Let’s Taste Canada

Speaks to her interests in advocacy, that she enjoys cooking and a large network of people hoping for a new vision for Canada. The podcast completes many concepts including how to create events that are very inclusive, how to eat, speaking to hunger as part of food insecurity, health care costs being high for food insecure individuals. Note there are time specific notes here which were not as related currently. 

At the time of the interview, Matthew Bouchard was the executive director at The Yellow Door/La Porte Jaune. Growing up in Montreal with parents of different strong nationalities affected his approach to food.  Please do take a look at the https://www.letstastecanada.ca/matthew-bouchard-yellow-door/ Thank you for listening!

If you are interested in a short and fun podcast - before we had to move due to the massive thunderstorm please take a listen. Max is very pleased to be an oyster farmer. After some hilarity and much laughter throughout the interview - I appreciated how excited he became about food. Play the podcast on any platform or listen direct on the site https://www.letstastecanada.ca/max-oyster-farmer/  - not recommended for little ears

Alex speaks about his interest in food as a chef, his work, and how he cares about his herb garden, – I appreciated his interview immensely so I hope you enjoy and appreciate a very real conversation with an exceptionally talented chef. More of how real the conversation was so appreciated – I chose to leave it almost all in - so I hope this interview showcases his experience properly! It was a lot of fun to speak to Alex and I hope you enjoy it. Be sure to look at the site as well - www.letstastecanada.ca Take a look at the site, the property has an appreciation for art – food – and supports applications for arts as well - I personally have a huge appreciation for the arts – always have – learn about it all here at https://kingsbraegarden.com/about/art-at-kingsbrae/.

https://www.acadian-sturgeon.com/our-story/ Cornel is extremely well educated with his PhD, he is very well spoken at a fast pace! I loved how he spoke off the cuff, and very intelligently. Which was a delight. He speaks about upbringing on the countryside in Romania – proudly - and learning from his family and an important relationship with his professor who was 80 when he started his PhD! Take a look at his website for more about the company. Take a look at www.letstastecanada.ca for the next post.

Dr. P. Williams Patty Williams is a Professor at Mount Saint Vincent University, Director at Food Action Research Centre, for food security and policy change. Dr. Patty Williams is one of the most brilliant humans. Do not be fooled by her easy way of speaking as she knows her stuff! It is one of my favourite things about her. There is a resiliency to how she sees people and completes her work. She speaks to how her clinical experience as a dietitian has shaped her research to include people affected at the table, is a champion for the leading edge of food security work. Plus she is a delight, and very intelligent. She even helped to create a board game!  See more at the blog www.letstastecanada.ca/podcast and the blog dedicated to her (please note there is a delay on the blog) - plus Happy St Patty's Day! 

Kim speaks positively about her experience breaking barriers of being a woman and the limits of being able to go on a boat – tune in to hear all about how many boats she has! See site and look for blog at letstastecanada.ca for more comments!

