Ed’s note: I’ve always enjoyed growing at least a few of my own vegetables (within the confines of pots, mostly), but I’ve recently discovered the joys of ‘heirloom’ seeds – and they really are too cool for school.  Once you’ve given heirloom seeds a try, it’s no longer just about producing food – a world of cool names, delicious flavours and vibrant colours awaits you… Sean Freeman tells us more:

A guest post by Sean Freeman.

The humble vegetable garden is back in fashion! A fresh, home-grown garden salad placed in front of your guests is a source of pride and a thing of exceptional beauty. The effort that went into that salad was months in the making, not just the half hour spent in the kitchen preparing it.  And, once that salad is on the table, talk normally turns to what each person is growing in their gardens and how they use the various ingredients.

What I would like to talk about is the source of those vegetables… the seeds.

Since gardening began the vegetable gardener would collect seed from the best of each year’s crop. They would share a few precious seeds in the mail to a friend or, when a fellow gardener dropped past, a few seeds were pressed into their hands as a parting gift. Very often these varieties developed a history or even ‘cult following’ amongst those in the know.

If you can remember your Ouma’s giant red tomatoes that burst with flavour, or sweet snap beans that you used to sneak out of her garden you have tasted an heirloom vegetable. Her canned chutneys and beetroot salad and even the tasty carrots or beans that she froze for over-winter came from heirloom or open pollinated seed stock. If she was so inclined she was even able to save seed from her crops every year.  Sadly, though, most of that seed-saving knowledge and even many seed varieties have been lost in our fast-paced, glossy, barcode-driven lifestyle.

When immigrants moved to a new country they would bring in a few precious seeds folded in a grubby envelope, or carefully sown into a hem or jacket lining to get past nosy customs officials. These seeds, once planted in the new country, were tended with loving care and often allowed these cash-strapped immigrants to get by in the first few years – with fresh tomatoes, a few pumpkins or some beans to stretch out their meagre earnings.

Over time these seeds became a part of their legacy – to their families and to fellow food gardeners in general. Around 1970 a new movement slowly gathered momentum in the US, focusing on heritage or heirloom seeds. Food gardeners started to seek out actively and trade these unique varieties and the seed-saving movement was born.

The core feature amongst heirloom seed varieties is the ability to produce fruit and seed that is ‘true-to-type’, otherwise known as open pollinated. This seed, with a bit of knowledge, can easily be saved by the home or market gardener from year to year without the need for buying in new seed every year. In fact dedicated seed savers have enough to be able to share or trade their seed with other like-minded gardeners every year.

Going back to that garden salad – we love to ‘build’ a salad out of unusual ingredients from our veggie garden.

One of our favourite salads goes something like this. A mix of raw spiralled Romanesco Broccoli, raw Sicilian Violet Cauliflower, slices of surprisingly sweet candy striped Chioggia Beetroot, sliced Purple Dragon carrots and then a few unusual black or striped tomatoes and perhaps a handful of melody lettuce. To finish off, our salads are never complete without some fresh dill leaves, baby spinach, any one of a few cucumber varieties and some fresh peas, if in season.

This spring season, look at opening up some of your flower beds to plant some veggies.  Or if you are already a vegetable gardener investigate some of the heirloom vegetables that are available and try a few out. Once you have tasted a real tomato or sampled a few beans fresh out of your garden you will understand why heirloom vegetables have the world-wide cult following that they do.

Additional heirloom seed sources:

• The Gravel Garden (available at Hathersage Market and Stellenbosch Waldorf Organic Market)
• Mahlathini Organics
• Sought After Seedlings

I can’t quite believe I haven’t yet been to this market – I’ve heard such great things about it, and the name ‘Hathersage Farm‘ fits perfectly with my vision of a country market.

The Hathersage Market is all about local producers of food and handiwork, in a beautiful setting in Somerset West. Unlike most other markets, it’s held on Sundays, which makes it especially appealing as a laid back weekend activity for families and other folk with busy Saturdays.

