Saturday Farmers' Market Vendor Feature: A Bread Affair

Saturday Farmers’ Market Vendor Feature: A Bread Affair

By madison brown on July 1, 2020

Saturday Farmers’ Market Vendor Feature: A Bread Affair

A frequent vendor from the start of our market this week we are featuring A Bread Affair! A Bread Affair crafts delicious, organic bread and baked goods, by connecting with our local farmers, our community, and our earth. We recently had the pleasure of chatting with store manager, Flora Poole, to find out more.

How long has A Bread Affair been around? How did you get started?

A Bread Affair was established in Langley in 2006. And we are in our 9th year at Granville Island. We have been participating in Farmers Market throughout Vancouver and the Lower Mainland for over 10 years.

Tanya Belanger, the founder, and the owner wanted to focus on quality. Against factory farming and industrial food production, she wanted to work with her hands and establish a loaf that was healthy and sustainable.

What are the three most important things you think people should know about A Bread Affair?

  • A Bread Affair is the first Certified Organic Artisan Bakery in British Columbia.
  • We not only focuses on providing a tasty organic product but also stand to promote the best produce Vancouver has to offer. From sourcing grains from farmers in the Fraser Valley to sourcing apples from the Okanagan, and blueberries from Bradner, we stand by our home and its offerings, promoting a sustainable and locally focused way of life.
  • We stand by our values of promoting local, sustainable production and creating healthy and organic food. We stand against industrial production, factory farming, and ‘cheap and fast’ centered production.

Why did you choose to come to the UBC Saturday Market specifically?

To be apart of local agriculture. Co-founder Pat McCarthy’s legacy was his focus on the importance of building connections with local farmers and agriculture. As initially expressed, A Bread Affair stands to promote what Vancouver has to offer. A lot of the produce we receive from UBC is often used in our store on Granville Island.

You mention on your site bring sustainable principles and environmental practices into baking, what are some ways you do this?

  • All bread that is not sold is donated to non-profit organizations around Vancouver. There is no product that lands in the landfill. If not donated, it is given to livestock. Helping the local production cycle.
  • Many of our packages are biodegradable or recyclable.
  • Our delivery fleet is all powered by natural gas.
  • All food scraps are composted.
  • By using certified organic flour, no round up (herbicide) is sprayed into the earth or wheat.

What goes into sourcing ingredients for your bread?

  • Quality – you can only produce a quality product with quality ingredients.
  • Organic – Is it organic?
  • Local – Where is it sourced?

What is the advantage of using organic varietal flour compared with conventional varieties?

Non-organic flour is a mix of milled wheat. We have better control over the end product when using one organic varietal because the flour is milled to our specification. Having a local partnership helps our ability to achieve this as well. It all comes down to understanding that when dealing with mass processing, the quality changes. In sourcing organic grains, we are upholding our standards of quality, as well as providing a healthier alternative to bread made with conventional varieties

If you could only have one of your baked goods for the rest of your life which one would it be?

The Double Brown Butter Valrhona Cookie is my ultimate weakness. Put it in the oven for 15 secconds and it melts in your mouth.

Where else can customers find you? And is there anything else you want them to know for this season?

Our own store at 1680 Johnston St, Granville Island on Triangle Square, our wholesale location in Langley, and at several other farmers markets across the Lower Mainland. We want to thank all our customers for supporting us during this time. Thank you for coming to the market and seeing us! We love to see your faces and it is from your local support that we can continue providing you with great products!

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Eating Close to Home: Fostering Local Food Production During COVID-19

By catherine hodgson on July 1, 2020

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.



