Building Resilient Food Systems During COVID-19 and Beyond
Eating Close to Home: Fostering Local Food Production During COVID-19
As COVID-19 outbreaks and restaurant closures have exposed the fragility of the industrial food system, local food producers are stepping in to pick up the slack. For many local farmers, processors, restaurant-owners, and community workers, COVID-19 has opened a window of opportunity to put control back into the hands of local communities. Join Éliane Verret-Fournier, Manager of Market Development for the BC Ministry of Agriculture, Emma Bryce, an expert in regenerative farming practices and small-scale meat production, Dr. Lenore Newman, author of “Lost Feast: Culinary Extinction and the Future of Food” and is the Director of the Food and Agriculture Institute at the University of the Fraser Valley, and Katie Koralesky, PhD student in the UBC Animal Welfare Program, as they share their reflections on how we can seize the moment to call for a more localized, resilient, and sustainable food system.
About the Presenters

Éliane Verret-Fournier
Éliane Verret-Fournier is a Manager of Market Development for the BC Ministry of Agriculture. Her work is aimed at building the local market and encouraging British Columbians to purchase local foods. She delivers on the Buy BC program, the province’s domestic marketing program, promoting B.C. food and beverages to ensure consumers can easily identify and enjoy local food products, while supporting farmers and businesses throughout B.C.

Emma Bryce
Emma Bryce serves as treasurer for British Columbia Young Farmers (BCYF). After completing her Bachelors at Kwantlen in 2013, Emma moved to Chilliwack and began her studies at the University of the Fraser Valley, earning her Certificate in Livestock Production and Diploma in Agriculture Technology. While studying at UFV, Emma worked in a range of agricultural fields, including managing a small lavender farm in Abbotsford and milking at a dairy in Rosedale, then became an Assistant Agriculture Technician at UFV. Emma also owns a small farm in Ryder Lake, where she has raised a variety of animals for meat including pigs, goats, chickens, ducks geese, and turkeys.

Dr. Lenore Newman
Dr. Lenore Newman the author of “Lost Feast: Culinary Extinction and the Future of Food” and is the Director of the Food and Agriculture Institute at the University of the Fraser Valley, where she holds a Canada Research Chair in Food Security and the Environment. Dr. Newman researchers global food trends, farmland use, and emerging agricultural technologies.

Katie Koralesky
Katie Koralesky is a PhD student in the Animal Welfare Program. Her research focuses on the human dimension of animal welfare. Most recently, she has used realistic evaluation to understand how interventions work on dairy farms and institutional ethnography to understand how animal welfare law enforcement and sheltering shape what happens to animals.
The Building Resilient Food Systems During COVID-19 and Beyond series is brought to you by the Centre for Sustainable Food Systems (CSFS), the BC Food Web, the Faculty of Land and Food Systems (LFS), and the Royal Bank of Canada. This webinar series focuses on answering fundamental questions about the resiliency of our food system during and beyond COVID-19.








What goes into developing a new flavour of jerky?
It started with my daughter who was going through a vegan phase, and I wanted to help her still get enough protein in her diet. More people are starting to think along the same lines so it seemed like a no-brainer idea.
If you could only have one of your jerky for the rest of your life which one would it be?
I don’t think I would be in this stage of my business if it wasn’t for the Aboriginal BEST program to be honest. The course was a very empowering and safe environment. All the classmates were very supportive of each other as well. What I gained from the program the most was the attainable goal setting aspect. I remember doing my final presentation/pitch and the judging panel asked me where I wanted to sell my bacon a year from that day. I looked past the judges to outside across the street (that’s where SPUD is located) and I pointed and said “There, across the street at SPUD”. A year later almost to the exact day I was listed officially on the SPUD platform. Lesson is: always be setting goals!
Hickory Smoked Maple is such a classic flavour so this was a given! I use the best Maple Syrup in BC. It’s from Maples Sugar Shack and they are based out of Squamish, BC. They are a vendor at VFM across the city so I highly recommend buying their amber or extra dark maple syrup.
Salt & Smoke flavor was inspired by my customer that is an athlete and on a strict diet. He wanted my bacon but without any sugar added. So I made him a special batch with no sugar. Then his friends caught on and so on and I kept getting more and more requests. I had to add Salt & Smoke to the regular menu. It’s actually my #2 selling flavour believe it or not! For 4 ingredients that’s not bad! I also use Vancouver Island Sea Salt, it’s hand harvested, full of minerals and it compliments my bacon perfectly!
Chinese Five Spice was my wife’s idea. She said I needed a flavor that was “out of the box”. It’s our option for people that are a bit more adventurous and bacon aficionado. I toast fennel seed, clove, star anise and Szechuan peppercorns. Then I blend the spices with cinnamon and add spice mix to a pot of simmering ginger, garlic, honey, brown sugar and soy. Chinese Five Spice goes well wrapped around scallops or chicken or tossed in a stir fry.
Black Pepper & Honey I used to make this at a hotel I used to work for when I was the charcuterie guy! I love it so much because I’m a huge black pepper fan and the sweetness from the honey really rounds out the flavor profile. This flavour is the ultimate BLT bacon.
Bee smart: How I ended up pushing a weather station around campus in a baby stroller
Entering its second year at our market, this week we are featuring Back for More Bites! A relatively new vendor on the scene, Back for More Bites has already made a splash serving up delicious vegan, gluten-free energy bites and cookies designed to give you the energy to catch that bus, make that spin class, or literally (or figuratively) climb mountains. Recently we had the opportunity to chat with the owner and UBC alumni, Dawn Levelton, to find out more.
What are the three most important things you think customers should know about Back for more Bites?
Our flavours are inspired and designed mainly to evolve with what’s available in season. Our year round flavours are Caramel Apple Crumble, Salted Orange Chocolate Chip and Wild Blueberry Lemon. During the summer we like to offer some seasonal flavours including Raspberry Sublime, Cherry Chocolate Brownie and Blackberry Lavender Lemon
Not only do we sell the tastiest snack bites, but we also offer one of the best gluten-free plant-based chocolate chip cookies on the market! Our Sea Salt Chocolate Chip Cookies are sold by the dozen as Take N’ Bake or by the half dozen already baked for you. All of our products please even the pickiest of palettes! Adults are addicted to our snack bites and cookies from first bite and kids love them too.
These delectable chocolates, are all-natural, and made in the traditional stone-ground Swiss tradition from organic and ethically sourced ingredients. Recently, we had the opportunity to talk with owner and CEO, Monika Wacker, to find out more.
Why did you choose to come to the UBC Saturday Market?
PWIAS Q&A: Dr. Hannah Wittman