I’m excited to see what the new season will bring to the market – and will definitely be making a little trip out there this weekend to see it all for myself.

The website is currently under construction, but you can find all the latest info on the market’s Facebook page.  After this weekend’s launch, The Market Place at Hathersage Farm will be on from 9am-2pm every second and last Sunday of the month (closed during winter months).

Bring on summer!

This weekend (10-11 July 2010), Robina McCurdy will be hosting a workshop on ‘Local Food Reliance‘:

This dynamic workshop is an in-depth sharing of Robina’s participatory tools for creating sustainable community food systems, applied to Cape Town and surrounds.  Robina will also share a range of successful international models of local food production and distribution.

The intended outcome of the workshop is that participants leave with a sound integrated strategy for community scale food self reliance, with immediate action steps toward achieving this individually and collectively, starting at their own back doors, within their own neighbourhoods and building on existing networks.

More about Robina McCurdy:

Robina is a co-founder of Tui Land Trust & Community in Aotearoa, New Zealand, and founder/trustee of the Institute for Earthcare Education Aotearoa.  She is also the pioneer-developer of the international programme, S.E.E.D. Schools Environmental Education & Development, and of PLANET Organic in New Zealand (vocational training in bio-regional & community-scale sustainable landuse design, management and facilitation.

Dates: 10, 11 July 2010.

Venue: WESSA Barn in Kirstenhof, Cape Town.

Cost: R475-R950 for weekend | R300 – R600 for Saturday only  (cost is on income-based sliding scale)

For more details, and to register, contact Inna Alex: earthcarenz@gmail.com

A little while back I took a look at what’s natural and organic at the upcoming SA Cheese Festival (coming up this weekend, yay!).  And there was rather a lot to choose from.

But natural and organic isn’t the be-all and end-all.  Just because a cheese is made in a natural way using organic ingredients, doesn’t necessarily mean it’s a great product.  It takes the skill of an artisan to bring out the best in a cheese, and it’s those guys that I’m spotlighting today.

I hope I haven’t missed any, and there may be some duplication from the natural and organic feature (tends to go hand-in-hand with artisan food), but these are the ones on the exhibitors’ list that got my attention…

Alpine Goat’s Cheese

Dragon Fly Farm, Napier (Western Cape)
www.goats-cheese.co.za

These are artisan cheesemakers with a passion for sustainability and things organic.  Dragon Fly Farm practices organic principles in farming and cheese making. All cheese is handcrafted daily using vegetarian rennet, 100% goats milk and no artificial colourants, stabilisers or additives are used.

They have an awesome variety of flavours: chili, basil, oregano, herb & olive oil, oak smoked, vanilla, olive, tomato/chilli and tastebud-titillating wasabi (my favourite).

Foxenburg Estate (Wellington, Western Cape)
www.foxenburg.co.za

Foxenburg Estate is situated on the spectacular northern slopes of the Groenberg in the Wellington area of the Western Cape. Here, a herd of Swiss Saanen goats is expressly maintained on the certified organic farm pastures for the production of premium quality goats milk cheeses.

The estate’s many types of cheeses are all produced by hand, honouring traditional northern Hemisphere farmhouse cheese-making methods, and are made from 100% whole goat milk, free of preservatives, hormones, antibiotics and artificial colourants.

Kimilili Cheese

Tulbagh (Western Cape) www.kimililifarm.co.za

Working side-by-side on Kimilili Farm, Robert Tobien (originally from Frankfurt), Mahlomola Mosa and Bongikhaya Nondzaba, make, natural, hand crafted farmhouse cheeses in the French and Swiss cheese making tradition using time-honoured recipes dating as far back as 800 AD.

Apart from a string of accolades for their cheese, cheesemakers Mahlomola (who started working on the farm as a farm hand and milker) and Bongikhaya were both awarded bursaries – in 2007 and 2009 respectively – to hone their cheesemaking skills in Burgundy, France.

I’ve been to Kimilili, and watched the cheesemakers in action.  It truly is a wonderful place, and the cheese is exceptional.

