A Brant County initiative that has given thousands of Grade 5 students an appreciation of where food comes from was recognized with an Excellence in Agriculture award from the provincial government.
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Bite of Brant celebrates its 30th anniversary next April, and uses hands-on stations to teach kids from Brantford, Brant County and Six Nations of the Grand River about everything from soil science to apple cider.
It was built around the idea of discovering where each ingredient in a pizza comes from, and has grown to include “other commodities and agriculture sector organizations that even better represent the amazing agricultural diversity we have in the County of Brant,” Coun. Jennifer Kyle told The Spectator in an email.
Jean Emmott helms the two-day event at the Burford fairgrounds each spring with the help of hundreds of volunteers committed to giving students “an awareness and an appreciation for the source of locally produced food, and its importance to our local society and economy,” Emmott told The Spectator.
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She was at the Royal Agricultural Winter Fair in Toronto last week to accept the award for Promotional Excellence, which recognizes an individual, business or organization which influences consumers to buy Ontario-grown and Ontario-made food products.
The award “not only a testament to the success of the long-standing event” but signifies it is recognized “as one of the very best events of its kind in the province,” Kyle said.
The 13 winners and 16 honorable mentions have “raised the bar for excellence in the agriculture and food industry and demonstrated leadership in their field,” according to a media release from the government.
There were no nods for Hamilton-area farmers this year, but Norfolk County’s Schooley Orchards & Apple Hill Lavender took home the Farm Family Excellence award for the west region.
The Schooley family has run a successful agri-tourism business for years with their lavender farm, and branched out by adding a pick-your-own apple orchard this year.
Celeste Percy-Beauregard is a Local Journalism Initiative reporter based at the Hamilton Spectator. The initiative is funded by the Government of Canada.
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