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Essential Labour, Essential Lives: Migrant Agricultural Workers and COVID-19

By catherine hodgson on June 26, 2020

Building Resilient Food Systems During COVID-19 and Beyond

Essential Labour, Essential Lives: Migrant Agricultural Workers and COVID-19

The COVID-19 pandemic has reshaped many Canadians’ understanding of essential labour. Now, more than ever, it is undeniable that undocumented and migrant workers form the backbone of our economy. At the same time, migrant workers in the agricultural and food processing sectors are being denied access to basic rights and protections, and are contracting COVID-19 at alarming rates. If migrant labour is essential, why not migrant lives? Join our panel of community organizers and researchers for an exploration of the barriers facing migrant workers, and the protections that are required to ensure their health, safety and dignity.

La pandemia de la COVID-19 ha modificado la forma en la que muchos canadienses entienden el trabajo esencial. Ahora, más que nunca, es innegable que los trabajadores indocumentados y migrantes forman la columna vertebral de nuestra economía. A su vez, a los trabajadores migrantes de los sectores de la agricultura y de la elaboración de alimentos, se les niega el acceso a derechos y protecciones básicas, y contraen COVID-19 a una velocidad alarmante. Si la mano de obra migrante es considerada trabajo esencial, ¿Por qué no así la vida de los migrantes? Los invitamos a unirse a nuestro panel con organizadores comunitarios e investigadores para explorar las barreras a las que se enfrentan los trabajadores migrantes y la protección que necesitan para garantizar su salud, seguridad y dignidad.

We received several thoughtful questions from the audience during this webinar, many of which the presenters didn’t have time to answer live. Click here to read their answers in our Q&A Roundup blog!

About the Presenters

Fuerza Migrante

Fuerza Migrante (previously Migrant Workers’ Dignity Association, MWDA) is an organization dedicated to fighting exploitation and injustice by building autonomous migrant power from below, through mutual aid and communal self-defense. Our struggle is multi-dimensional, understanding that ending capitalist exploitation is impossible without directly confronting all forms of oppression (particularly gendered as most migrant farm workers identify as male) and the theft of territories by colonizers. By pooling our skills and resources together we aim to transform the world and be part of the struggles for migrant liberation in the stolen lands incorrectly understood as “Canada” and throughout the world.

Min Sook Lee

Min Sook Lee has directed numerous critically-acclaimed feature documentaries, including: Donald Brittain Gemini winner Tiger Spirit, Hot Docs Best Canadian Feature winner Hogtown, Gemini nominated El Contrato and Canadian Screen Award winner, The Real Inglorious Bastards. Lee is a recipient of numerous awards, including the Cesar E. Chavez Black Eagle Award, and the Alanis Obomsawin Award for Commitment to Community and Resistance. Canada’s oldest labour arts festival, Mayworks, has named the Min Sook Lee Labour Arts Award in her honour. Lee’s most recent feature, Migrant Dreams tells the undertold story of migrant workers struggling against Canada’s Temporary Foreign Worker Program (TFWP) that treats foreign workers as modern-day indentured labourers. In 2017, Migrant Dreams was awarded Best Labour Documentary by the Canadian Journalists Association and garnered the prestigious Canadian Hillman Prize which honours journalists whose work identifies important social and economic issues in Canada. Lee is an Associate Professor at OCAD University, her area of research and practice focuses on the critical intersections of art+social change in labour, border politics, migration and social justice movements.

Anelyse Weiler

Anelyse Weiler is an Assistant Professor of Sociology at the University of Victoria. Her research explores the convergence of social inequalities and environmental crises in the food system, with a focus on struggles for migrant justice and decent work across the food chain. She actively contributes to several organizations advocating for food security, dignified employment, and migrant rights. Anelyse is a graduate of the Global Resource Systems program in the Faculty of Land and Food Systems and a previous Communications Coordinator at the CSFS.

Susanna Klassen

Susanna Klassen is a PhD Candidate at the Institute for Resources, Environment and Sustainability, and a research associate with the Centre for Sustainable Food Systems at UBC. Her research looks at policy and governance interventions to improve food system sustainability, with a focus on organic certification and the relationship between agroecological diversification and job quality in organic agriculture. She works at the intersection of scholarship and activism through her engagement with several food systems organizations, including as Vice Chair of Food Secure Canada. Susanna is from German Mennonite heritage, and grew up as a settler in Treaty 4 Territory. She is currently a visiting scholar at Colorado State University, in the traditional and ancestral homelands of the Arapaho, Cheyenne and Ute Nations and peoples.



