Your Feedback Needed for the People's Food Policy Project

WHAT SHOULD A NATIONAL FOOD POLICY LOOK LIKE?

(Deadline extended to Monday December 14th)

The People's Food Policy Project needs your feedback, whether you are a concerned individual or a representative of an organization. They need you and/or your organization to participate in order for the project to reflect the breadth and depth of visions for a just and sustainable food system rooted in the principles of food sovereignty.

"We need your policy ideas, and they can be just that – ideas. At this stage in the project, we are interested in broad ideas (ex: 'We need a federal nutrition program aimed at students,' OR, 'We need to support small-scale farmers as much as large-scale farmers,' and so on). Your ideas are as important as well-developed, evidence-based policy submissions.

How and what to submit:

Submitting your policy ideas is simple. You can use work that you and/or your organization has already completed in the past. We have broadened the submission process to include reports that your organization may have already written for other purposes. You can send the entire report with relevant sections highlighted, or simply send the executive summary and recommendations of the report.

There are two ways you can submit:

1. Through our website/

You need to log in (you create your own username and password) to complete the policy submission template (Note: not all sections need to be completed).

2. By email. Send us a completed policy submission template (available on the website) OR your reports containing policy recommendations to policysubmissions@gmail.com

Further details on this process are available on the website.

Please note that you and your organization's name will not be attached to the draft policy that emerges from this process. We will be seeking official endorsement for the policies at a later time.

Should you require any clarification or information about the project and submission process, please do not hesitate to contact me at peoplesfoodpolicy@gmail.com or (514) 342-5291.

Thanking you in advance for your important contribution to this process,

Amanda Sheedy
Coordinator
People’s Food Policy Project"

Caramel apple cookies!

Volunteers Jessica, Crecien, and Louise at the Food Security table at the first annual Renfrew Collingwood Winter Craft Sale.

Thanks to the wonderful volunteers and vendors who made our first winter craft sale a success! Thanks especially to Andrea, Barry, Crecien, Dave, Jessica, Louise, Mary, Maya, Najia, and Olivia, who helped make cookies and cider, prepared and dried apples, cut and tied herbs and flowers, and promoted food security activities to customers.



By popular request, here are our cookie recipes:


Caramel Apple Oatmeal Cookies

Ingredients
1 cup butter
1 cup brown sugar
1 cup white sugar
2 eggs
1 tsp vanilla
1 tsp ground cinnamon
2 cup flour
2 3/4 cup old fashioned oats not quick-cooking oatmeal
1/2 tsp salt
1 tsp baking powder
1 tsp baking soda
12 oz caramel baking bits
2 cups grated apple

Method
1. In a large bowl, beat the butter, brown sugar, and white sugar with an electric mixer until the mixture is fluffy, about 2 minutes. Add the vanilla and eggs. Beat until combined.

2. Measure oatmeal into a food processor, and pulse until ground finely. In a medium-sized bowl, stir the oatmeal, flour, salt, baking powder, cinnamon, and baking soda until combined. Set aside.

3. Grate the apple.

4. Using a wooden spoon, stir the flour mixture into the butter mixture until combined. Stir in the caramel bits and apples.

5. Refrigerate the dough for 1 hour. Roll the cookie dough into golf ball-sized balls. Bake on a parchment paper-lined baking sheet in an oven preheated to 350 degrees F, for 10-12 minutes. The sheet should be placed on the upper middle rack. Cool on the pan for 4 minutes before transferring to a wire rack.

(Adapted from this recipe.)

Apricot-Pumpkin Oatmeal Cookies

Ingredients
8 ounces softened butter
1 cup white sugar
1 cup packed brown sugar
1 egg
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 cup pumpkin, grated or pureed
1 cup rolled oats
1 tsp baking powder
1 tsp ground cinnamon
1 tsp ground allspice
1/2 tsp salt
1 cup finely chopped dried apricots
2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour

Method
1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C).

2. Cream together butter, white sugar and brown sugar until fluffy. Beat in egg, vanilla and pumpkin.

3. In a separate bowl, mix together the oats, baking powder, cinnamon, allspice, salt, apricots, and flour. Stir into pumpkin mixture.

4. Drop cookies by the heaping teaspoonful on to cookie sheets covered with parchment paper. Bake 12 to 15 minutes or until slightly browned around edges.
Remove from oven and place on cooling racks.

(Adapted from this recipe.)

Renfrew Collingwood Winter Craft Fair

Collingwood Neighbourhood House and the Renfrew Collingwood Multicultural Artists' Network bring you their first annual winter craft fair!

The Fair will feature the works of 20 neighbourhood artisans, as well as hot drinks, live music, and snacks. Volunteers from The Renfrew Collingwood Food Security Institute will be there, fundraising with cookbooks, fresh organic herbs, home-grown dried flowers, cookies, and hot apple cider.

There is no admission fee. Please join us!

Where: Collingwood Neighbourhood House, 5288 Joyce St. (604.435.0323)
When: Saturday December 5: 11am-4pm

Terra Madre Day Celebration

Local chefs are matched with local food at Slow Food Vancouver's first annual Terra Madre Day. Learn about food biodiversity, local cheeses, and cheer at the Red Fife wheat bake-off.