Listening in to this podcast it was fascinating as someone who I have spoken to quite a bit over the years there was still so much to learn from her as she shared her life story.  To anyone who knew Liz - she mentions living with serious illness in the podcast and she is no longer with us. I want to specifically honour any grief this may bring for someone - and - my hope is it truly brings as Liz always wishes for so many - joy. Join the conversation of hearing about all of the influences of her life including her family experiences with food. Her role as a dietitian was one she was very proud of, and she speaks to living off the land, policies to support farmland, the importance of food, wanting to take food seriously and also her thoughts on hospital food and the value of eating well.  Although not mentioned in the podcast, she was very creative in how to present the facts - but also equally as much an advocate to being critical of reviewing journals and articles and encouraged professionals to meet to discuss journals especially their methods to determine whether the results were deemed appropriate to consider in practice. Recognizing the rigour of a journal is important when looking at health claims cited in traditional media - is the rigour of the journal adequate? Many health professionals without diving into the evidence tend to pause.  Part of Liz's personal experiences as a caregiver and her thoughts on various family member's preference regarding food and how it is different than what she may choose for them. She makes the distinction between her grandfather, father and her son’s relationship to food including the difference between the physiology of food, and emotional attachment and enjoyment. Personal experiences also supported her role as a dietitian.  --- A few quotes:  "I think we do an extraordinary job with the amount of money we are given [hospital food]." "…  best practice is very clearly delineated people should have access to food 24/7... just like people have access to medication…" "They got 19 countries to agree on something – yup malnutrition is a problem – and here are some of the ways we need to attend to it…" "...they are instructed on how to eat a knife and fork properly.. and they are taught at a very young age this is what good food is." “we are the holder of knowledge, you are the recipient, instead of here is the knowledge, let’s experience it together and see what’s meaningful for you, viable, what you can live with – very different.” “nothing is more important than eating - you can live without a car – but you will die without eating – dietitians are unique as you are helping people live, survive, thrive, right – it’s a huge privilege.” “my grandfather said everything that you are putting in your mouth I have either raised or grown… and that was so powerful… just the look of pride he had on his face… I’ve done this… I am feeding my family…" “he would pay them in food…" “many of the old cultures… you really are nurtured through food… if you are having a hard day your family member will make you something special… it’s just embedded in our culture…” “when you offered food… you are offering time and space… so they can speak their troubles, speak their joys.” “One of my accomplishments is the letting go of being a dietitian with my mom… to just allow her experience her own quality of life…  I offer… and then she picks what she wants… but it is her right to choose her own enjoyment.”

Dr. Cath Morley is at Acadia University, NS and has lived all over the country. With significant hands on life career experience which comes across in the interview with multiple different aspects of dietetics and nutrition. Learn more about how a varied and diverse background - can support an inclusive experience - see site here for bio - including a focus in discussing caregiver needs as part of current professional practice. Listen in to an intelligent and articulate interview. Experience includes having worked closely with cancer patients and how their relationship with food changes. The role of the dietitian includes what Cath now likes to call - nutrition rehabilitation. Learn all about inexpensive food aspects, big treat growing up, clinical dietitian experience and personal experiences of food. This podcast also speaks to experience as a person regarding hoping for shared responsibility of food making at home, and shares stories about friendly neighbours, and road trips. And even a few extra comments on cookbooks! It is a  very fun podcast.  If you want to hear more about Cath on her bio site - there are also audio-videos about dietetic practice with another colleague. It is meant for dietitians/health professionals however does have comments on the client-health professional dynamic, the change many have to have a reaction to the term compliance, and how it is important to work WITH clients, their lived experience of their life - to accomplish their goals.

Valerie speaks about food access as a Professor and focusing on facts, and data with infographics from her communication via PROOF. She is well spoken - but also is direct about complex topics. Be ready to hear about food, cost, pricing, and the challenging decisions people make when it is hard to acquire food. ----- “Food… is not something everyone has access to in ways that they should… it is a playground right now for a lot of special interests to play out… so I see it very much as a political thing.” “she got a payment for something… she talked about going and buying a chicken… roasting it for her and her daughter, and she said how good it felt to roast a chicken finally… when you hear that story your heart just breaks.”

Paul Taylor who is currently a lecturer at Simon Fraser University. The interview was during his time at FoodShare Toronto. His profile is significant including having chaired the development of BC's Poverty Reduction Strategy - which he actually mentions in the podcast as needing to be done, demonstrating his interest in action.  See more on letstastecanada.ca for Paul's blog and quotes!

Chad has a considerate tone - a way of speaking of how to bring everyone to the same table celebrating incredible food - he speaks about how global food improves access for everyone, and also the importance of local farmers who work hard - plus the feelings of celebrating together.  At the time, he was working with an Indigenous community creatively to improve.  Take a listen to someone who has done a lot of listening. Happy Tasting!