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.



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The Role of Innovation in Building a Food-Secure Future

By Salloum on June 25, 2020

Building Resilient Food Systems During COVID-19 and Beyond

Webinar: The Role of Innovation in Building a Food-Secure Future

In early May, the Canadian government committed $252 million to help farmers and food processors manage through COVID-19, and it deemed workers in the food supply chain an essential service. Join Dr. Rickey Yada, Professor and Dean of the Faculty of Land and Food Systems, Dr. Anubhav Pratap Singh, UBC Food and Beverage Innovation Professor, and Dr. Peter Dhillon, CEO Richberry Group of Companies, as they discuss how Canada can plan for a more food-secure future and ensure Canada is able to withstand future pandemics.

About the Presenters

Dr. Rickey Yada

In 2014, Professor Rickey Yada was appointed Dean of the Faculty of Land and Food Systems at the University of British Columbia in Vancouver, B.C. Prior to UBC, Dr. Yada was at the University of Guelph where he held numerous leadership roles, including Assistant Vice President Research, Canada Research Chair in Food Protein Structure, Scientific Director of the Advanced Foods and Materials Network (Networks of Centres of Excellence), and Founding Member of the Food Institute. He is, currently, the North American Editor of Trends in Food Science and Technology as well as serving on the editorial board of several journals. His areas of research includes: the structure – function relationships of enzymes (aspartic proteases) and carbohydrate biochemistry as related to nutrition and food quality.

Dr. Yada serves in a leadership capacity to several research and industry organizations, some of which include Chair of the Board of Trustees, International Life Science Institute – North America; Board of Bioenterprise Inc.; Advisory Committee Member – Arrell Food Institute and Seeding Food Innovation Grant Program (George Weston Loblaws); Member of the Scientific Advisory Panel – Riddet Institute (New Zealand); and a Member of the Advisory Panel – AgResearch (New Zealand). He is also a Past President and Fellow of the Canadian Institute of Food Science and Technology and the International Academy of the International Union of Food Science and Technology, and is also a fellow of the Institute of Food Technologists. Dr. Yada has an honorary DSc from the University of Guelph and was the 2019 Harraways 1867 Visiting Professor, University of Otago, New Zealand.

Dr. Anubhav Pratap Singh

Anubhav Pratap-Singh currently holds the BC Ministry of Agriculture Endowed Professorship in Food & Beverage Innovation. His research group in the Food Nutrition and Health Program of the Faculty of Land & Food Systems explores novel technologies for preservation and quality extension of food products. Prof. Pratap-Singh shall discuss the evolving role of innovative and emerging technologies in the food sector, and shall discuss the linkages between industry and academia.

Peter Dhillon

Peter Dhillon currently serves as Chairman on the Ocean Spray Board of Directors. As Chairman, he is an ex-officio member of all Board Committees. Peter has played an active role on many organizations and boards. He was the director for the Vancouver Airport Authority, B.C. Ferries (where he was also vice chairman), the Canada Customs and Revenue Agency and Atomic Energy of Canada Ltd. He was also on the Board of Governors of Simon Fraser University, the audit committee of the Vancouver 2010 Organizing Committee, the Canadian Olympic Committee, the Vancouver Hospital and the UBC Hospital Foundation (where he was a board member). He was also chair of the Vancouver Branch of Right to Play, an international humanitarian organization for children in communities affected by war, poverty and disease.

