Meet the Middle Man in Your Beer Darcy Smith As varied and innovative as craft beer has become over the last decades, it ultimately still comes down to four main ingredients: water, hops, yeast, and, of course, malt—I had never really thought much about malt until I found myself peppering Ken Smith of Gambrinus Malting… Keep Reading
Anna Helmer I guess everyone knows the main claim to fame of a perfectly-run Biodynamic farm is that it is a closed loop system. Everything needed by the farm is produced within the farm. Going outside the gate, especially for fertility, indicates a problem with farm health. Biodynamics, and particularly the preparations, are intended to… Keep Reading
Ryan Kilthau In 1996, founders Mickey McLeod and Robbyn Scott opened a coffee roasting café on Salt Spring Island with the mission of bringing sustainable coffee to their island community. Salt Spring Coffee was born, and the freshly roasted coffee quickly became an island favourite, sparking conversations with customers about coffee quality and sourcing. In… Keep Reading
Emma Holmes As BC’s organic industry specialist, I have been able to meet many members of our organic community across the province. I also get to collaborate with other experts at the Ministry of Agriculture, and am keen to highlight them and the important work they do, so you can get to know them—and hopefully… Keep Reading
By Anna Helmer I have hauled out my Biodynamic books to perform my annual winter Biodynamic brush-up. Brush-up isn’t the right term to use because it implies that I once understood it all, and now just need to remind myself of a few things. If only that were the case. No, it’s more of an… Keep Reading
The 2023 National Farmers Union Convention By Michelle Tsutsumi I’m still synthesizing all that happened at the 54th National Farmers Union (NFU) Convention in Ottawa and it was a lot! Coincidentally, Rebecca Kneen and I attended as NFU members. I’m grateful that we can continue to percolate on it together and share some of our… Keep Reading
By Nicolas Walser It’s that time again: the review of the Canadian Organic Standards! Every five years, the Canadian Organic Standards undergo a revision and an updated version is published. Organic standards need to evolve to address emerging challenges, technological advancements, and scientific research. The last revision was published in 2020—always be sure you are… Keep Reading
Reflections on Farmer Mental Health By Alys Ford Fourteen years ago, during our first season of commercial farming I made a pretty classic rookie mistake. I planted many hundreds of feet of tatsoi, with the intention of growing it to full size as a bunched green to substitute for the spinach that, at the time,… Keep Reading
2023 BC Organic Conference Recap By Stacey Santos Mentorship. Perseverance. Kindness. Relationships. More than words, these ideas were penned and posted to a board at the 2023 BC Organic Conference—a nod of appreciation by and for the organic community, who came together for our first in-person conference in three years. Held at the Penticton Trade… Keep Reading
The Coffee Company that Wants Us All to be on Level Ground Darcy Smith Can coffee be sustainable? If you have ever asked this question about your morning cuppa, you are not alone. It’s a question Stacey Toews, co-founder of Level Ground Coffee Roasters, gets all the time. People “feel helpless in the global machine,”… Keep Reading