Check out Letstastecanada.ca/podcast - for all of the latest ones Check out Letstastecanada.ca - each interview and podcast has its own blogpost with my favourite quotes!  Hope you enjoy! and Happy Tasting! Irena ----------- An incredible server/bartender can make such a difference along with impeccable food to create an impeccable dining experience  Tom hosted as a server for an incredible dinner at Port City Royal in Saint John, NB - a friend and I went for dinner. In fact I had some caviar there which was local from a place I also interviewed (not released yet). Tom was so fun - as I mention on the show - I harassed him to interview with me so we met at Picaroons a local brewery - (not actually but did insist he had something to offer) and he also works at Rogue Coffee (FB page. This was one of those 'true road trip' experiences captures on the podcast of actually meeting people in their preferred places and finding out about a person's experiences.

https://www.studioeastfood.ca/ New owners - still wonderful food!  -- Studio East was interviewed with original owners Saronn and Ray share how they love to travel and the many places they have lived including, the importance of food and eating together so that family memories of food naturally come up in conversation and how they have their own shared experience about food.  Saronn's super high energy and sweet personality comes out and Ray's thoughtful sharings showcase their different strengths. Saronn brings her unique perspective of food having been born outside of the country enjoying celebrating Canadian food. Ray's experience in the industry helped when discussing speed. They both have spoken about enjoying cooking from scratch, work-life balance, sustainability of not only the land but also the restaurant industry, appreciating working closely with local farmers and farmer's markets as well as naming the challenges. They speak about the whole food system of food grown to making the food in the kitchen as well as financial side. If you are interested in a very sweet valuable conversation. My hope is this episode will inspire you to think how you eat, how many different people eat and stay curious (not judgemental) as we all learn together - I really invite you to listen to very educated conversation about enjoying food and the practical challenges in a really positive lens - as if at a table or in the backyard together. This episode strengthens the experience of how Canadian food can be adventurous - cooking with varied ingredients but prioritizing local. In fact, it was one of the times that  I mentioned 'so far' experience - "One is that each region has its own food and also that the commonality is that it's too diverse to name."  My vision of NS is a culinary destination place that has an abundance of everything we want to grow and use and making it a rewarding career for kitchen staff and this is a career I love. --- Here are a few quotes - although there are many many which are great:  "I had seen him work, it’s crazy hours,, we’ll move into the woods." "We try to do to we have to train them by flavour, the natural product – as any product we use will never be exactly the same, so we say ‘taste this, taste this’ but if you show them a recipe it will never be consistent because mother nature is never exactly the same." "Food is so important in our culture, you eat together – there’s nothing else more important than putting food on the table and eating as a family." "We want to serve local product, but there seems to be a lot of reasons why things can’t be done… it’s very educational for us. Our guests have come to us and they are ready for this stuff, but at the same time you have farmers and local producers continuing to decline in Nova Scotia - that’s a big concern" "Guests are ready for it, it's an exciting time in Nova Scotia" "future generations, what are we going to leave for them when we're gone, right?" ... work on the business and still be able to impact change.. we need to connect not in a formal way but we're talking about like having a bonfire and just celebrating the feast of the season, you know, having a pig roast in the middle of nowhere." "What’s sustainable for us to serve in our restaurant. Can we get the product, can we get the local product and if we can’t then it’s probably not going on the menu… if it’s really not available for us... you ask a small farmer will you grow this for us, but you know it’s like .. how much do you need and is it worth their time" "Let's keep growing what we are good at growing... At the same time, how do we make all these ethnic vegetables, ethnic food?... it's now consumed a lot." "I don't have time to eat... I am constantly tasting stuff... recently we implemented that into our routine." "things will drop.. it's ok just pick it back up." "Canada, think of apple pie, pumpkin pie, if you look at Nova Scotia, you think about seafood chowder, if you go to Ontario, it could be a number of things." *The concepts are true to interviewees perspectives at the time of the interviewee and have not been fact checked.*

