From seed to social enterprise

¡Hola todos! It's been a while. But after a couple weeks of vacation, and a couple more weeks of school (but still pretending I'm on vacation), I'm back up and blogging!

Over the Victoria Day weekend, I had the wonderful opportunity to enjoy some fresh air, and pay some visits to two friends who have just started exciting new green businesses in the Waterloo Region! Let me introduce you.

Rachel Dyck - Gardener extraordinaire, growing ideas from the ground up!

Forget mindless summer jobs. Rachel has something better in mind -- a summer spent learning new skills, helping her neighbours, and taking care of the environment!

Inspired by a conversation with  the University of Waterloo's own Economics professor, Larry Smith, Rachel has launched Gardens to Grow, a budding container gardening business. "Manageable, affordable and sustainable," Gardens to Grow starts vegetable gardens from seed, and sells them for $35 each in ready-to-go containers.  Customers have the choice of 3 different gardens, "Italian Blend," "Summer Salad Bowl," and "Veggie Variety."  Gardens to Grow makes it possible for anyone, even those with no yards or gardening skills, to enjoy garden fresh herbs and vegetables!

Container vegetable gardening is a simple way for urbanites to reduce their food miles and carbon footprints, afford healthier food, and learn about the process of food production! It's a great idea for a growing city like Kitchener-Waterloo. And the people of Waterloo seem to think so too, judging by the number of orders that have been rolling in for Rachel's beautiful bushel baskets. As we've been learning in our social entrepreneurship class, this intersection of supply and demand is the sweet spot for success, and the mark of a true opportunity! I'm inspired by Rachel's vision, and I'm excited to see her business grow. 

To learn more about Gardens to Grow and order your own container garden, visit http://gardens2grow.blogspot.ca/.


Nathan Klassen - Friendly face at your local farmers' market!

If the talented buskers in front of his stand at St. Jacob's Farmers' Market don't draw you in (*cough* field placement fundraising *cough*), Nathan's bounty of beautiful organic produce will!

A recent graduate of the University of Guelph's BSc program in Organic Agriculture, Nathan recently fulfilled his dream of buying his own farm, and founded Nith Valley Organics.  Vegetables, herbs, meat, eggs, plants--you name it, Nith Valley sells it. And better yet, the plants and vegetables are all farmed using organic methods!  Nathan hopes that the farm will achieve organic certification within a few years.

Nith Valley also has an active Community-Supported Agriculture (CSA) program, which allows community members to share in the risk and the bounty of the enterprise by purchasing "farm shares". How do organic farms and CSA programs promote social and environmental values?  CSAs help consumers get to know the producers of their food, and engage in the food production process.  CSAs promote community health by providing members with fresh, healthy food. Some CSAs even allow members to participate in farm work in exchange for discounts on food boxes, making organic food more affordable to low-income community members.  In addition, by CSAs support environmentally sustainable farming methods, by providing organic farmers with a steady cash flow.

All of these social and environmental benefits make me excited to see new farmers who are passionate about organic farming and Community-Supported Agriculture! It's great to see that there's an alternative to the industrial food system that is rich in nutritional, social, and environmental value. And it sure tastes good!

Dig in! Look for Nith Valley Organics at your local farmers' market, or visit them online at http://www.nithvalleyorganics.ca/index.shtml.


- Laura -