By Lynn Jones, The Ottawa River Institute
December is not normally a time when one thinks about celebrating Earth’s bounty with a feast of local foods. After all, the harvest has long since ended in these parts, the ground is freezing and snow will soon blanket the fields and forests of the Ottawa Valley.
And yet…..
If you take a look at the foods on offer by vendors in the Ottawa Valley Food Co-operative (OVFC) you might well be astonished and inspired to create a menu that features some local foods for your holiday celebration this year.
Here is just a sampling of what’s available right now from the OVFC: Spicy Chipotle Pumpkin Hummus from AAA Farm in Chapeau, Apple Relish from Coronation Cider Mills in Bristol, Roasted Vegetable Turkey (or Vegan Lentil Mushroom) Tourtiere from Bryson Farms in Shawville and Maple Walnut Pie from the The Upper Crust in Renfrew. There are also lots of local vegetables, fresh and dried herbs, gourmet mushrooms, a wide variety of meat and poultry, beverages, artisan cheese, eggs and baked goods.
The OVFC was founded in 2007 to provide an internet-based ordering system that facilitates buying and selling of local food. You can join the co-op for a $50 lifetime membership fee. The OVFC December order cycle is open until midnight December 12 and orders will be ready for pickup on December 20 at the location of your choice from a list that includes Deep River, Pembroke, Ottawa and several points in between. If you are reading this after the December order window has closed, you can still use the OVFC website to purchase directly from its producers, many of whom sell at the farm gate.
You can also find a fantastic array of local food products on offer right now at year-round and holiday farmers’ markets in the Ottawa area. Check out the Ottawa Farmers’ Market (Lansdowne Park), Ottawa Street Markets (online ordering), and the Ottawa Organic Farmers’ Market. The Savour Ottawa website provides a list of producers and a list of Holiday Markets in the Ottawa Valley. Local foods can also occasionally be found in large grocery stores, a trend we hope will continue.
In addition to wonderful foods for your holiday table, the OVFC and valley farmers’ markets offer a wide array of consumable gifts such as honey, maple syrup, locally harvested teas, locally roasted coffees, handmade soaps, beeswax candles, and exotic culinary items like Spruce Tip Salt, Apple Cider Pine Needle Vinegar and Garlic Scape Powder.
Since the word “locavore” was added to the Oxford dictionary as “word of the year” in 2007 more and more people have become interested in local foods.
When we eat like a locavore, sourcing our food closer to where we live, we consume fewer fossil fuels and other resources for the transport, processing, and packaging of our food on its journey from the farm to our dinner table. Even more important perhaps is the fact that by buying local foods, we are supporting our local economy and making it strong and resilient by keeping food dollars in the community where they can be passed around to support local producers and small business owners. It feels good to be connected to the people who grow and process our food.
Seasonal local eating also puts us in touch with the land where we live and makes us more aware of the cycles of life and changing seasons.
The festive season seems like a great time to add some local foods to our holiday menus. Even adding one or two local foods is a step toward healthier and more sustainable communities in the Ottawa Valley. Sweet and Sour Pickled Onions or Candied Jalapenos anyone?
The New Year is just around the corner. Why not resolve to eat more local foods in 2023? The Ottawa Valley Food Co-op, farmers’ markets and food producers on both sides of the Ottawa River and throughout the Ottawa Valley make it easy, fun and delicious to do this!
Lynn Jones is a founding member of the Ottawa River Institute, a non-profit, charitable organization based in the Ottawa Valley. ORI’s mission is to foster sustainable communities and ecological integrity in the Ottawa River watershed.