Check out the website: www.letstastecanada.ca/podcast for the recent podcast release Check out the blog for the quotes: - I was always kind of taking risks. I remember I asked my mom to buy seafood to make, I wanted to make chowder. And, you know, for me, she kind of, it was one of those iconic PEI food products. We're a dairy rich province here in Canada, in Prince Edward Island specifically, some of the highest, you really good milk for making cheese. It's fermented, is something, you know, that bacterial fermentation is what we're missing these days in our kind of our gut system.  --- Cookbook: flavours of Prince Edward Island - a culinary journey  https://www.indigo.ca/en-ca/flavours-of-prince-edward-island/9781770503854.html

I've always told new cooks to get the flavor bible because it's sort of an eye-opener on what actually goes with what and why. This Bar Laurel is Spanish tapas, wine bar, lots of cocktails. ⁓ But Fauna is very Canadian, very locally sourced. He used take me out and pick mushrooms so we would make mushroom perogies with wild mushrooms. Because you have great, great wine growing region. You have the best farming in my opinion. You'll probably say the Okanagan, but they're both very good. I mean, they're the only two places where you can grow apricots and quince and, you know, really cool product that... that's the only two spots in Canada you can do it. But I find the food culture is not anywhere near what they do in terms of agriculture. Duck dishes with local berries, that kind of thing is a very Ottawa dish. A lot of game dishes here too. I mean, of course it's not wild because we're not allowed. Well, fauna is definitely quite strictly local. Sometimes painfully so in the middle of winter. And you don't want to look at another root vegetable ever again.   Well I think farming is crazy. ⁓ It is maybe the only job that is harder and makes you less money than cooking. There's people growing it and taking care of it and watering it and picking it and cleaning it. A whole bunch of stuff happens before you get to pick up your nice little neat baskets in the grocery store. Defined nutritious food. ⁓ mean, no additives. As few preservatives as possible. ⁓ Mostly fresh. A lot of raw or very lightly cooked vegetables. ⁓ I like, I love meat. I could never be a vegetarian. ⁓ But I do like the recent sort of growth of the vegetable forward.

Mike is a sausage maker - Seed to Sausage. He lived all over, is action oriented in the food world, and previously was in the military. He speaks about hot dogs in Montreal to making fried rice, cooking dinner while I was there for the interview and everything in our house revolves around food.  This episode Mike is very easygoing, there's a pup and his wonderful family in the background. Since it was closer to the end of the trip he asks a few questions at the end and it does provide quite a nice summary of the trip overall and what is to come as there are quite a few!  Clarification that I think the intention was to say cultural appreciation... "taking everybody we have around us and working together to make delicious stuff" Discussing how he handles food safety issues as a processing facility.  --- "I was in the military so it was really difficult for me to meet people who were interested in food. I started going to these meetings and everybody wanted to do great things." "I really loved making salami"  "[Favourite food memory] Montreal steamy hot dogs... but still at the Atwater Market I will go and eat hot dogs." "I can only speak to the values that I produce food by. We try to buy them as close to home as possible. Being close to home isn't necessarily good enough, we have to look at transportation... certified humane... realistically that is just my ethics but that doesn't necessarily make it sustainable." "A huge question is food distribution. Produce high quality product and build on that food security." "Food is very simple in my mind. The salt, the sour, the sweet. So we play with these ingredients" "I just want to make delicious food people want to eat... It's like that scientific method. I will make the fried rice, and then I taste it, and then I think it needs this, and this, but I can't add them both in the next recipe I can only add one, I can only make one small change... otherwise I am not going to know what I do. I think every dish I cook at home becomes an experiment I have to learn from." "This is more what I would know about... we do nationally fermented salami, the same way you would make salami ... 100 years ago 500 years ago however we have to do it in today's structured, highly regulated food standards... " "fat is part of the meat I think... I just learned recently but I don't know if this is true or not... but and they were really clearly bashing those companies ... but those same companies tried to make those recipes healthier, and since they have been making the products healthier but they can't tell people they are making it healthier... but I am not sure where I heard it from.... and my pet peeve is unsubstantiated claims... the consumer is at the end of the day making that decision... We as the consumer created that company... we are even adapting even if you don't want the change.  --- **Correction that the amount per month now is closer to $800 - $1000 and in BC 2022 $1263 for a family of four. See upcoming blog post for more information and resources. https://letstastecanada.ca/ https://www.bccdc.ca/Documents/Food_Costing_in_BC_2022_Report_FINAL.pdf0 https://proof.utoronto.ca/food-insecurity/how-many-canadians-are-affected-by-household-food-insecurity/  https://proof.utoronto.ca/resource/the-spending-patterns-of-food-insecure-households/