La Petite France

Edgewater, 36 Sutton Rd, Hilton (KZN).

La Petite France is so-called because the culture and rennet for these delicious cheeses is imported from France – only the milk is locally sourced (apparently because our milk tastes better).

These guys make a handmade French-style camembert that will get your tastebuds popping.  SO good.   I’m looking forward to trying their Brie this time around.

Nuwehoogte Goat Dairy

Robertson (Western Cape)

This small family-run goat dairy near Robertson makes everything by hand and no preservatives or colourants are used in their cheeses.  They love what they do, too – you can see it when they talk!

Last year, the highlights were the ‘Vinicio‘ (semi-soft cheese matured in petit verdot wine) and ‘Yael‘ (semi-hard cheese which spends two months in red wine, grape pips and skins) cheeses, and I’m excited to see what they’ve developed since then.

Ovis Angelica “Divine Sheep’s Cheese”

Patria Farm, Smithfield (Free State).   www.sasheepdairy.co.za

Ovis Angelica produces a range of artisan cheeses, made by hand from sheeps’ milk. The ewes are managed according to organic principles, range freely in pastures and paddocks and the use of antibiotics, chemical drenches and vaccines are limited to the absolute minimum.
Farmer Elmarie van Aswegen beams with pride when talking about her farm – and so she should!.

My favourite last year was the ‘JanGroentjie‘, a soft sheep’s milk cheese with organic dried lavender buds.

Prikkelpot

Durbanville (Western Cape)

Prikkelpot is a small, family run business.  It’s a hands-on job, literally, as all the Yoghurt Cheese is handrolled and lovingly placed in a glass jar.  It is based in Durbanville and, even though there is no “shop”, visitors are welcome to pop in.

I always stop at the Prikkelpot stand – once you’ve tasted their yoghurt cheese (especially the ones loaded with garlic, mmmmm…), you’ll be back, wanting more.

Contact:  Ms Selma Marais prikkelpot[at]iburst.co.za.  021 – 976 1936

I don’t know about you, but I am so ready for this festival – bring it on!

Taste Magazine has just launched an awesome new website that has me drooling from the get-go.  It’s got pretty pictures, simple recipes, foodie news and I think I’m going to be spending quite a bit of time on it in the months to come.

What I particularly like is features like the ‘In Season‘ tool, which gives you a broad idea of what vegetables and fruit are in season right now.  Most of us are now so removed from the food-growing side of things that we don’t really connect seasons with availability of produce and I think it’s good to be reminded.  Eating seasonally makes sense: we get variety, and don’t eat too much of one thing for too long; seasonal food is usually fresher and tastier because it hasn’t had to be stored; and it’s also generally easier on ye ol’ carbon footprint, requiring less transport, assuming it’s grown nearby.

In addition to listing what’s in season, the tool also offers handy recipes (accompanied by mouth-watering photos, of course) making use of seasonal ingredients (caramelised figs with brie, mmmmmmmm).

The website also has a useful how-to section – everything from how to coddle an egg, to making ‘fresh-mint chutney’, or the intricacies of cleaning squid and sprouting your own seeds (preferably not at the same time).  I love my food, but I’m not always that clued up on the finer details, so this bit appeals to me immensely.

There’s a section dedicated to wine (want to know whether organic wine can prevent a hangover, or how you can start your own cellar?), another to food trends (Mexican and raw foods are all the rage this year, apparently) and yet another to food ‘buzz‘.

Added to this there are plenty of recipes (of course) and some very tempting competitions I wouldn’t mind winning.  I haven’t registered yet, but it looks like you’re also able to bookmark and keep track of the recipes you like, which is really very cool.

I am impressed.  Obviously, the site is there to showcase the Taste Magazine, and to sell Woolworths products, but it doesn’t feel like a sales pitch – it stands on its own as a great resource that has been well thought out, and tastefully (excuse the pun) crafted.  I’ll be coming back for more, and then some.

www.tastemag.co.za

When last did you sit at a table and share a meal with people you’ve never met before?  In these tumultuous times, it’s important, I think, to have events which bring people together and unite them in a convivial way.  And what better way to connect people than through the delicious delights of excellent food?

