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"Buy local" guide helps put Wellington produce on the map A map guiding consumers to farm-fresh produce is helping local farmers find a new outlet for their crops. In turn, farmers like Roger and Nerissa Knapp are homegrown exotic foods by SARAH MCGOLDRICK Despite commercials telling consumers to shop locally and enjoy the taste of Ontario, real homegrown produce isn't always available at the grocery store. In addition, more and more shoppers are turning to foods from around the world to meet their discerning tastes. Many farmers feel distributors who claim to have locally grown products, when in reality the food is shipped from across Canada, are pushing them out of the lucrative farmers' market industry. One organization that is on side with farmers is the Guelph Community Health Centre (GCHC). This year the centre released a Buy Local, Buy Fresh guide to inform shoppers where they can find farm-fresh produce. GCHC Dietician Joyce Walker says the map was designed to give consumers a healthy alternative while supporting their local farmers. "Buying fresh, local food is simply healthier," says Walker who works with families to make sound dietary choices. "We needed a resource to get them going in the right direction." Farmers were part of the entire process, offering input on the design and target markets, and organizations and sponsors, including the County of Wellington, Wellington-Waterloo Community Futures Development Corporation and Industry Canada, were quick to come on board. Walker says the agencies recognized the map as an opportunity to support local farmers after several years of hard financial times. Similar projects had been successful in the Waterloo area and Walker says Wellington County was an ideal setting for a similar map with 35 farmers and farmers' markets signing on. She admits vendors at farmers' markets rarely have locally grown produce direct from the farm. "People don't realize that a lot of the vendors are distributors," she says, noting that the nutritional value of food is depleted the longer it sits. She says the map gives consumers the opportunity to search out a high quality local product. It highlights the benefits of shopping direct from the farm, including reduction in transportation pollution and excessive packaging found in grocery stores. Consumer response has been positive with more than half of the initial printing of 20,000 maps flying off the shelves in the first two weeks. Walker says the maps have also given farmers a chance to see who their neighbours are and reinforced a sense of community between farmer and consumer. "People recognize some of the problems farmers are having and want to deal directly with them," she says. "It's all about community building and hopefully farmers are seeing the benefit." Roger and Nerissa Knapp have created the best of both worlds on their 99-acre farm outside Guelph. For more than seven years, the pair has been introducing new and foreign fruits and vegetables to southern Ontario, giving consumers a choice of traditional and exotic foods. Taking a cue from the popularity of ethnic restaurants and grocers in Guelph, Knapp knew he could easily attract a wide variety of customers to his country market. So, through research and travel experience, the Knapps began experimenting with new foods in Canadian growing conditions. Through careful monitoring of growing conditions and a little risk taking, the Knapps now grow more than 30 per cent ethnic and foreign crops. "We look at how the food is grown in its home country and duplicate the conditions," Roger says. Because many exotic foods are grown in hot climates, the Knapps had to develop a variety of growing techniques to ensure a healthy crop. Many of the fruits and vegetables begin their life in one of the farm's giant greenhouses. Seeding begins early since the growing season for many exotic foods, such as Haberno peppers, begins in February. Once the frost is no longer a threat, the produce is transplanted to the fields. An irrigation tube is put under the fields to control the amount of water each fruit or vegetable needs and a layer of black plastic is then placed over the plants to conduct heat and control the spread of weeds. "The plastic allows us to limit the amount of spraying we do," says Roger, noting that none of his products is sprayed with herbicides or pesticides. The unique variety of produce the Knapps offer makes them popular. Their market will receive provincial recognition later this year with a sign on the 401 and neighbouring side roads. Knapp says many of his customers travel from Toronto and Hamilton to get a taste of fresh produce. Locally, however, Knapp says getting his produce into country markets and grocery stores continues to be a struggle. Like most farmers, his produce is passed over by larger organizations that buy through the Ontario Food Terminal. "The chain stores don't buy local products. Farmers are going broke because grocery stores won't buy from us. Local farmers should get priority," he says, adding that local farmers need support from the Ontario Ministry of Agriculture and Food. Knapp encourages other farmers to explore alternatives to traditional produce. He points out that by developing a sense of what consumers want, he has been able to expand what his market offers without having to abandon traditional growing methods. He believes that the ability to take on new ventures may be the next step in revitalizing a foundering Canadian market ravaged by BSE and slow border re-opening. "If you can't change and develop new strategies, you'll be out the door," he says. "You have to open your eyes and see what's around." BF © copyright 2005 AgMedia Inc.. top back