By Shelly Sargent
Barb Imrie & Karen Hutchinson are beaming these days, & with good reason. A project they’ve been heavily involved with for over two years – to start a Community Farm in Caledon - has come to fruition & will soon be offering the community educational programming that is centred on local food & sustainable farming practices. On May 7th, members of the farm’s advisory board, a group of volunteers, representatives from the Toronto & Region Conservation Authority (TRCA) & local dignitaries, gathered at the farm for an outdoor “work bee” & the Official Launch of the AHCF.
The TRCA has entered into a long term lease agreement with the Albion Hills Community Farm (AHCF) to farm approximately 76 acres of TRCA agricultural lands within the Albion Hills Conservation Area, just south of Palgrave. In partnership with TRCA, the AHCF will contribute towards a sustainable & accessible local food system by aligning food, farming, community, heritage, education & conservation.
The Albion Hills Community Farm & Learning Centre is a new model of what demonstration farms will be in the future. It includes food production, education (for youth, new & existing farmers & the public), community gardens, and the development of a food & farming hub & a Centre for Near-Urban Agriculture. The AHCF will marry the concepts of charitable learning with social enterprise to support program delivery.
Planting on site started with garlic in the fall of 2010, when field centre students planted garlic at AHCF. This initial planting is expected to produce between 10,000 & 12,000 cloves by the summer. This is something that excites Barb Imrie.
“This means there will be local garlic that’s near & local & nutritious,” she points out, going on to explain “At the moment, almost all of the garlic we eat in Ontario comes from China.”
Barb’s concern about this – shared by many - is two-fold: first, buying locally grown food stimulates he local economy & reduces the need for oil-guzzling transportation methods to get it here; second, China has been under the microscope numerous times for its questionable health & safety practices. Buying from a reputable local grower eliminates that concern & makes much more sense on both levels.
One of only two similar farming projects in Canada, the Albion Hills Community Farm will involve the community in educational programming around local food & sustainable farming practices. It has the potential to provide food for up to 48,000 meals for the two on-site education centres, based on season & availability. This food will help fulfill a TRCA local food policy which stipulates that by 2012 forty percent of the food TRCA serves will be grown or produced in Ontario. Produce will also be available to the community via gate sales, farmer’s markets & a Community Supported Agriculture (CSA) program.
In years past, students at the Albion Hills Conservation Area field centres offered an agriculture education option as part of their experience at the centres, but in November 2008 the AHCA’s original farm’s dairy operation discontinued & that option was no longer available. Thanks to the AHCF, this option is expected to be available again beginning in the fall of 2011. In addition, local children & youth involved in 4-H programs, summer camps & the AHCF HAYville program will also be offered the food & farming experience.
The Town of Caledon is the perfect spot for a project like AHCF. The Town is well recognized for innovative thinking & environmental excellence & has a strong agriculture base. In recent years, Caledon has become well known for its local food & farming work through the programs of the Caledon Countryside Alliance & Eat Local Caledon. Schools, local businesses, farmers, culinary destinations, local community groups & residents have all worked to develop a better system.
Further, Caledon Mayor Marolyn Morrison has been the driving force behind the Greater Toronto Countryside Mayor’s Alliance, an organization that’s been at the forefront of developing a voice & pushing for greater economic viability for the countryside. With support from the Town of Caledon, the community & the Toronto Region Conservation, Caledon is poised to be a perfect location for a Centre for Sustainable Near-Urban Agriculture & to develop a rural based Food & Farming Hub or a Community Food & Farming Centre. Both of these are new concepts & demonstrate the farm’s potential to help lead the repowering of the local food & farm system in Ontario.
If you’d like more information about the Albion Hills Community Farm, contact Barb Imrie at buckstownbeanscoffee@rogers.com.
AHCF Timeline & Progress to date:
May 2009: TRCA issued a Request for Proposals to lease Albion Hills parcels (including the former dairy farm) for land uses, compatible with their policy mandate of Sustainable Near Urban Agriculture;
August 2009: Caledon residents & organization were awarded the right to lease farm’
February 2010: Albion Hills Community Farm (AHCF) was formed & incorporated as a charitable non-profit. An Executive Board of Directors (4) with Board members from the Caledon Countryside Alliance, Palgrave Environment Committee, Peel 4-H & Everdale Environmental Learning Centre was created;
2009/2010: A strategic vision & plan, a fundraising plan & organizational infrastructure were all developed;
2010: AHCF began an active fundraising campaign
November 1, 2010: Formal lease signed after AHCF negotiated with TRCA to lease the main farm & three additional parcels
May 7, 2011: AHCF Official Launch & work bee.