Now imagine 700 South Africans from all walks of life gathered together at one (very long) table, breaking bread, both literally and figuratively, and sharing not only a superb gourmet meal, but the opportunity to help raise more than R1-million for a selection of child related charities.

This is what the Table of Peace and Unity is all about.  Celebrating its 10th year in 2010, this ‘premier gourmet fundraising event’ takes place on the slopes of Table Mountain on 18 April 2010.

Recently I was invited to a media preview of what will be on offer at this year’s event, and I was really impressed.  It’s not often I have a 3-course meal at lunchtime (especially one paired with wine!), and I certainly enjoyed every morsel (and sip, *hic*).

Here’s what’s on the menu:

Starter: The Collection by Liz McGrath – Head Chef Delia Harbottle of The Marine, Loran Livesey, Chef de Cuisine for The Pavilion, Peter Tempelhoff, Executive Chef of the Collection
Miso cured Salmon, Asian Salad, Prawn Samoosa, Sesame Soy Dressing

Mains: Roberto De Carvalho: Executive Chef of the Twelve Apostles Hotel and Spa
Braised Karoo Lamb with Thyme and Rosemary crust, Potato Dauphinoise, and Port wine sauce.

Dessert: Jerome Peters Executive Chef, Nina Septoe and Marietta Hattingh of the Cape Town Hotel School Granger Bay
Chocolate Mousse Pyramid, Apple and Saffron Puree and Beetroot Syrup.

It was delectable, and they even made sure I had wheat-free versions of each dish (and will do so for the event, provided you give them sufficient advance notice).  And, paired with each course were some lovely wines from Lazanou Organic Vineyards.

And, on the day, there will also be live entertainment provided by some of South Africa best performers, including the likes of Danny K, Three Tons of Fun and Chad Saaiman.

On the fund-raising side of things (arguably the most important part, of course), this year communities are being encouraged to participate by nominating their own City’s Angels:

An initiative launched in partnership with Heart 104.9FM, City’s Angels is a call to action to the public to nominate an individual or organisation, who against all odds, has dedicated their life to helping disadvantaged children in and around the community.

“City’s Angels is about recognising the little person, the individual who despite their own difficulties in life, is doing phenomenal work by caring for the vulnerable children in their community. This person doesn’t necessarily depend on government funding or hand-outs, and yet each month, they manage to give shelter, warmth, food and love to the children left out on the street. These people truly are our City’s Angels. We want to thank them for the tremendous work that they are doing,” Christine Cashmore, founder of the Table of Peace and Unity said said. “We are delighted to announce that all money raised from tickets sales, will be given to the City’s Angels finalists in the form of supplies.”

I think it’s a great initiative, and the idea of dining on the slopes of Table Mountain really does appeal to me.

COMPETITION NOW CLOSED

An entire (long) weekend of hunting down the best cheeses South Africa has to offer, and washing them down with some of the best wines in the world (all of it in the great outdoors of the lovely Bien Donne Estate) – definitely my favourite way to spend an autumn day (or two).

With so many cheeses and other goodies to choose from, it’s sometimes hard to know where to start… So I’ve managed to get my paws on a list of stallholders, and am working my way through them in advance, focusing as usual on the small producers, artisans, local producers and what’s natural and organic.

Here, then, is what’s natural and organic at this year’s festival:

Cheeses and dairy products

Cloud Cottage Cheese (near Prince Alfred, Western Cape)
www.cloudcottage.co.za

Set at the summit of the pass, lies the family-run farm Voog se Kraal: 35 hectares of ploughed grazing amidst 800 hectares of mountains, fynbos, ravines, gurgling streams, waterfalls and rock pools – the home of Cloud Cottage Cheese.

Organic biodynamic methods have been used to enrich the pastures on which the five Jersey cows and sixty-strong herd of white Saanen goats graze, in their striving to bring “real farming” back into practice – in a modern way.