Linda speaks about growing up on a farm, and how her career helped her inform her current support for ongoing farming. There are many topics discussed regarding eating food, farming, and well educated conversations about the food system – even discussing a PhD article from 1851 to 1991. Here are a few quotes:  We need to be educated about the situation regarding our food. I am thrilled to be able to work with some of the hardest working people that you’ll find anywhere.. I don’t think people realize how many hats people have to wear Farmers are choosing to sell the land because that is their pension… the average age of a farmer … is 57… we have all kinds of land that is no longer in production… there are way too many barriers to entry. I would say that food is a key to rural economic development and it is vastly underutilized. We have now loaned over 1.9 million… 112 loans to 72 businesses The bottom line for farmers is not what it should be. When you see people investing their money in order to get a 6, 10, 12% return on investment, farmers would love to be able to even know they would get a 5 or even a 3, or 5% return on their investment I read the statistics, that the good news was that … the remaining.. producers …instead of basically actually paying us 3 cents on the dollar to eat their food... Regulations are becoming more and more stringent. I think that the best possible regulation is for me to buy from someone I know and buy the best food I can because it is grown here with all of the qualities I mentioned We need to raise awareness ...who has some discretion around their spending were to switch just 10%, and 50% would be wonderful … from whatever is cheapest to whatever is local… everything that we do helps.  If we believe in ourselves and want to support ourselves… we have billions and billions of dollars which are building other people’s economies. The quality of food that we can produce... there is no comparison between the taste of good food 

A second quick very short edit over the holidays! A bit of short conversation!  A quick note that many food banks, along with many other programs also do wonderful work tirelessly to support families over the holidays and many have worked to support including the person in the process however it is a good reminder to be practical, action oriented however these are all good things to think about both the provision of support and how we can apply it. This podcast is meant to provide many perspectives to consider to either deepen beliefs as you may disagree with something provided or include new ways of thinking in a super lighthearted way even though they are important conversations.  Happy Tasting! 

Over the holidays I thought just a minute episode would be a nice reduced option in a busy time. I recommend taking time you may have spent listening over the holidays with your loved ones! And please consider going back to listen to another podcast that you may not have listened to last time!  May people who are enjoying a good meal be grateful and people who may wish for more food know that you matter. If you celebrate - I hope you have a wonderful time. If the holidays are challenging for you - I hope you are kind to yourself.

Take a listen to Paul Moores who speaks to a wide variety within a career. There are excellent comments on being excited about lobster, food safety  training, including in restaurants. Since having completed this podcast - he now owns Shediac Bay Cruises: www.shediacbaycruises.ca Here are some quotes: There are many numerous lobster processing facilities here so there was one right on the wharf here. They still hold lobster here...  they will process a fair amount of lobster and ship all over the world. Food access ... most people see grocery stores as access. More people are looking at community farms, markets, we do local rather than supermarket...  and there are becoming more access to local products. I see a little bit of food safety... I mean I do a lot of training for people in food banks... I know there are a lot of security issues for people to get a safe healthy meal. 

Tim speaks so well that I was enthralled about his farming experience, the importance of soil, the loss of honeybees and how pollination is super important to help support agriculture and food in Canada. Please do take a listen to a wonderful expert on agriculture and farming

Chef Michael Smith

Chef Chris Velden, co-owner of the Flying Apron Inland Cookery in Summerville, Nova Scotia, shares the origin of their inn and restaurant, the challenges of opening and renovating, and the joys of sourcing locally from nearby farms and producers. This episode explores sustainable seafood and Ocean Wise, food security, Slow Food, the realities of life in professional kitchens, and practical advice for anyone who wants to cook, learn, or build stronger food communities.

