It’s no secret that food waste is a growing area of focus at all levels of the food value chain. Factors such as economic and human behaviour, transport, lack of resources, and technological limitations all contribute to the many ways we waste food that could otherwise be utilized in effective, innovative and profitable ways.

On Jan 10, we hosted a workshop that connected buyers and sellers through the local food value chain. Furthermore, presentations were given in a number of areas to educate buyers and sellers on the purchasing and selling of local food. Here are the slides of all the presentations given.

What happens when a former tobacco grower with 40 years experience, a steel company owner, a dentist, an accountant, an entrepreneur and two lawyers get together? 

Introducing the inaugural issue of The Innovation Report - Vineland Research and Innovation Centre's first-ever research magazine.  Since 2007 the organization has made a concerted effort to make linkages with stakeholders along the value chain, bringing innovation and research into the heart of Canada's horticulture infrastructure.

Some features you can look forward to:

• Drought-resistant petunias, cold-tolerant tomatoes, what’s next?
• In the market for some locally grown okra?
• The myths (and some facts) about Canadian consumers
• For robots, it’s all in a day’s work
• Tackling national challenges, one research project at a time
• Biocontrols: on the hunt for bugs that kill other bugs
• The art and science of green roofs

Read The 2012 Innovation Report

Ontario’s Still Waters Distillery is gaining a lot of attention with their award-winning, artisanal single malt vodka. They are Ontario's first craft distillery, and one of the newest members of Ontariofresh.ca.

Still Waters has adapted single malt distilling methods normally used by whisky makers. While most vodkas are made with a mixture of different grains like corn, wheat and barley, or potatoes, Still Waters Distillery uses only malted barley and no other grains. In their finished product, owners Barry Stein and Barry Bernstein show the care they put into each bottle. While it is their vodka that is gaining the most attention, Stein and Bernstein have released a small line of blended whiskies that feature 10% of their own production, made with Ontario-grown rye and corn. Tasters at the 2012 Ultimate Spirits Challenge in New York awarded their product a finalist in the Canadian Whisky class, stating it is "Excellent" and "Highly Recommended." Noting its pale amber color, their tasting notes conclude that its "opening nose is charred and toasty upfront, then turns deeply grainy. The flavor menu features lean tastes of corn syrup, poppy seeds, trail mix and dried apricot." As their own barrels mature, Still Waters will be showing what a lot of pride, passion and good taste can do to Ontario-grown and distilled spirits. 

Eating locally is an important idea that has gained lots of momentum in the last few years, and our ReFRESHing our Menu project to improve inpatient food here at TSH is evidence of these ideas really starting to take root outside of people’s home kitchens.  In an effort to measure the depth of our current investment in local eating, we’ve done a local food audit of our kitchen.  Essentially, what we were looking for is the source, or point of origin, for the products we purchase for the inpatient menu.