In this section we talk about interesting news and events relating to FoodCycles work.
May 23, 2009
Lots of things have happened up to this point with more to come. The there’s been seedlings sprouting [1,2] and the signing of the lease [3,4]. Today David, Ian, Rebekka, Jane and Ashlee will be trying out a shared wall worm bin design. Hopefully they take lots of photos! (Alas this writer is out of commission)
Also switched our web host and set up a more streamlined web site system for http://foodcycles.org.
Any helpful suggestions on how to improve the web site and blog experience would be fantastic. In the mean time our previous Web site blog at foodcycles.wordpress.com will remain online so older links will still work.
We’re working hard on reaching out to the local community around Downsview and welcome any insightful help in this regard. A meeting with Patrick from Northwood Community Centre is already up for Tuesday.
[1] Living Choir – Our First Seedlings Sing!
[2] Seeding the First Wave (of Plants Not Aliens)
[3] FoodCycles Plants the Seeds of Change at Downsview
[4] FoodCycles Signs Lease at Downsview Park!
Mar 7, 2009
The 2009 ENP TO social enterprise grant ceremony photos that we took so far are here on Picasa (http://bit.ly/100ch0 ). Board member Susan Butler also took some – don’t know when they’re going up 
Mar 4, 2009
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Thursday, March 5, 2009
Toronto, Ontario
SOIL IN THE CITY: FOODCYCLES GETS ENP TO FUNDING
FoodCycles (http://bit.ly/wxZ7W), a start-up urban farm, is receiving an Enterprising Non-Profits Toronto (enp-TO) (http://bit.ly/LooPO) grant to help them develop a marketing strategy to sell worm compost. Toronto Mayor David Miller will join enp-TO in granting $100,000 to 16 local non-profits to help them establish social enterprises. The awards ceremony will take place Thursday, March 5, 2009 from 3:30 to 5:00 PM at the Centre for Social Innovation (215 Spadina Ave).
FoodCycles will initially run a single 2,880 square foot greenhouse, with the mission to create high-quality soil for Torontonians to grow their own food. FoodCycles will also grow healthy, local, chemical-free food for sale or trade. “In the near future, we’ll be growing local, hormone-free fish and bees as well as educating the public on life-skills and how they can reduce their carbon footprint through gardening and composting,” states David Wild, a project coordinating board member.
FoodCycles’s operations will directly mitigate climate change by annually putting up to 80 tonnes of carbon back into the soil through local composting – preventing the release of up to 150 tonnes of greenhouse gases. “A typical city truck travels 82,000 km a year to deliver and process organic waste for Toronto. FoodCycles can do that traveling only 3,400 km. That’s a difference of 24 times,” according to Sunny Lam, a food researcher and FoodCycles member. FoodCycles’ activities will provide at least $45,000 of waste recycling environmental services annually. This will only grow as operations expand.
FoodCycles will begin operations this season. The organization is driven by its 10-member board, with experience in outreach to diverse communities, social justice, urban agriculture, organic farm work, greenhouse growing, mid-scale composting, vermicomposting, curriculum development and education, management, and event planning. The project has the support of several sponsoring organizations including FoodShare, Evergreen, Home Depot, the Toronto Food Policy Council and the Toronto Community Gardening Network. The City of Toronto’s Environment Office has also provided generous financial aid to get the project going through its LiveGreen initiative.
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Mar 4, 2009
SOIL IN THE CITY: FOODCYCLES GETS ENP TO FUNDING
FoodCycles (http://bit.ly/wxZ7W ), a start-up urban farm, is receiving an Enterprising Non-Profits Toronto (enp-TO) (http://bit.ly/LooPO ) grant to help them develop a marketing strategy to sell worm compost. Toronto Mayor David Miller will join enp-TO in granting $100,000 to 16 local non-profits to help them establish social enterprises. The awards ceremony will take place Thursday, March 5, 2009 from 3:30 to 5:00 PM at the Centre for Social Innovation (215 Spadina Ave).
(Full media release shortly)
Mar 1, 2009
Finally! I’ve uploaded all of my Growing Power trip photos from February – all 483. Greens, goats, compost, the city museum, you name it. All there. The intern house, the groceries. (mwahaha)
So check it out here! http://bit.ly/sp2Dh
Feb 28, 2009
FoodCycles was at the Green Barns today! More later!
Feb 14, 2009
David and I (Sunny) just came back from our Growing Power trip on Thursday. Since it was my first time it was a wonderful experience in understanding just how much work really goes into making a farm like theirs work. I experienced their routine first hand, got more experience with those power tools and gained a clearer idea of how to make it work better here in Toronto.
I took well over 200 photos and I’m slowly posting them away on my Flickr account, the FoodCycles Picasa Web Albums account and other areas.
