Green Living Ottawa

Compiled by guest blogger Eloise Collison. Eloise is a freelance writer, organic gardener, and fibre fanatic who lives and writes in Westboro.

If you missed the Go Green Expo there are a few events coming up in April and May that offer information, seminars, guest speakers, and a chance to assess green products…

Ottawa Eco-Stewardship Fair 2009 – April 18th, 2009

Ottawa’s annual celebration of green living ideas, products and services.  Includes cooking demonstrations and tastings; 100 mile lunch; children’s Eco-carnival. Vendors and exhibitors include Vrtucar, the Worm Factory, Arbour, and La Blanche Forest Ecological Reserve.

Saturday, April 18, 2009, 10 am – 5 pm.  RA Centre – 2451 Riverside Drive, Ottawa.

Free Parking, Free Admission
For more information go to: www.ottawaecofair.ca

Eco-Living Seminar- April 21, 2009

Presentations on low impact, low maintenance ‘lawns’, do-it-yourself energy audits, green electricity, Bullfrog power, followed by an open discussion.

Reserve your space or direct your questions to sustainability@diffractions.com, or visit the event Q&A page for more information.

Tuesday, April 21, 2009 7- 9 pm, Arlington Woods Free Methodist Church, 225 McClellan Road in Nepean.

De La Salle Environment and Health Fair – Apr 22, 2009

For the second consecutive year, De La Salle High School is organizing an Environment and Health Fair to raise awareness on the issues affecting our planet. Students and the public will be able to participate in workshops and presentations to deal with our century’s environmental challenges and visit booths on aspects related to the environment and health.

One of this year’s themes is ‘Eco-creativity’, where young and old will be invited to rethink their attitudes and the consumption habits that impact our environment and health. One key action will be to launch an awareness campaign aiming to eliminate disposable plastic bottles from their school.

Wednesday April 22nd 2009 (Earth Day), 3:30 to 8:00 pm. École secondaire publique De La Salle, 501 Old St-Patrick Street, Ottawa

For more information contact Isabel Sebastiao 613-745-2499, happinessandjoy2you(at)yahoo.ca

Ottawa Veg Fest-May 31, 2009

Inform the public about the benefits of a plant-based diet and help them make healthier, greener and more compassionate dietary and lifestyle choices.
Support those who wish to reduce or eliminate their consumption of animal products.
Celebrate the diversity of vegetarian cuisine and culture here in Canada’s capital.

• Cooking demonstration by vegan chef Caroline Ishii of Zen Kitchen.
• Guest speaker, internationally renowned dietitian Brenda Davis, RD.

The Veg Fest takes place on May 31, 2009 (10am-5pm), Glebe Community Centre, 175 Third Avenue (corner of Third Avenue and Lyon Street South), Ottawa.

They’re organic, they’re heritage, they’re grown within 100-miles of Ottawa, but most importantly they come in white, yellow, orange, red and purple.  Fun food that’s good for you and tasty too from Bryson Farms.
Once upon a time a great many varieties of each vegetable were grown, with distinctive flavours, looks, textures and cooking qualities.  Now most of the commercially grown vegetables come from the same genetic stock and have been bred more for ease of chemically-enhanced growing and for transporting long distances than for culinary pleasure.  Growing heritage vegetables keeps the gene-pool and our kitchens diverse and vibrant.

Bryson Farms is a family-run organic operation in Shawville Quebec that specializes in heirloom/heritage varieties of vegetables.  They grow over 2000 varieties of vegetables, which they sell directly to customers through their weekly home delivery service and at the Parkdale Market in the West End on Saturdays and Sundays.

For more information on the heritage seeds movement in Canada see the Seeds of Diversity website: http://www.seeds.ca/

Just a quick note to let people know that the Main Street Farmer’s Market starts this Saturday in the parking lot of  Saint Paul University (on Main Street, but of course).   Similarly to the popular Lansdowne Market (held on Sundays), all meat and produce will be sold by the farmers who produced it and the market will only be open to growers within 100 miles (that’s 160 km) of Ottawa.

The market will be open from 9 am until 2 pm for the next three Saturdays.  If it is a success, Sustainable Living Ottawa East hopes to extend it into the fall and begin it earlier next summer.  So far eight farmers have signed up and a chef from the Green Door Restaurant across the street will be giving cooking demonstrations.

For more info see this recent Ottawa Citizen article: Lansdowne market success spawns stalls in Ottawa East.

There are a surprising number and variety of artisanal cheese producers within 100-miles of Ottawa. All of these producers have on-site stores (phone for the hours they are open to the public) and all are available through various delicatessens, caterers, grocery stores and health food stores in Ottawa, though some are more widely available than others. Back Forty, for example, is hard to find, but Nicastros generally has some. Forfar, Balderson, and St. Albert are available in most grocery stores. For the Quebec cheeses, you might have to venture into Gatineau to find them, though Floralpe is available at the Wheat Berry and the Wild Oat.

Back Forty Artisan Cheese, sheep farm and producers of 5 raw sheep’s milk cheeses, R.R.3 Lanark, ON, 613-259-5734

Forfar Dairy, est. 1863, 26 different cow, goat and sheep cheeses, 1536 Conty Road 42, Portland, ON, 613-272-2107

St. Albert Cheese, est. 1894, 18 cow’s milk cheeses, St. Albert, ON, 1-800-465-1553

Balderson Cheese, est. 1881, 14 different cow’s milk cheddars, 100 Taylor Road, Lanark, ON, 613-259-0202

Skotidakis Goat Farm, est. 1975, cow and goat fetas, cow ricotta, 185 County Road 10, St. Eugene, ON, 613-674-3183

Ferme Floralpe, they raise their own goats and produce 6 different goat cheeses, 1700 Highway 148, Papineauville, QC, 819-427-5700

La Biquetterie, goat farm and producer of 6 cow and goat cheeses, 470 Highway 315, Cheneville, QC, 819-428-3061

La Trappe a Fromage de L’Outaouais, est. 1995, 5 cows cheeses, 200 rue Bellehumeur,Gatineau, 819-243-6411

Ferme Les Folies Bergeres, sheep farm and sheep cheeses, 955 route 317, St-Sixte, 819 983-4010

If you’ve switched or considered switching to “natural toothpaste” you’ve probably come across Tom’s of Maine, that powerhouse of healthfood store toiletries from the U.S. There is a more local alternative, however, and that is The Green Beaver Company, a small relatively young company in Hawkesbury, ON. Okay, so the ingredients for this toothpaste probably come from far and wide, but it is manufactured within 100-miles of Ottawa.

Green Beaver toothpaste comes in 5 different flavours including star anise, which is homeopathic friendly (it doesn’t contain mint). All  Green Beaver products are free of fluoride, aluminum, artificial fragrances, artificial flavours, dyes, mineral oil, parabens, petrolatum, phtalates, artificial preservatives, and triclosan. None of their products are tested on animals and the toothpaste is free of animal products. It is vegan. Green Beaver toothpaste is also free of the controversial substance sodium lauryl sulfate (SLS), a substance which is in Tom’s of Maine toothpaste.

To find a retailer that stocks Green Beaver products near you, consult their on-line list of stores, which includes 27 in Ottawa.

The Green Beaver Company, 535 Front Road, Hawkesbury ON K6A 2R2, 1-888-666-1206

P.S. If you’re counting, this brings the total to three cool eco-companies in the Hawkesbury area: The Green Beaver Company, Pinehedge Farms, and Beau’s All Natural Brewing Company.