Welcome to a refreshing child's view of food - I learned a ton! What an incredible way of looking at food, sharing food, and enjoying the garden. I will let these lovely ladies speak for themselves. I hope you find it as enjoyable as I did! 

Juliana beautifully describes the importance of a celebratory mother's day feast, her love of food both for simplicity and complex flavours with different dishes in a wonderful way. yes, actually [I do love food] and I am for one person I am tired for apologizing for that, I do love food, I genuinely do…” "In a first nations community that there is a lot of work being done on food security, just like any other first nation community all across Canada, they're all doing work on food security because they know it is an issue." “Green beans are meant to be sweet… I didn’t realize that until you know like an adult…  they are meant to be really nice and sweet they are really a sweet bean, and you don’t realize that until you grow it, pick it, taste it…” "My whole family was very very into it... they bought into the whole idea and I think that when I stopped buying into it, my family stopped buying into it... and that's a lesson for everybody is if you want your kids If you want your kids to be into certain type of things, know where their food comes from, and know what they're eating and stuff, you can't do that without you participating in it... it's different that's for sure." "we have a community feast every mother's day... it is a community gathering, it's people spending time together, it is people socializing, it's people chipping in and helping one another, it's mom's, it's the youth getting out and serving the mom's, it's the mom's to be getting used to the idea of coming to a mother's feast." “It’s a real enjoyable community mother’s day feast… it started out little and it grows.”

Previous chef Jeremiah from Reluctant Chef NL several years ago (pre-Covid) spoke about his time and strategy to accommodate some beautiful meals. 

Colleen Cameron speaks very eloquently with an extensive background from farming as well as many different unique initiatives.

Christine Johnson is a dietitian and public health practitioner who has been involved in the food security movement in Nova Scotia since 2001. She lives in Antigonish Nova Scotia with her husband and 2 daughters who have started and care for a small permaculture orchard. Figuring out what to do with all the fruits berries and veggies they grow is their main focus.  Christine is one of the most humble, gracious, kind but ethically strong people I have ever met and I am grateful that I continue to look up to her as a beautiful being.

JCharles​ Moments/Quotes:   "It is such an important thing to understand where food is coming from."   "What is that?                - that's fennel. People really can't identify certain ingredients. It's a little bit disturbing at times... understand the amount of effort and time and how things are grown and again once you have an appreciation and respect for the food I think it is super important and I think it cuts down on waste and how people approach and cook vegetables and ingredients."   "90% is brought in by boat and freight. If the ferry goes down for several days the supermarkets are barren."   "Its just the sense of being creative and work with your hands. It is a challenging environment - it's long hours."   "Restaurant is so unpredictable."   "I think we have one of the best culinary scenes in the world. Canada has so much to offer. It is beautiful. It's wild."   "It's crazy how people lived here... the first settlers... my grandmother tells me stories these guys row out and haul these boats out."   "A big part of the culture was the stories, the music, the jigs and reels, and people here have a real    "[A healthy relationship with food] knowing where your food is coming from... knowing the people who are growing your food you know your farmer's/grower's, to me being in tune with all that... being hands on... going to farmer's markets just having that connection is very important."

