Food & Agriculture
LUSH Valley Donor Gifts $10, 000 Towards Property Purchase In Central Courtenay
“Working with LUSH Valley for the past 15 years, I recognize the need for a permanent and secure home for gathering, storing and redistributing local food”,
Community Good Food Boxes
The Good Food Box is a large grocery bag of fresh fruit, vegetables and eggs, available every other week. We include 50% or more local food in each order to support our Comox Valley Farmers and Growers. In addition to our existing no-cost program, we now have two new options available: Our Subsidized and Community Good Food Boxes.
Holiday Harvest Meal Fundraiser
Sunday, Dec. 13, from noon until 4:00 p.m. LUSH Valley Food Action Society is holding a Holiday Harvest Meal Fundraiser.
Fruit Tree and Farm Gleaning Update
Our Fruit Tree and Farm Gleaning programs are going strong! After a successful pilot in 2018, the Farm Gleaning season has seen a 350% growth so far in 2019, in terms of the volume of produce that has been redistributed throughout our community.
Eighth Annual Garlic Fest
Time to hold your nose and prance on down to the Big Yellow Merville hall for the Eighth Annual Garlic Fest on Sunday, August 18th . The garlic sellers will have their wagons overflowing with raw garlic, garlic jams & jellies, and there will be other seasonal produce to choose from as well.
Linda’s List for June 28th: Carrot Day Once More
It is time for my annual reminder to sow lots of carrots for winter harvests in the next week or two. For me, July 1st is always Carrot Day as well as Canada Day (US readers: think 4th of July). As long as you sow before July 10, your carrots should have time to grow to a nice size by fall.
World Community AGM to Focus on Food Security
World Community (Development Education Society) is holding its Annual General Meeting on Thursday, July 4th at 7 pm at Creekside Commons. Featured speaker at the AGM will be Maurita Prato, Executive Director of LUSH Valley Food Action Society.
LUSH Valley, Comox Valley Housing and Food Action Plan
Come join LUSH Valley Executive Director, Maurita Prato, and the Coordinator of the Coalition to End Homelessness, Andrea Cupelli, as they present a Comox Valley Action plan to create more access to healthy food and food programs for people living in supportive, social and transitional housing across the Comox Valley.
Spring at LUSH Valley
The 2019 growing season is off to a great start at our Share the Harvest community garden in downtown Courtenay. On March 25, 2019, Courtenay Mayor Bob Wells, Council members and leaders at LUSH Valley Food Action Society signed a five-year ‘Share the Harvest Community Garden’ partnership agreement.
Opportunity to Support Local Farmers
After a successful pilot project, the New Farmer Mentorship and Loan Program is ready to support more Comox Valley farmers in 2019. The New Farmer Mentorship and Loan Program matches up farmers that require small loans to purchase farming equipment with mentors and lenders that are interested in supporting local agriculture.
Introduction to Beekeeping
Gerry and Chris Rozema run Rozehaven Farm in Campbell River and are avid beekeepers. They will be providing an overview of what is involved in beekeeping for anyone wishing to get into production, especially farmers. As members of the Comox Valley Beekeepers Association and the BC Honey Producers Association, they have a depth of knowledge on how to manage bees in the climate of the Comox Valley.
Deadline for Making a Charitable Donation in 2018
Today is the deadline for making a charitable donation in 2018. As per CRA regulations, only donations postmarked on or before December 31, 2018 will receive a charitable tax receipt for credit for the 2018 calendar year.
Give a Nourishing Gift This Holiday
At LUSH Valley, we love good food, and see it as a transformative way to connect, empower and inspire people. By supporting people to access, grow, process, prepare, and eat good food, together we are improving lives. Please consider supporting our work with a gift this season and help us accelerate towards our vision of a food secure Comox Valley.
ON OCTOBER 20th, VOTE FOR A FOOD SECURE COMOX VALLEY!
On September 24th, we sent all candidates across the region Food Security Briefing notes and a six question survey to find out more about where they stand on Food Security initiatives. Take a look at what candidates had to say.
Linda’s list: Pinch sprouts, trap SWD, stake crops, plant garlic
I am just back from a delightful trip wandering around gardens in Cornwall and Devon for the last 3 weeks with a merry band of fellow gardeners. But now I see there is a lot to do in my garden and that reminded me to get this note out to you.
New Farm Gleaning Pilot Project
In addition to running the 17th season of our Fruit Tree Project- this year LUSH Valley is running a pilot farm gleaning project.
Local farmers are at the center of this work and we value these relationships highly and do our best to provide on-farm labour when needed in exchange for excess produce. We call our approach ‘farm-centric’.
On October 20th, Vote for a Food Secure Comox Valley
Are you concerned about issues related to community food security, poverty, health, local food, urban agriculture, and other matters related to resilient communities and food systems? At LUSH Valley Food Action Society (LUSH Valley), we know how important it is to have leaders and decision makers, across the region, that will stand up for our local communities, economies and the environment especially as it relates to healthy food production and access. On October 20th, you have an opportunity to go to the polls and vote for a Food Secure Comox Valley.