News Archive

28Sep 2022 by admin
Meet Sammy: L2T’s New Food Security Coordinator

Meet Sammy: L2T’s New Food Security Coordinator

Staff Bios
We would like to introduce you to a new member of the L2T team, Sammy Blair! Sammy is stepping into the position of Food Security Coordinator for L2T in collaboration with United Way BC. This role is key to the North Okanagan Regional Community Food Hub initiative and will support L2T local food procurement projects as well as some organizational development work that we hope to undertake this winter. Sammy holds a Bachelor of Arts in Spanish and English Literature from Colorado College (2016) which led her to pursue an early career in writing and journalism. She has lived in many places around the world working with different communities to tell their stories with a focus on the outdoor industry and food systems. Then, after volunteering for a year as…
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13Jun 2022 by admin
Media Release: Land to Table Continues to Steward United Way BC Regional Community Food Hub Initiative

Media Release: Land to Table Continues to Steward United Way BC Regional Community Food Hub Initiative

L2T Updates, News
NORTH OKANAGAN-SHUSWAP, JUNE 13, 2022 – We are pleased to announce that Land to Table will be continuing on as a steward for United Way British Columbia’s (UWBC) Regional Community Food Hub in the North Okanagan.  Over the past year, in collaboration with UWBC, Land to Table has been fulfilling this role by working collaboratively with our partners at the Okanagan Indian Band, The Good Food Box and the White Valley Resource Centre to address challenges and opportunities within the local emergency food sector, to increase organizational capacity and impact. Together, we have delivered over 3,200 hampers and meals, filled with local eggs, meat, fish, fruits, and vegetables, to seniors, young families and those impacted by the wildfires of 2021. In all program delivery, there is a focus to include…
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19Apr 2022 by admin
May 12, 2022 | BX Open House

May 12, 2022 | BX Open House

Events, Past Event
In 2021, The Institute for Sustainable Food Systems (ISFS) and the Land to Table Network of the North Okanagan (L2T) were contracted by the Regional District of the North Okanagan (RDNO) to prepare a 5 year development plan for the BX Ranchlands parcel at 4122 East Vernon Rd. The site is a valued community resource for agriculture, recreation, and conservation. In order to explore these interests further, ISFS and L2T worked with the RDNO and local stakeholders to draft a plan for the site that will maintain community access while supporting ecological well-being and encouraging agricultural opportunities for local farmers and growers.  Watch a Video on the Proposed Development Plan You can click button above for a detailed overview of the plan or you can download a summary of the…
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13Apr 2022 by admin
April 20, 2022 | Learning Circle: Whole System Perspectives

April 20, 2022 | Learning Circle: Whole System Perspectives

Events, Past Event
We are pleased to invite you to our upcoming and final Learning Circle Series session looking at: Systems Perspectives.  This discussion will highlight the key points that we have learned in the series so far, and will ask panelists to help us further define and understand the complex/system issues that continue to impact local food procurement (at institutions), and how we create new systems that are sustainable in the long term.  We invite you to join us for this upcoming session over Zoom, Wednesday, April 20, 2022 from 10:00 a.m. – 12:00 p.m. (PST). Speakers will include (but are not limited to): Panelist Lindsay Harris, Kamloops Food Policy Council Panelist Brittany Maguire, Meal Exchange David Speight, UBC Food Services Register here to join us for this upcoming session over Zoom, Wednesday, April…
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17Mar 2022 by admin
March 22, 2022 | Learning Circle: Aggregation & Distribution

March 22, 2022 | Learning Circle: Aggregation & Distribution

Events, Past Event
Over the past year, Land to Table (L2T) and UBC Okanagan have partnered in collaboration with the Institute for Community Engaged Research (ICER) to undertake a local food procurement pilot project.  As a part of our ongoing exploration into existing modes of institutional local food procurement, we are hosting a series of three learning circle sessions. Our first session (Feb 2, 2022) Institutional Perspectives, featured discussion on procurement logistics and relationships, the values that guide decision-making, how partners balance cost, and how institutions engage with students. Please find the recorded session here.  Our upcoming session, Aggregation & Distribution will feature farmer and aggregator/distributor perspectives on supplying to and working alongside institutions. In this session panelists will share different models for aggregation/distribution; the values that shape those models, financial challenges and…
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09Mar 2022 by admin
Experts on Tap: Tips and Tricks for Exhibiting and Selling New Products

Experts on Tap: Tips and Tricks for Exhibiting and Selling New Products

Event Recap, Events, Featured News
Tuesday, March 8th, 2022 - We held a live, online discussion with industry experts to help producers elevate their businesses and gain new listings and retail opportunities. The panel offered tips and tricks for exhibiting and preparing for upcoming events, including the Local Food & Buyers Mixer (March 18th, 2022) and the 9th Annual Cheese! It's a Natural Festival (March 19th, 2022) in Armstrong. 2024 Update: Check out the (rebranded) 2024 The Big Cheese! event featuring industry-only Food and Buyer Expo and Experts on Tap workshops on Friday, April 5th, 2024 and Local Food Festival open to the general public on Saturday, April 6th, 2024. Learn more at https://www.aschamber.com/thebigcheese.html If you missed this event or want to listen to the experts one more time, check out the highlights and the…
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15Feb 2022 by admin
OKIB Meat Drive Update

OKIB Meat Drive Update

L2T Updates, News
The staff of OKIB, L2T, and SPARC BC would like to celebrate the success of the Fire & Flood Recovery Meat Drive.  With incredible support from our network we were able to exceed our goal of $5000, raising an outstanding total of $8070.  We are now working with 5 local farmers who were impacted by the rising cost of feed and highway closures to secure chicken, pork and beef for the OKIB community. As far as traditional food, your generosity has helped us to support a local OKIB hunter in bringing in deer meat for the community. On top of this we are working with an OKIB community member to revitalize traditional Indigenous trade routes and bring in salmon and halibut from the coast.  Despite their own struggles, many of…
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07Dec 2021 by admin
Ending the Year: L2T Reflects

Ending the Year: L2T Reflects

L2T Updates, News
Hello L2T Family,  Though the extremes in weather have made this an exceptionally difficult year for many in our food network, it has been encouraging to see our community come together to face these challenges head on.  While there is still a great deal of work to be done, we would like to take a moment to highlight and acknowledge some of our exciting projects that you/our network have helped make a reality.  Over the past year, we have had the opportunity to work alongside farmers/farms like Enderberry Farm and Curlew Orchard and members of the UBC Okanagan campus to pilot an innovative model for local food procurement. At each step of the project, we have sought to understand the gaps in our local food system and develop solutions that…
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03Dec 2021 by admin
Okanagan Indian Band Meat Drive: Fire & Flood Recovery

Okanagan Indian Band Meat Drive: Fire & Flood Recovery

L2T Updates, News, Regional News
UPDATE: Thanks to your incredible support we have passed our original goal of $5000! Initially, we thought this would be a tough goal to meet but clearly we underestimated your generosity. However, there are still many fire recovery and food security initiatives underway at OKIB, all in need of support, including the OKIB Fire Recovery fund. With this in mind, the OKIB food security coordinator, Nikki Lorentz, will be making decisions about allocating the surplus funds between this meat drive and other important recovery and food security initiatives such as OKIB's collaboration with the Good Food Box OKIB community garden. This will be reported back transparently to all donors through this site. We welcome your continued support. Members of the Okanagan Indian Band (OKIB) are recovering from the devastating wildfire…
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