Dr. Liesel Carlsson, Interim Director and Professor at Acadia and – Registered Dietitian Her PhD was completed in Sweden at Blekinge Institute of Technology (Strategic Sustainable Development). See more about her education and courses at Acadia, Research and her most recent publication At present, a lot of my work is on the https://internationaldietetics.org/sustainability/  ----- "it keeps coming back to me the famous words of Barb Anderson take care of those relationships those are as important to get work done to move towards something that you are driven to move towards ... it is unlikely you are going to do it well without the support of the people around you... you know so sometimes you may have to give up the outcome in order to take care of the relationship ... and to get really theoretical on you... I actually really like that... you have this constellation of food system actors that are all interacting with one another.... and these subclusters and humans are exactly like that too, social systems are exactly just like that and when you start to degrade the relationships between people... if you don't attend to those relationships... the system actually starts to fall apart just like in the food system... I'm going to carry Barb's torch and say... pay attention to your relationships." ------ Podcast Moments “my biggest hope is that… people will get excited about… what we can contribute... I can feel this gap between today and tomorrow and I want to be a part of the transition… oh that’s really cute… she really cares!” “how sustainability affects food access is big… we can do a whole interview on that…but it’s interesting… one of my colleagues handed me a paper that essentially looked at the two of them - that essentially lined up the food and agricultural organizations definitions of food security which is about access and availability and utilization and stability ... and they … just broke it out into those three classic dimensions of environment, and social, economic and looked at them and lined them up… if I am going to narrow it down… it’s a story of low income families often times of how economics meets food… and it’s almost a predictable crowd and almost a predictable scenario… but it turns out that food security on [school] campus is extremely high... but I was shocked at how high it was... for me the university story was so surprising." “I have a couple of colleagues who every once and a while hold up the reality to me… when you are so entrenched in the world of sustainability… but I care and I think it’s important and I try to activate change… and in my believing self everyone else wants to do the same.” “… people eat mostly because it tastes good… but I actually think taste should be the number one… what tastes good is often also really healthy and often tends to fall in line with what is sustainable anyways… and tend to be from whole foods…” “I think it is ok to not know anything about food and actually not really care about food and that’s healthy, but it is also important and healthy to be really literate about food and what it is and where it comes from and to make joyous choices about your food and also based on knowing that your food choices is a political action as well.” “work of ecologists... and for me right now... how I find it helpful to think about food systems... is to think of them as adaptive and complex systems... and it can change over time... constellation of different actors and networks... there's clusters... looking at food systems as... looking up at the stars and drawing lines in between them." "I tend to stay away from being too prescriptive..." "when I am thinking from a global perspective again my message in a sustainable future - a hard line that all humans need to be vegan is not sustainable i think we all understand it doesn't work like that ... yea but I think right now for the people where it is a acceptable, I think the more plants ... the more we can pull back on that mass consumption of animal proteins the more likely we are able to get through the funnel, the crunch... are we actually going to be able to slow down the rising tide of our climate right now, for most Canadians right now I would say that's doable." "[Food Art] and he takes the ice cube tray full of these ingredients and tossed it and "voom" all over the floor... and wouldn't it be so fun to watch it smash... and there are certain ages food art aren't ready for it."  "I am a big believer in the power of communities… let people decide what their food future will look like.” “they need to be diverse and that’s what makes the world beautiful.”   Resources Mentioned: https://old.naturalstep.ca/ - a good introduction Rebuilding the Foodshed: How to Create Local, Sustainable, and Secure Food Systems Book by Philip Ackerman-Leist Sustainable Food Systems - Tim Lang

Chef T. Perrin has a beautiful way of speaking to make you comfortable while speaking his mind on important food matters. He has intelligent and considerate thoughts on eating, food, food security, and policy.   Chef Todd Perrin Moments/Quotes: “my love for food started with eating it, you know, and then, and then turned into making it after a while.” “eating something for the sake of the food is a reasonably new way of thinking here within the last generation or two … going to dinner at someone’s house was not about .. dinner, it was about meeting people and hanging with friends and family and you ate something hearty and good because you had to get up in the morning…” ”our attitude towards food and dining has changes .... it’s allowed restaurants and mine... because people are more open to enjoying a meal for the sake of enjoying a meal than they used to be.” ”we are a restaurant so we use lots of salt, lots of butter, lots of fat but everything we use is unprocessed... if we take a local carrot that’s been grown in the ground here, we you know wash it we saute it with a bit of local butter and season it with a little bit of sea salt that’s not going to make people sick... we try to serve people natural food, real food that’s you know prepared carefully...” “[A healthy relationship with food] … we try to let the ingredients do their work… you know like the old saying right - everything in moderation”  “Food is a very intimate thing… we should take it seriously we should not take it for granted.”  “We were sustainable because we had to be.”

A mini version of the full episode for Chef Todd Perrin