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THE 100 MILE DINNER
Savour the Flavour of Locally Grown Food on October 27

Turkey breast brined with apple cider; heritage tomatoes roasted with sheep’s milk cheese; Flemish Beauty pears in wild pear wine with brandied raspberries. These are just a few of the locally grown foods that Chef Thomas Riding will serve at Merrickville’s Sam Jakes Inn on Saturday night, October 27th, during the 100 Mile Dinner, a fundraiser for the Frontenac Arch Biosphere Reserve celebrating local food and the rich cultural heritage of this region.

The UNESCO designated Frontenac Arch Biosphere Reserve is all about building sustainable communities by networking all facets of heritage, culture, society and economy. Hosted by the Biosphere Reserve Chair Gary Clarke, the 100 Mile Dinner will celebrate one of the world’s most significant landscapes as one of 15 Biosphere Reserves in Canada with over 500 worldwide. 

While all of us have enjoyed the pleasures of eating from the local landscape for parts of the year, we now understand that eating locally grown food has vital benefits to our economy, society, and quality of life. Food that travels from beyond our “backyard” removes money from our economy, adds to our carbon footprint, and has lesser nutritional value.

The 100 Mile Dinner borrowing from both the title and the theme of the book, The 100 Mile Diet, will introduce you to the spectacular and sumptuous delights of dining from the local farmscape. Executive Chef of Sam Jakes Inn, Thomas Riding, will not only prepare a gourmet dinner using the best ingredients that our region and radius have to offer but, will address issues facing a sustainable supply of local food.

Proceeds from the 100 Mile Dinner will help to support the many not-for-profit and volunteer programs of education, Local Flavours, culture and conservation of the partners in the Frontenac Arch Biosphere Reserve’s Network.  

Everyone is invited to experience the culinary delights of our region on October 27th but space is limited. For reservations please call 613-659-4824. Tickets are $60 each. More information on the 100 Mile Dinner, including the full menu can be found on the Frontenac Arch Biosphere Reserve’s website: www.fabr.ca/parties

Participating Local Producers
Countryman's Estate Winery (Prescott)
Green Gables Winery (Oxford Station)
Halls Apple Market (Brockville)
Jasper Farms (Jasper)
Kilmarnock Orchards (Jasper)
Lyons Family Turkey Farm (Spencerville)
Mrs. McGarrigle's Fine Food (Merrickville)
Oxford Mills Creamery (Les brebis sur le toil bleu) (Oxford Mills)

SUCCESSFUL EVENT  LAUNCHES LOCAL FLAVOURS THIRD YEAR OF SUPPORT FOR LOCAL FARMERS
March 2007

To start our 3rd year with a bang, Local Flavours joined forces with the National Farmers Union, Local 316, and St. Lawrence College to organize a workshop on the marketing of local food. The workshop was held March 10th at  St. Lawrence College in Kingston. The featured speaker was Mark Lattanzi, the Campaign Director of the "Be a Local Hero, Buy Locally Grown" program in western Massachusetts; the longest running and most comprehensive 'buy local' program for farm products in the U.S. He presented two excellent workshops entitled "Harvesting Support for Local Food: Success Stories From the Field", to a large, enthusiastic audience of producers, activists and organizers from Frontenac, Leeds and Grenville counties and the surrounding area.

"Local Heroes" has been an inspiration and source of valuable information for Local Flavours since our beginning in 2005 and it was great to have Mark here to share his ideas and experience with us. Many of our members attended and said they had picked up some good marketing ideas.

A grant from the Thousand Islands Community Development Corporation allowed Local Flavours to hire an intern in January who has been engaged in contacting current members and signing up new members. We have already surpassed last year's membership of 45 and expect many more by our deadline of April 15. Our 2007 brochure listing all members will be published in May in time for this market season.

For more information or to become a member of Local Flavours, contact
Arden or David at the Biosphere office 613-659-4824 or email info@localflavours.org.

Local Flavours project sees growing network across region

ARTICLES of interest to Local Food Production

No Bar Code
Michael Pollan
Mother Jones Magazine

In Oregon, Thinking Local
Melanie Conner
The New York Times