Barb Imrie & Karen Hutchinson are beaming these days, & with good reason. A project they’ve been heavily involved with for over two years – to start a Community Farm in Caledon - has come to fruition & will soon be offering the community educational programming that is centred on local food & sustainable farming practices. On May 7th, members of the farm’s advisory board, a group of volunteers, representatives from the Toronto & Region Conservation Authority (TRCA) & local dignitaries, gathered at the farm for an outdoor “work bee” & the Official Launch of the AHCF.
The TRCA has entered into a long term lease agreement with the Albion Hills Community Farm (AHCF) to farm approximately 76 acres of TRCA agricultural lands within the Albion Hills Conservation Area, just south of Palgrave. In partnership with TRCA, the AHCF will contribute towards a sustainable & accessible local food system by aligning food, farming, community, heritage, education & conservation.
The Albion Hills Community Farm & Learning Centre is a new model of what demonstration farms will be in the future. It includes food production, education (for youth, new & existing farmers & the public), community gardens, and the development of a food & farming hub & a Centre for Near-Urban Agriculture. The AHCF will marry the concepts of charitable learning with social enterprise to support program delivery.
Planting on site started with garlic in the fall of 2010, when field centre students planted garlic at AHCF. This initial planting is expected to produce between 10,000 & 12,000 cloves by the summer. This is something that excites Barb Imrie.
“This means there will be local garlic that’s near & local & nutritious,” she points out, going on to explain “At the moment, almost all of the garlic we eat in Ontario comes from China.”
Barb’s concern about this – shared by many - is two-fold: first, buying locally grown food stimulates he local economy & reduces the need for oil-guzzling transportation methods to get it here; second, China has been under the microscope numerous times for its questionable health & safety practices. Buying from a reputable local grower eliminates that concern & makes much more sense on both levels.
One of only two similar farming projects in Canada, the Albion Hills Community Farm will involve the community in educational programming around local food & sustainable farming practices. It has the potential to provide food for up to 48,000 meals for the two on-site education centres, based on season & availability. This food will help fulfill a TRCA local food policy which stipulates that by 2012 forty percent of the food TRCA serves will be grown or produced in Ontario. Produce will also be available to the community via gate sales, farmer’s markets & a Community Supported Agriculture (CSA) program.
In years past, students at the Albion Hills Conservation Area field centres offered an agriculture education option as part of their experience at the centres, but in November 2008 the AHCA’s original farm’s dairy operation discontinued & that option was no longer available. Thanks to the AHCF, this option is expected to be available again beginning in the fall of 2011. In addition, local children & youth involved in 4-H programs, summer camps & the AHCF HAYville program will also be offered the food & farming experience.
The Town of Caledon is the perfect spot for a project like AHCF. The Town is well recognized for innovative thinking & environmental excellence & has a strong agriculture base. In recent years, Caledon has become well known for its local food & farming work through the programs of the Caledon Countryside Alliance & Eat Local Caledon. Schools, local businesses, farmers, culinary destinations, local community groups & residents have all worked to develop a better system.
Further, Caledon Mayor Marolyn Morrison has been the driving force behind the Greater Toronto Countryside Mayor’s Alliance, an organization that’s been at the forefront of developing a voice & pushing for greater economic viability for the countryside. With support from the Town of Caledon, the community & the Toronto Region Conservation, Caledon is poised to be a perfect location for a Centre for Sustainable Near-Urban Agriculture & to develop a rural based Food & Farming Hub or a Community Food & Farming Centre. Both of these are new concepts & demonstrate the farm’s potential to help lead the repowering of the local food & farm system in Ontario.
If you’d like more information about the Albion Hills Community Farm, contact Barb Imrie at buckstownbeanscoffee@rogers.com.
AHCF Timeline & Progress to date:
May 2009: TRCA issued a Request for Proposals to lease Albion Hills parcels (including the former dairy farm) for land uses, compatible with their policy mandate of Sustainable Near Urban Agriculture;
August 2009: Caledon residents & organization were awarded the right to lease farm’
February 2010: Albion Hills Community Farm (AHCF) was formed & incorporated as a charitable non-profit. An Executive Board of Directors (4) with Board members from the Caledon Countryside Alliance, Palgrave Environment Committee, Peel 4-H & Everdale Environmental Learning Centre was created;
2009/2010: A strategic vision & plan, a fundraising plan & organizational infrastructure were all developed;
2010: AHCF began an active fundraising campaign
November 1, 2010: Formal lease signed after AHCF negotiated with TRCA to lease the main farm & three additional parcels
May 7, 2011: AHCF Official Launch & work bee.
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