This is a family farm where culture, agri-culture, and a hands-on, personal approach intermingle, resulting not only in wholesome and delicious cheeses, but also in an atmosphere which has led many passers-by to comment on the therapeutic quality of this piece of land.

Dragon Fly Farm (Napier, Western Cape)
www.goats-cheese.co.za

Alpine Organic Goats Cheese is a peasant style goat’s cheese made fresh, every day, from 100% goat’s milk. The milk comes straight from milking the goats into the cheese vat.

The cheese is available in plain, oak smoked, herb and olive oil, persian pepper, tomato/ chilli, touareg chilli, basil, oregano, garlic and their new wasabi (try this!).

Foxenburg Estate (Wellington, Western Cape)
www.foxenburg.co.za

Foxenburg has it all: goats milk and cheese, oyster mushrooms and certified organic olive oil.

Foxenburg Estate is situated on the spectacular northern slopes of the Groenberg in the Wellington area of the Western Cape. Here, a herd of Swiss Saanen goats is expressly maintained on the certified organic farm pastures for the production of premium quality goats milk cheeses.

The estate’s many types of cheeses are all produced by hand, honouring traditional northern Hemisphere farmhouse cheese-making methods, and are made from 100% whole goat milk, free of preservatives, hormones, antibiotics and artificial colourants.

Their olives are also top-notch, handpicked with care and pressed the same day to ensure an extra virgin olive oil of the highest quality. Their certified organic extra virgin olive oil is the natural unprocessed oil extracted from the first pressing of their olives.

Indezi River Cheeses (Natal Midlands, KZN)
http://indezi.co.za/

Indezi River Cheese is a family-run operation situated in the heart of the Natal Midlands.  They make quality cows’ milk cheese and an assorted range of specialty goats’ milk cheese, using only the milk from their own herds. Their animals are not injected with artificial milk producing hormones, and have been certified Free Range Dairy.

Additionally, their cheeses are made in the traditional, farmhouse way, without the use of any artificial colorants, flavourings or preservatives (they don’t use  animal rennet) and all spices are natural.

Kimilili Farm (Tulbagh, Western Cape)
www.kimililifarm.co.za

Kimilili is a picturesque farm located overlooking the spectacular mountains of Tulbagh.  Kimilili makes exceptional hand crafted farmhouse cheeses in the French and Swiss cheesemaking tradition. As a “Fermier” cheese maker they rear their own cows and exclusively process their own milk, ensuring that only the very best raw materials are used in their cheeses.

Kimilili Farm uses natural farming practices and their animals are exclusively raised on pasture and only get hay and minerals as supplements. They do not use chemical fertilizers, pesticides, herbicides or any commercial dairy feed on the farm.

(And it shows in the taste of their cheeses)

Myst Hill Dairy (George, Western Cape)

Myst Hill uses the milk from their grass-fed cows to make their natural farm butter, feta, gouda and yoghurt. Delicious!

Nuwehoogte Bokmelk (Robertson, Western Cape)
This small family-run goat dairy near Robertson makes everything by hand and no preservatives or colourants are used in their cheeses.

Ovis Angelica (Free State)
www.sasheepdairy.co.za

This was my absolute favourite from last year’s festival.  OVIS ANGELICA sheep cheeses are all handcrafted, made according to organic principles even though not certified organic yet (though organic certification is the plan). The cheeses are 100 % natural and contains no preservatives, colourants, chemicals or stabilisers.

And they taste incredible, especially the unusual Jangroentjie, which I hope will be for sale this year again!

Other natural and organic goodies

Chrisna’s Olives (Stellenbosch, Western Cape)

A familiar sight at many markets and festivals is Chrisna’s Olives – bucketloads of the juiciest, most delicious organically grown olives.  Always a favourite in my book.

By Nature
www,bynature.co.za

The only place I buy nuts these days… Once you’ve tasted nuts this fresh, you just can’t go back to stale, old store-bought packets ever again.  By Nature sells local, organic nuts, dried fruit, seeds and organic honey.

