WEEK X
July 14
Farming in the Kootenays
For the last three years, my family and I make a point of making our way to visit our old good friend Michael in the beautiful community of Crawford Bay. It is not only a time off from our busy lives, a time to spend quality time with the kids, reconnect with the land, but also a nice mental break from mainstream culture, the WalM culture, I call it. The Kootenays is not only astonishingly beautiful, but it has been brewing a remarkable alternative culture based upon a very interesting informal economy. Nelson, the heart of the Kootenays is a leading community of co-operative initiatives, from food co-ops, to housing co-ops, to farm tools and equipment co-op! Kootenays Food Co-op …
The Kootenay Local Agricultural Society (KLAS) is dedicated to the re-building the Kootenay’s regional food systems. Most of the food consume in the region comes from outside, but this, as in many other areas in the world, was not always the case. More than a hundred years ago, people moved in to the region following logging and mining jobs, and all the food to feed people in the community was grown locally. Today, the organization seeks to restore and expand their fragile food sources not only by promoting but also by supporting Kootenay farming enterprises. Some of their key initiatives include public education, grant-seeking opportunities to support ideas that will benefit local agriculture and food production, and the tool library which helped fund the purchase of a variety of tools, which are rented to KLAS members at low rates. Available are root washers, honey equipment such as extractors, hoop benders to create cheap shelters and greenhouses, and dehydrators. The KLAS covers the area from Rossland, B.C., across to Creston and then up to Nakusp. Tool depots are located in Winlaw, Kaslo, Creston and Castlegar.
Also a very interesting initiative put together by this co-op is their Kootenay Mountain Grown (KMG) certification program. The program offers members the opportunity to become organically certified at the regional level. As we discussed last semester, it could be expensive for some small farmers to receive an organic certification. Though becoming organically certified can be very helpful for selling products nationally or internationally, a certification like KMG is an great option for small organic growers to sell locally without the hassle of the big leagues. According to Andrew Bennett, secretary of the association “KMG follows organic principles but, instead of third-party certification, it operates farmer to farmer. Every year a farmer will check another operation to KMG certification standards. A farm is checked by a different participant every year and two farms are never responsible for checking each other. KMG is not an official organic certification body, so technically KMG has no legal claim to the term. Consequently, we steer clear of "organic" entirely. (Invest Kootenay.com, 2014). Nevertheless, KMG's strict standards (see above) were built to comply with IFOAM's (International Federation of Organic Agriculture Movements) Participatory Guarantee System, an internationally recognized means of "locally focused quality assurance.
The Kootenay Local Agricultural Society (KLAS) is dedicated to the re-building the Kootenay’s regional food systems. Most of the food consume in the region comes from outside, but this, as in many other areas in the world, was not always the case. More than a hundred years ago, people moved in to the region following logging and mining jobs, and all the food to feed people in the community was grown locally. Today, the organization seeks to restore and expand their fragile food sources not only by promoting but also by supporting Kootenay farming enterprises. Some of their key initiatives include public education, grant-seeking opportunities to support ideas that will benefit local agriculture and food production, and the tool library which helped fund the purchase of a variety of tools, which are rented to KLAS members at low rates. Available are root washers, honey equipment such as extractors, hoop benders to create cheap shelters and greenhouses, and dehydrators. The KLAS covers the area from Rossland, B.C., across to Creston and then up to Nakusp. Tool depots are located in Winlaw, Kaslo, Creston and Castlegar.
Also a very interesting initiative put together by this co-op is their Kootenay Mountain Grown (KMG) certification program. The program offers members the opportunity to become organically certified at the regional level. As we discussed last semester, it could be expensive for some small farmers to receive an organic certification. Though becoming organically certified can be very helpful for selling products nationally or internationally, a certification like KMG is an great option for small organic growers to sell locally without the hassle of the big leagues. According to Andrew Bennett, secretary of the association “KMG follows organic principles but, instead of third-party certification, it operates farmer to farmer. Every year a farmer will check another operation to KMG certification standards. A farm is checked by a different participant every year and two farms are never responsible for checking each other. KMG is not an official organic certification body, so technically KMG has no legal claim to the term. Consequently, we steer clear of "organic" entirely. (Invest Kootenay.com, 2014). Nevertheless, KMG's strict standards (see above) were built to comply with IFOAM's (International Federation of Organic Agriculture Movements) Participatory Guarantee System, an internationally recognized means of "locally focused quality assurance.