Peter is also known for giving back to the community with his philanthropic and charitable service, which has spanned a wide variety of important areas including health care, child humanitarian support, education, and sport. He has made significant financial contributions to many organizations including Kwantlen Polytechnic University, the Canadian Red Cross, the Canadian Olympic Committee, Arts Umbrella, and the Khalsa Diwan Society. At the University of British Columbia, he established the Rashpal Dhillon Pulmonary Fibrosis Research Endowment and the Rashpal Dhillon Track & Field Centre in his father’s memory. Most recently, Peter established the Peter P. Dhillon Centre for Business Ethics in partnership with the Sauder School of Business at the University of British Columbia.

Lennie Cheung, Moderator

Lennie Cheung’s doctoral research aims to help mitigate yield losses of potatoes and other staple crops by exploring their mechanistic interactions with disease-causing pathogens. A UBC Food Science alumni, Lennie was the first female and foreign researcher of Japan’s second largest natural gas provider. There, she spent three years helping set up a food science laboratory and building networks with partners from all across the food chain. Lennie also has work experience from Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada’s Summerland Research and Development Centre, and BC’s fruit and vegetable processing industry and food retailers.



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.



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Saturday Farmers’ Market Vendor Feature: The Jerk Store

By madison brown on June 22, 2020

Saturday Farmers’ Market Vendor Feature: The Jerk Store

Entering its second year at our market this week we are featuring the Jerk Store! The Jerk Store specializes in premium BC Beef and Organic Tofu jerky with the goal of making delicious jerky for everyone. We recently had the opportunity to chat with owner and jerky creator, Kalkin Brosseau to find out more.

How long has the Jerk Store been around? How did you get started?

This is our 3rd year as a company. I started making it for myself because I wanted a healthier snack and didn’t like the grocery store options. When we moved to BC from Ontario I decided to start the business.

What are the three most important things you think people should know about the Jerk Store ?

  • That we make really delicious jerky!
  • We try to use local ingredients whenever possible.
  • We make small batch handcrafted jerky so that people get the freshest product.

Why did you choose to come to the UBC Saturday Market specifically?

We are always looking to try out new markets and meet new people. I love the farm setting which is one of the major reasons we are returning this year. You just can’t beat the feeling of grass under your feet.

On your website you discussed supporting local communities and healthy food webs, what are some of the ways you are able to do this?

We try to use local ingredients whenever possible, our beef comes from Armstrong and the tofu comes from East Vancouver. We also get onions and parsley from local farms when they are in season. We volunteered with the Tri-City Chapter of Soup Sisters, which supports a local women’s shelter. I am also on the board of Grow Local Tri-Cities which hosts the Coquitlam and Port Moody Farmer’s Markets and is involved with community gardens and local food security.

What goes into developing a new flavour of jerky?

I have tried to use classic beef recipes, I think the flavours gets people really excited to try jerky that is unique but familiar at the same time.

You have a range of vegan jerkies as well, how did you get started making vegan 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?

Chipotle Cowboy is definitely my favourite flavor.

Where else can customers find you? And is there anything else you want them to know for this season?

We can be found online at www.jerkstore.ca as well as craft breweries throughout the Lower Mainland, the Jaks liquor store chain and the Cascadia Liquor Group on Vancouver Island.

Market Dates | Website | Instagram

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Saturday Farmers’ Market Vendor Feature: One Arrow

By madison brown on June 18, 2020

Saturday Farmers’ Market Vendor Feature: One Arrow

Entering its first year at our market, this week we are featuring One Arrow! Owner and former Olympic chef, Heat Laliberte, has combined 15 years of experience along with love for his community to create an artisanal, naturally smoked, and local ingredient driven bacon. Recently we had the opportunity to chat with Heat and find out more.

How long has One Arrow been around? How did you get started?

One Arrow’s journey started at the Vancouver Aboriginal Friendship Centre in the winter of 2017 when I took the Aboriginal BEST Program. The program gives each participant the tools to build a solid business idea. It’s where I was able to envision a side hustle making artisan bacon and selling at Vancouver Farmers Markets. I was still working full-time as a chef and building a customer base and brand. The goal was to make One Arrow my full-time job. Three years later and One Arrow is now my full-time job.