Feast de Renaissance (Franschhoek, Western Cape)
www.feast-de-renaissance.com
I don’t think I’ve tasted these, but I see them often, and have admired their presentation.  “Nestled in the cradle of the majestic Valley located between Elgin and Franschhoek, is the home of feast-de-renaissance…  this entrepreneurial gastronomic initiative uses perfectly-ripened fruit and abundant amounts of authentic, preservative-free, fresh ingredients to conserve fruits, often infused with wine, resulting in the creation of an exclusive hand-crafted product range of fruit-infused accompaniments.”

TurkSpirit
www.turkspirit.com
TURKISH DELIGHT is made from starch and sugar under a very special process, flavoured according to taste with the most popular ones containing different nuts.  Original Turkish Delight does not contain gelatin and other animal products.

Zest Gourmet Foods
www.zestgourmetfoods.com
Zest makes a delicious range of preserves and condiments that go exceptionally well with cheese.  Their focus is on creating interesting flavours and aromas, firstly to complement cheese, but which have multiple applications for those wishing to be creative.  No additives, no chemicals, no colourants, no stabilizers and no preservatives. The colours are natural and the flavours clean to the palate.

This article is written by Michelle Matthews, and was originally published on Slow Food Mother City.

Remember that old Farmer Brown ad: ‘They taste so good, ’cause they eat so good’? It turns out that a diet of grubs, grass, grain, fresh air and sunshine makes the tastiest chickens of all.

On 6 March 2010 a group of Slow Fooders visited Spier to learn more about their biodynamic farming methods. In particular, we wanted to know about their egg-laying and broiler chickens – we’d heard they lead happy lives, by chicken standards.

Spier farm manager, Christo, led us out into the pastures to meet the chickens and cows, who live in a fascinating symbiosis on the pastures.

Into the yonder... to the chicken coop! - Pia Taylor

This piece of land was almost destroyed by conventional farming methods, but is now being rehabilitated using biodynamic principles: the cows graze the grass, trampling some of it flat and churning the earth. They leave behind pats, where larvae grow. A few days’ later the chickens are moved onto the same piece of land, where they disperse the pats by scratching for grubs and further fertilise the soil with their own droppings. After a few rounds of this, the srubby pasture starts to look green and lush – it’s revitalised.

Cows doing their good work on the Spier pastures - Liz Metcalfe

Spier’s egg-laying chickens are completely free to run around at will (though Christo has specifically chosen ones that don’t like to range TOO far) and spend their evenings roosting a large coop (decorated by local kids), where they’re free to lay their eggs as and when they feel like it.

Egg-layers' mobile coop painted by local children - Liz Metcalfe

They’re also free to indulge in all sorts of poultry peccadillos, including chickens’ absolute favourite past-time: a feather-fluffing dust bath. These chickens will be good layers for up to five years (compared to less than two years for exhausted commercial hens).

Spier chickens taking a very enjoyable dust bath - Liz Metcalfe

The broiler chickens – the one omnivorous humans eat – are moved through the pastures in large cages, partly covered in shade-cloth. While they don’t run free – predators are too much of a danger – they’re still chirpy, as The Littlest Slow Fooder found out when she was introduced.

Toddler meeting her first real-life happy chicken - Pia Taylor

These broiler chicks come from the same place that commercial chickens are bred, and are ‘saved’ at one day old. “I see the crates of chicks being loaded onto the big trucks, and look at our couple of hundred chicks, and I think ‘this is your lucky day, guys’,” says Christo.

The chicks spend their first three weeks in this roomy shed, before going ‘out to pasture’ for another three weeks. During this time, they grow up to twice as big as conventional chickens – as much as 2.6kgs – eating bugs, seeds, some special feed, and getting strong scratching around in the dirt. Right now, the chickens are slaughtered at a site about 90 minutes away that has the requisite humane approach, but Spier has nearly finished their own slaughterhouse on the farm, which will mean chickens will be far less stressed at the end.