I heard through the grapevine (while crossing the Okanagan) that my class was busy at the orchard harvesting the wheat. Yes, I regret missing that experience... check my colleagues blogs for details on this interesting account!
July 16
Agricultural history in the Slocan Valley
(Tricycle Acres: Slocan Valley Farm Opportunities. Web)
Agricultural history in the Slocan Valley
Driving from New Denver to Nelson in the Slocan Valley, we were delighted to see a lot of small heritage farms in the way. Each one was a cornucopia of polycultives and free range, free run farm animals. Talking to the neighbours, we learnt that the region, Slocan and Kootenay valley, received an inflow of immigrants that cherished not only agriculture, but "the land". After mining activities in the area wore off and people moved away, the area was more or less abandoned by both the provincial and federal government.
Between 1908 and 1913, over 5000 Doukhobors migrated to the Boundary-Kootenay region where their communal life style was preserved and their enterprises flourished. The Doukhobors had a deeply rooted understanding of sustainable farming. Being vegetarians, composters, organic growers, they established a communal system of farming. The Doukhobors were pacifist and stood against militarism and all forms of violence.
During World War Two, the Canadian Government removed all Japanese Canadians from the West Coast. One of the internment camps was established in the city of New Denver, north corner of the valley. The Doukhobors help many Japanese overcome starvation by bringing food and supplies. Japanese were outstanding agrarians and contribute extensively to the agricultural heritage of the valley.
In the 1960s, a new wave of immigrants, US draft dodgers and back to landers invaded the Kootenays. The melting of all these cultures and world views created an amazing countercultural movement, and agriculture was at the centre of the it. This movement is still very much alive today
What's interesting about the Kootenays "way of living" is that it lies strongly apart from mainstream culture, not in a rebellious manner or to exist as a living contradiction to it, but strongly convinced that not everyone needs or wants to leave in mainstream culture, and that's OK. This worldview has survived the test of time and remains at the heart of the community.
(PerryRidege.com, Agriculture: Community Sustainability Through Agriculture. Web)
Between 1908 and 1913, over 5000 Doukhobors migrated to the Boundary-Kootenay region where their communal life style was preserved and their enterprises flourished. The Doukhobors had a deeply rooted understanding of sustainable farming. Being vegetarians, composters, organic growers, they established a communal system of farming. The Doukhobors were pacifist and stood against militarism and all forms of violence.
During World War Two, the Canadian Government removed all Japanese Canadians from the West Coast. One of the internment camps was established in the city of New Denver, north corner of the valley. The Doukhobors help many Japanese overcome starvation by bringing food and supplies. Japanese were outstanding agrarians and contribute extensively to the agricultural heritage of the valley.
In the 1960s, a new wave of immigrants, US draft dodgers and back to landers invaded the Kootenays. The melting of all these cultures and world views created an amazing countercultural movement, and agriculture was at the centre of the it. This movement is still very much alive today
What's interesting about the Kootenays "way of living" is that it lies strongly apart from mainstream culture, not in a rebellious manner or to exist as a living contradiction to it, but strongly convinced that not everyone needs or wants to leave in mainstream culture, and that's OK. This worldview has survived the test of time and remains at the heart of the community.
(PerryRidege.com, Agriculture: Community Sustainability Through Agriculture. Web)
Thank you for sharing observations from your visit to the Kootenays and introducing the 'Kootenay Mountain Grown' certification system. It sounds to me like a bioregional version of 'Certified Naturally Grown.'
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