The farmers markets are bustling and the urban farms are a cornucopia of very local edibles. It feels good to know that carbon footprints are being reduced with every delicious mouthful 16 per cent of the worlds energy is spent on food transportation.
Tarren Wolfe, wants to shrink that carbon footprint even more from his basement store in Gastown. The founder of Urban Cultivator has created an appliance, based on hydroponic technology, that allows everyone from chefs to home cooks to grow fresh greens and herbs right in their kitchen.
Trays are seeded and put on the shelves. A timer is set and over the course of a few days, the lights come on and off and watering takes place from the bottom of each tray. What are often found to be delicate or challenging crops in our climate, such as basil, respond especially well to the controlled environment. Cultivators grow a variety of herbs and veggies at once from common greens such as lettuce, oregano, dill and parsley, to more exotic ingredients such as pea tendrils, watercress, mizuna, amaranth and shiso.
Chefs and restaurateurs recognize the benefits. I love the fact that I have fresh food growing in our restaurant. Not only does it keep costs down and reduces our environmental impact, but the greens and herbs taste great and are the freshest I can get, says Ned Bell, executive chef at Yew Restaurant in The Four Seasons.
Upstairs from Urban Cultivator, Nicli Antica Pizzeria has been using baby arugula. Next door at Vicino Pastaria and Deli, a commercial-size cultivator welcomes guests at the doorway and attracts attention from street traffic shelves of growing greenery arent exactly the usual welcome mat.
Back downstairs, the rows of cultivators have trays of greens growing and a juice bar featuring the latest produce. People are welcome to order a refreshing drink and watch as a snip of the scissors harvests fresh wheat grass for juice or cilantro and parsley for a healthy, nourishing smoothie.