How do you incorporate your experience in the Aboriginal Business & Entrepreneurship Skills Training Program (BEST) into One Arrow?

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!

What are the three most important things you think people should know about One Arrow?

  • One Arrow is 100% Indigenous Owned & Operated by Chef Heat Laliberte of Cree & Metis heritage.
  • Every batch is hand cured and smoked fresh to order for each Farmers Market.
  • One Arrow gives back to initiatives within the DTES, DTES Indigenous youth & LGBTQIA2S+ community through guest Chef fundraisers, speaking engagements, fundraiser donations and monetary donations. If there is an event that you would like One Arrow to be involved in please contact: heat@onearrowmeats.com

Why did you choose to come to the UBC Saturday Market specifically?

It’s a beautiful location and vibe! Also, the Market Manager was very persistent and persistence always pays off!

How did you decide on your four flavours of bacon?

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.

You have cooked for Olympians in both the Rio and Pyeongchang, have you transferred any aspects of this experience into One Arrow?

Yes, when I got back from Pyeongchang, South Korea I made a special batch of thick cut, sweet & extra spicy gochugang glazed bacon. It’s a special order so if you want it order through my website! Onearrowmeats.com

If you could only have one of your bacons for the rest of your life, which one would it be?

Salt & Smoke!

Where else can customers find you? And is there anything else you want them to know for this season?

SPUD, Fresh St. Markets, Forklift Bar & Grill, Les Amis du Fromage, The Little Butcher, Pete’s Meat Butcher Shop, Lux Foods Ladner, 6 Degrees Eatery, Mr. Bannock Indigenous Food Truck. And we are very excited to take part in the UBC Farmers Market and can’t wait to connect with you.

Market Dates | Website | Facebook Page | Instagram

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Bee smart: How I ended up pushing a weather station around campus in a baby stroller

By catherine hodgson on June 18, 2020

Bee smart: How I ended up pushing a weather station around campus in a baby stroller

Jennifer Lipka is an undergraduate student with the UBC BeeHIVE Research Cluster researching bumble bee abundance and diversity on UBC campus. Read more about her research, and how it feeds into the Bee Smart program.

Check out the full article here.

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Saturday Farmer’s Market Vendor Feature: Back for More Bites

By madison brown on June 12, 2020

Saturday Farmers’ Market Vendor Feature: Back for More Bites

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.

How did you get started? And what inspired the idea for a nutrient-packed bite?

Back for More Bites was launched in early May of 2019. We started in local pop-ups, craft fairs, and farmer’s markets and are currently working to expand into local cafes and small independent health and retail stores. I was inspired to create these nutrient-packed bites about 5 years ago when I was struggling with my own personal need for more energy and plant-based nutrients, like iron.

What are the three most important things you think customers should know about Back for more Bites?

  • We are all about supporting local and love connecting our consumers to all the amazing foods and ingredients we source locally, like our fresh BC fruits and sea salt.
  • Everything we make is made with love, intention and only the best premium quality plant-based gluten-free ingredients in a dedicated plant-based and gluten-free facility.
  • Our mission is to make the most delicious, nourishing and convenient plant-powered snacks everyone can enjoy and feel good about eating while honouring the animals and our planet.

Why did you choose to come to the UBC Saturday Market specifically?

UBC and the farm have a piece of my heart. Growing up on a farm and also being a UBC alumni with a major in Psych & Sociology I feel very connected to the land and the community. It is such an honour to be at the UBC Saturday Market selling my products to UBC and the surrounding community.

You have seasonal flavours of bites, how do you decide on these? What seasonal flavours can customers look forward to this summer?

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

What goes into developing a new flavour of bite?