Reverent poem on the wall of the in-progress slaughter house - Liz Metcalfe

The poem on the wall, by Kahlil Gibran, reads in part:
By the same power that slays you, I too am slain; and I too shall be consumed.
For the law that delivered you into my hand shall deliver me into a mightier hand.
Your blood and my blood is naught but the sap that feeds the tree of heaven.

In the biodynamic tradition of ‘closing the circle’ on a farm, all inedible by-products of the slaughter will go into the Spier organic veggie garden compost heap. It will feed the soil that fed the chickens that fed us.

Strains of Mozart waft out over Spier's organic veggie garden... - Pia Taylor

Ed’s note: Spier’s wonderful chickens are available at a growing number of locations:

• Kwalapa – 31 Newlands Avenue, Montebello Design Estate. Tel 021 687 9314.
• The Earth Fair Market – South Palms (same location as Builder’s Warehouse and Reader’s Warehouse in Tokai Main Rd).  Available Saturday mornings only.

(Please leave a comment below if you’ve spotted them elsewhere around Cape Town, and I’ll add them to the list)

The details:

VEGGIE CSA SUMMER 2010:

• a weekly bag of six naturally grown vegetables over ten weeks
• Crops including: herbs, mixed lettuce, boerpampoen, sweet potatoes, potatoes, cucumbers, green peppers, green beans, white and yellow mielies, celery root, beetroot, carrots, spring onions, butternut and baby marrows.
• Compostable plastic and recycled paper packaging
• Collection points at Jaqui Daya Food Store in Newlands, Joostenberg Deli off the N1, Deer Park Café in Vredehoek, and Millstone Farm Stall in Pinelands
• An additional item every other week (five weeks over the course of the CSA), including two bottles of preserves from a community project, and three bags of organic exotic mushrooms from mushroom grower Theo Oldjohn
• Two outings to Erick’s farm in Kraaifontein
• R559.00 in total, averaging to R55.90 per weekly bag

For those of you with no idea what I’m talking about, here’s what a “CSA” is:

WHAT IS A CSA?
A CSA is a partnership between an agricultural or artisan producer and a group of consumers. The consumers sponsor the production of a specific crop or product at the beginning of the CSA, and during the season, the producer responds with frequent reports on that crop’s development and growth, and the consumers can visit the producer to learn more about how crop is grown, and even help with the harvest. The harvest is divided between all the members during the course of the season. Possible CSA products could include vegetables, fruit trees or grassfed beef from an entire steer.

The point of running a CSA (and a cornerstone of the Slow Food ethos) is to reconnect consumers with agricultural producers, and make urban dwellers aware of the lifecycles implicit in growing and producing the food we eat.

I’ve been involved in every CSA so far, and apart from having to get a little creative with turnips, I’ve really enjoyed not only the incredibly tasty and fresh vegetables, but being part of something that is greater than the sum of the produce itself.

If you would like to find out more, visit www.slowfoodcsa.co.za or email kate@slowfoodcsa.co.za.

PS, Farmer Erick has promised not to be quite so turnip-crazy this time around, so I’m definitely signing up again!

Moddergat Organic Farm holds a weekly Saturday morning organic market from 8am-1pm.

To find out more, contact Dawn or Johann My burgh at 021 842 3186 or email dawnm@netactive.co.za

Part of the journey of living a greener life means thinking more about where everything comes from, and what’s been done to it before it reaches you.  For me, it started with food, because that was my initial focus, but pretty soon I realised I needed to consider things like clothing, too.

Clothing requires fabric and, in the case of cotton, that fabric needs to be made from a crop.  That crop, if it’s conventionally farmed cotton, requires a stupid amount of pesticides – about US$ 2.6 billion’s worth worldwide, every year - the liberal use of which is literally reducing our topsoil to useless dust and stuffing up water- and eco-systems.  Organic cotton, on the other hand, is grown using natural methods that do not damage the earth (and us human beans) unduly.  It costs more, sure, but shouldn’t it?