Thursday December 10
Italian Cultural Centre
3075 Slocan Street
6-9pm

Co-sponsored by Farm Folk/City Folk and the Italian Cultural Centre.
Admission by donation. Proceeds to Adopt-A-Farmer.
RSVP.


Kale Sensory Panel.

An FNH425 (Food Science Laboratory III) Kale Research Group is seeking sensory panelists for a taste assessment of a variety of steamed kale grown on the UBC Farm. Taste tests will be conducted in room 140 of the FNH Building on Monday November 30

Time slots:

Session 1: 2.00 – 2.15 pm
Session 2: 2.25 – 2.40 pm
Session 3: 2.50 – 3.05 pm
Session 4: 3.15 – 3.30 pm
Session 5: 3.40 – 3.55 pm
Session 6: 4.05 – 4.20 pm
Session 7: 4.30 – 4.45 pm

If interested, please email with your name and preferred session. Snacks and candies will be given.

Hunger Count

Initiated in 1989, HungerCount is the only national survey of emergency food programs in Canada. The information the survey provides is invaluable, forming the basis of many Food Banks Canada activities throughout the year. Among many benefits, HungerCount allows Food Banks Canada to operate the National Food Sharing System on a "fair share" basis, present accurate, timely information to government, donors and media, and represent members' key concerns at a variety of public forums.

Food Banks Canada's "Hunger Count" report on food bank usage was released Nov 16th. This clearly written and well-referenced report and recommendations can be found here. You may be particularly interested in the British Columbia statistic on page 20.

Job Posting: Growing Chefs for Children's Urban Agriculture

Position: Executive Director
Organization: Growing Chefs: Chefs for Children's Urban Agriculture
Location: Vancouver, British Columbia

A Vancouver-based non-profit seeks a new Executive Director.

We seek an individual who:
* can work and communicate well with a variety of people
* has an interest in and/or knowledge of food security,
urban agriculture and sustainability
* has an interest in children's education
* is a creative thinker who wants to take our organization
to the next level

The ideal candidate will have:
* experience working with volunteers in the non-profit sector
* fundraising experience
* excellent administrative, organizational, and computer skills
* strong communications skills
* long-term strategic thinking and planning skills

The Executive Director will work variable hours, with an average of 20 hours per week, primarily from home. Core program work takes place from January to April and tapers off to July. Ongoing work continues through the year. Flexibility is essential.

We offer a competitive hourly wage, relative to candidate's experience.

ABOUT US

Growing Chefs! Chefs for Children's Urban Agriculture delivers a program with two main goals:

* To support and encourage the development and growth of children's urban agriculture.
* To provide an avenue for chefs and growers to engage in the community and to support food sustainability.

Most importantly, we wish to inspire children with the idea that they can grow their own food, even in the city.

Our program sends teams of volunteer chefs into elementary schools, where they teach kids to grow and cook their own food.

Check out http://www.growingchefs.ca for more information.

HOW TO APPLY

Interested applicants can send a resume including references to admin@growingchefs.ca Please title your email GCJob. Unfortunately we cannot respond to email inquiries at this time.

Applications can be mailed to:
Growing Chefs! Chefs for Children's Urban Agriculture
2119 Guelph Street
Vancouver BC V5T 3N7

Applications by mail or email only, please. We thank all applicants for their interest, but only selected candidates will be contacted.

UBC Farm: Sowing Seeds Practicum

Type: eight-month practicum/internship; course fee
Organization: Centre for Sustainable Food Systems at the UBC Farm
Location: University of British Columbia, Vancouver BC

Established in 2008, this part-time (600 hour), eight month practicum offers instruction and daily work experience in small-scale sustainable farming. In a balanced, hands-on learning approach, students work alongside staff in the
greenhouse, gardens, fields, and orchard. Students attend complementary lectures, demonstrations, and farm visits, and participate in a variety of practical and reflective educational activities. Direct marketing activities are also a key part of the experience. The practicum has been designed as a beginning point for aspiring growers, educators and agricultural professionals.

Students come from all backgrounds and are expected to be passionate about pursuing a career in sustainable agriculture. A certificate of completion will be issued to
students who fulfill the practicum requirements. Further, we support our graduates to make connections within the BC agricultural community, and to seek out mentors to learn with following Sowing Seeds. Please note, Sowing Seeds 2010 is a non-credit course and therefore participants are not eligible for student loans. However, in 2010 we are offering a fee discount for UBC students who register, and successfully
earn credits, for a directed studies based on their Sowing Seeds Practicum.

Course Logistics:

Course dates : March 13 - Nov 6, 2010

Course hours : Vary throughout the growing season from 7 to 21 hours/week. See our Program Overview for details.

Course fee : $3,000

**(UBC Students who register, and successfully earn credits, for a directed studies course based upon their Sowing Seeds Practicum are eligible for a $400 refund)**

Capacity : 10 students

Applications: Application information is available on our website. Application deadline: December 1, 2009.

For more information, please:

* Visit our Website and download our Program Overview
* View photos from the 2008 practicum
* Watch a short video about the practicum in 2008 (scroll down: "A Unique Urban Agriculture Course at UBC Farm")
* Read about the practicum on our blog

http://www.landfood.ubc.ca/ubcfarm/apprenticeship.php

Contact Information:

If you can't find the info you need on our website, please
contact Elaine Spearing.