In addition, you can look forward to my blog post series of the journey.
Jan 25, 2009
Things are just getting set up… Many thanks to Sunday Harrison for spurring us on to create the Facebook group. Lots of work to be done still – our photos from the Picasa Web Albums have to linked into here.
We would love to hear your thoughts on what could or should happen for an urban greenhouse in the city? Celebratory ideas? Plants that you’d like to see some time soon? Let us know!
Nov 5, 2008
Urban TO Farm Gets Grant to Reduce Climate Change [PRESS RELEASE]
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Wednesday, November 5, 2008
Toronto, Ontario
URBAN FARM GETS GRANT FROM CITY TO REDUCE CLIMATE CHANGE WHILE GROWING GOOD FOOD AND SOIL FOR TORONTONIANS
Left to Right: Ashlee Cooper, Susan Butler, David Miller, David Wild, Sunny Lam and Sunday Harrison (Photo: Shelli Wild)
FoodCycles, an organization who will be regenerating Toronto’s soils while growing salad greens all year round in the city, has been awarded one of six Live Green Toronto Capital Fund grants today by Mayor David Miller. The grant will be used to fund FoodCycles’ flagship project of two large hoop houses totaling 2,500 square feet, and a composting operation. The project’s main goal is to create high-quality soil so that Toronto’s community gardens and gardeners can grow their own food but FoodCycles will also grow healthy, local, chemical-free food for sale or trade in order to generate revenue to sustain the operation. FoodCycles will eventually raise local, hormone- and antibiotic-free fish and bees and educate the public on gardening and composting skills and on how they can reduce their carbon footprint.
“FoodCycles will help Toronto reduce greenhouse gas emissions by putting up to 80 tonnes of carbon back into the soil every year through our composting operation. This number will only grow as we expand our operations,” said Sunny Lam, a FoodCycles organizer. “A typical city truck travels 82,000 km a year to deliver and process organic waste for Toronto. FoodCycles can do that traveling only 3,400 km – that’s a difference of 24 times. By composting locally, we will prevent the release of up to 150 tonnes of greenhouse gases. Furthermore, FoodCycles activities will provide at least $45,000 of waste recycling environmental services annually and this will only grow as operations expand.”
FoodCycles will get its operations going by the end of this year and no later than next season. It is currently looking into establishing itself at Parc Downsview Park and a location at Hwy 401 and Weston Rd. The FoodCycles board includes 10 members with experience in dealing with diverse communities, social justice, urban agriculture, organic farm work, greenhouse growing, mid-scale composting, vermicomposting, curriculum development and education, management, and event planning. The project has the support of several sponsoring organizations including FoodShare, Evergreen, the Toronto Food Policy Council and the Toronto Community Gardening Network.
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Keywords: FoodCycles,fundraising,change,pollution,air,smog,grant,Live Green Toronto Capital Fund,Toronto,climate
Jun 1, 2008
Part One: FoodCycles –Vermicompost, greenhouse and cover crop Pilot project – Downsview Park
The project consists of a new greenhouse construction that will house extensive vermicomposting and vegetable growing. This site will be a training and demonstration site for community members that could provide some job creation. Small scale windrow composting will be at another site nearby – this will provide high quality finished compost to use in the greenhouse and to create worm castings.
Our project is important for environmental, community and economic reasons. We will divert waste and convert it into vibrant, high quality soil and compost. Composting reduces greenhouse gases from land filling by 1.1 tonnes of CO2e/tonne of organic material processed which reduces the impact of climate change. Waste reduction is also a serious issue in Ontario (since we are running out of landfill space).
In addition, we can provide accessible, nutritious local organic food to Downsview community residents, train them in life and job skills, raise awareness about repairing our broken food system and make them integral partners in the project. We want to provide a sustainable livelihood that can help lift people in the area out of poverty through job opportunities or education. There is no other urban agriculture organization in Toronto dedicated to soil regeneration and food production using a social enterprise model.
May 27, 2008
Growing Soil, Growing Community: How to Compost in the City
May 27, 3:30 pm
Conducted By Ian Aley, Mike Nevin (both part of FoodCycles and FoodShare)
Trinity Bellwoods Farmers’ Market
Come learn how to turn your kitchen scraps and yard waste into rich soil! This workshop will explain how composting works, how you can compost anywhere (in an apartment building or in your backyard), and how to work with your neighbours and community members when setting up a composting system. There will be examples of vermicompost bins and resources available (including a composting manual). Experienced composters will give advise about where to source out materials to start composting and will give advise to those already composting. This workshop will be hosted by Trinity Bellwoods Farmers Market and taught by FoodShare and FoodCycles, a new community-based urban agriculture and composting group in Toronto. All are welcome: from those who have never composted to long-time worm lovers.
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