Frankly, I’d rather spend more on one organic cotton t-shirt that didn’t cause ecological mayhem, than twenty cheap versions that weren’t quite so discerning.  I reckon the planet is worth it.

Obviously, even if you do buy organic cotton, it generally is flown in from somewhere else (always a factor one must consider as well), so I am VERY happy (ecstatic, even) to hear that South Africa is now growing organic cotton on a commercial scale!

Cape Town – Consumers can now buy clothing made from South Africa’s first commercial organic cotton crop.

The 30 000kg seed-cotton crop was harvested in Limpopo last year as part of a two-year experimental project by Woolworths, the Organic Exchange, ComMark, Cotton SA and the Agricultural Research Council’s Institute for Industrial Crops.

The cotton was transformed into material by Rotex Fabrics, after which clothing manufacturer Monviso used it to produce T-shirts. These T-shirts are the first 100% South African organic cotton garments on sale locally. (via Finweek)

Too too cool.  So, where can you get your grubby green paws on some of these new tees?  Why, as part of Woolworths’ summer range, of course.  I have no idea if they’re on the shelves as yet (not too good at tracking seasonal clothing changes), but I’ll certainly be stopping in soon to find out.

I love being part of the Cape Town CSA (Community Supported Agriculture) project. One of the joys of eating seasonally is the anticipation of the new crops that each season brings, and being part of a CSA you’re right in the thick of it – what was growing, that morning, is now in your hands. I’ve never had such amazing broccoli as I had during the winter CSA, and I am looking forward to seeing what the springtime will bring.

In case you have no idea what I’m on about, here’s what a CSA is:

WHAT IS A CSA?

A CSA is a partnership between an agricultural or artisan producer and a group of consumers. The consumers sponsor the production of a specific crop or product at the beginning of the CSA, and during the season, the producer responds with frequent reports on that crop’s development and growth, and the consumers can visit the producer to learn more about how crop is grown, and even help with the harvest. The harvest is divided between all the members during the course of the season. Possible CSA products could include vegetables, fruit trees or grassfed beef from an entire steer.

The point of running a CSA (and a cornerstone of the Slow Food ethos) is to reconnect consumers with agricultural producers, and make urban dwellers aware of the lifecycles implicit in growing and producing the food we eat.

This spring, we are running a mixed organic vegetable CSA, grown just outside of Kraaifontein by small, organic farmer Erick Zenzele, that will be divided among all participants every week (i.e. every week during the season you receive a bag of mixed vegetables).

And here’s the scoop on this Spring’s CSA:

We are delighted to announce the launch of another Slow Food Cape Town Community Supported Agriculture (CSA) vegetable project this spring, serving Durbanville, N1 commuters and Cape Town.

With a vegetable CSA, you pay at the beginning and get a share of a small, emerging farmer’s organic harvest, to be picked up at a convenient collection point once a week for the period of the CSA.

The Spring 2009 CSA includes:

• One small, organic farmer, Erick Zenzele
• A weekly veggie bag containing a constantly changing selection of SIX vegetables
• Four collection points for you to choose from, at Home Baked @ Red Cherry, Klein Joostenberg Deli, Jaqui Daya Food Store and Millstone Farmstall
• A weekly email newsletter
• An online blog with information, links, recipes and a chance to interact with other CSA members
• Farm outings to Erick’s farms, to meet your farmer, see the crops and learn about how they are grown
• A total of EIGHT weeks of vegetable delights, running from Tuesday 8 September through Tuesday 27 October 2009
• Total cost is R399, which translates to R49.88 for each week

Reconnect with where, how and when your food is grown!

To book your membership, email kate@slowfoodcsa.co.za

I’ll definitely be signing up again, and look forward to visiting the farm on which my weekly vegetables have been grown!  The best part is – the more we support these initiatives, the more likely the range of produce available for future CSAs will increase.  Imagine crisp organic autumn apples, or berries, or a share in some of the fruit that usually gets sent straight overseas?  That’s what I’m hoping for.

Hope to see you on the next farm visit!