Bathurst Food Group - 22 April 2010
Regular readers might be wondering what happened to my tomatoes (if you haven't been wondering, you're excused). I've mentioned in previous columns that my tomatoes have been very, very slow to ripen. Well, I'd love to report that they all got the message and went red, but the fact is that they remain slow. There are still some large green stragglers sitting there, seemingly oblivious to the fact that it's almost time for frosty mornings. Still, I've managed to harvest enough over the past few weeks for some delicious sandwiches, salads and pasta sauces.
Even if you do it badly, growing your own veges is enormously satisfying. It is nutritious, cuts down carbon-emitting "food miles" involved in transporting food to your plate and makes your home feel more homely.
The next best thing to eating your own produce is finding food that has been grown locally. It tastes better, it doesn't have to be transported using fossil fuels, and it provides direct support for local producers. Consumers are interested in buying local produce but unfortunately this isn't easy to do. The supermarket system, as it currently stands, means that local food gets packed off to distant markets while, in turn, we buy produce that has come to us from distant places.
The newly-formed Bathurst Food Group is working to overcome the barriers between local producers and consumers. The group, which unites Bathurst Community Climate Action Network, Bathurst Regional Eats & Drinks, the Bathurst Slow Food Convivium, the Bathurst Region Vignerons Association and interested members of the public, will meet next Tuesday, April 27, at the Bathurst council chambers at 5.30pm.
The meeting, which welcomes all those interested in buying or selling local food, will explore options including promoting local food through existing retail outlets, creating an exclusively local retail shop and promoting farm gate sales.
"Many consumers are looking to buy locally produced organically grown food, but it is not readily available in Bathurst," says facilitator and local organic food grower Ross Macindoe. "Here is an opportunity for both buyers and sellers – an opportunity knocking on our door!"
To find out more, call Ross on 6331 6320 or email him at r.macindoe@lisp.com.au