only elected body of its kind in Canada. Formed in 1888 as a committee to manage the new Stanley Park, its history is as old as the city’s itself. It has exclusive possession, jurisdiction, and control over more than 230 public parks in Vancouver and a large public recreation system of community centres, pools, rinks, fitness centres, golf courses, street trees, marinas, playing fields, and more.
Coquitlam School District – SD43 is home to Suwa’lkh School an alternative educational program with an Indigenous focus. It is open to students in grades nine to twelve. Suwa’lkh means ‘New Beginnings’ in the Hul’qumi’num language. Respect for Mother Earth, our environment, and one another is part of the Indigenous teachings at Suwa’lkh. A focus on Indigenous teachings helps to ground our students in the culture of our land while helping them gain skills to help their emotional well-being and sense of self.
Vancouver School Board and the SACY Program – Substance Use Health Promotion initiative engages Vancouver parents, teachers, students, administrators and the greater community to strengthen school-based alcohol and drug prevention and early-intervention programs and policies.

#GivingTuesdayCA #TogetherWeStand #TogetherWeGive #TogetherWeHelp #TogetherWeHeal #TogetherWeThank