Each flavour is initially inspired by fruit and then I build my flavour profiles and textures from there always combining each flavour with citrus and sea salt to naturally balance and preserve the bites. Trained in Plant-Based Culinary Nutrition, I play around with lots of premium nutrient rich ingredients. I then finesse the flavours and textures of each new bite based on feedback from friends, family, chefs and health conscious food lovers with active on-the-go lifestyles.

If you could only have one of your bites for the rest of your life which one would it be?

It would be the Caramel Apple Crumble bite. The flavours and textures are everything for me – and it really does remind me of apple crumble – one of my favourite desserts as a child. The only thing that’s missing is the whipped coconut cream!

What else should customers know?

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.

Where else can customers find you?

Customers can find us and our tasty treats at local farmer’s markets on the weekends including UBC Farm, Coquitlam Farmer’s Market and Squamish Farmer’s Market. We also offer local delivery in Metro Vancouver on Tuesdays from 10am to 5pm. We are currently working on our eCommerce site and getting into some favourite local cafes and small independent grocers and retailers. Stay tuned! Follow us on IG @backformorebites to stay connected and follow our journey.

Market Dates | Website | Facebook Page | Instagram .

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Saturday Farmers’ Market Vendor Feature: Schoccolatta

By madison brown on June 2, 2020

Saturday Farmers’ Market Vendor Feature: Schoccolatta

Entering its second year at our market, this week we are featuring Schoccolatta! Hailing from Switzerland, Schoccolatta has been providing Vancouver with premium unroasted, vegan chocolate since 2018.

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.

How did you come up with the name Schoccolatta?

Being from Switzerland, I wanted to incorporate all of the four Swiss languages in my name. Sh- from schoggi (Swiss German),-ccola from cioccolata (Italian), -ocolat from chocolat (French), and -latta from tschigulatta (Rumansch).

Why did you choose to come to the UBC Saturday Market?

I met someone from the market at an event. What I heard about the market – and the conditions for first time vendors – convinced me to try it out. I loved the whole experience! The setting, the friendly staff, and the international clientele is what is so special about UBC Farmer’s Market. There are also many customers who come by regularly, and we appreciate this.

What makes raw (unroasted) chocolate different from conventional chocolate? What are some of its’ benefits?

Think of the benefits of dark chocolate. Chocolate made from unroasted beans has all these benefits but enhanced, as it still contains most of its nutrients and it is one of the most powerful superfoods out there. Plus, you need a really good quality of beans to start with, as you don’t have the possibility to roast and therefore enhance the flavour. It has to be right from the start.

What are the three most important things you think customers should know about Schoccolatta?

  • Our chocolate is made from unroasted Ecuadorian heirloom beans or paste.
  • All our products are vegan/plant based and gluten free as well as organic.
  • We sweeten with minimally processed Coconut Blossom Sugar, which has a low glycemic index and a great taste.

At Schoccolatta you focus on the quality and sustainability of your ingredients, what thought process goes into choosing a new ingredient?

How is it produced? Is it organic? Is it the best possible quality for my brand that I can get? Is it non-GMO, traded fairly and where possible locally produced (not easy for chocolate, but I always at least try to find local or Canadian suppliers). I also want to learn the back story of the production.

If you could only have one of your chocolates for the rest of your life which one would it be?

Without a doubt the vegan Nutmilk chocolate!

Where else can customers find you?

Larry’s Market North Vancouver, Pomme Natural Market in Nanaimo (and soon in Port Coquitlam), online at bclocalroots.ca, and at the Shipyards Christmas Market.

Market Dates| Website | Facebook Page | Instagram .

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Global News BC Feature: Susanna Klassen

By Salloum on May 12, 2020

Global News BC Feature: Susanna Klassen

“There is needed to be a rapid shift in where food is going and how its being processed and packaged and our food system isn’t totally set up to deal with this scale…”

Susanna Klassen, a PhD candidate working with the CSFS, recently said in an interview with Global News BC addressing the new COVID-19 funding for farmers. Check out the full piece here.

Check out the video here.

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