By Drew Simpson
The Mustard Seed Co-operative’s new café is just shy of two weeks old. The café fits in a perfect hub on the left upon entering the grocery store. The warm string lights, wooden details and contrasting black backdrop displaying the café menu set a welcoming tone for the Mustard Seed Co-op.
At one end of the space lays the café, inside the store yet out of the way of potential shopping. At the other end of the store and directly opposite the café counter is a cozy area with tan round wooden tables, earth-toned chairs and an L-shaped wood bench. It feels like the perfect progression: ordering a coffee, walking across the store to take a seat or walking around the aisles to shop for local food.
Although the grocery store is a co-operative, there is no membership needed to shop or to enjoy the café’s fair trade coffee, tea, espressos, lattes and Italian sodas with house-made syrups. However, after seeing the harmony between the café counter and the community space all within this grocery store, one can imagine it would be worthwhile to be a part of the community that birthed and built the Mustard Seed café.
Stacey Allen-Cillis, the operations team lead and a founder of Mustard Seed Co-op already knew the importance of local eating due to her own backyard garden started by her two kids. She started by selling produce from her own backyard and gave all the proceeds to youth at risk.
The people behind the Mustard Seed Co-op are not the only ones interested in urban farming and local eating. Passersby will come across houses selling backyard farm produce on walks through the neighbouring streets and boulevards.
“The Mustard Seed community is all very like-minded. We are all connected…so either you’re growing your own, you go to a community garden, you utilize farmer’s markets, you’re passionate in some way about food, community and beyond. It’s all intertwined,” explained Allen-Cillis.
When the community expressed a need for the café, the co-op board agreed. The fated café became a reality through cooperation between staff, committees and even volunteer ‘worker bees’ that built the space.
It is only natural for the café space, which includes an indoor and outdoor section, to double as a community space. Adding another medium for Mustard Seed Co-op to connect with the community. The intention is also for everyone in the neighbourhood to have access to a space that is their own, especially with a lack of cafés within a kilometre radius. The Co-op will also utilize the space to continually educate its shoppers and members about the importance of local eating.
With the café honouring the five-year anniversary of the business, it also symbolized that the Mustard Seed Co-op is fulfilling its prophecy as ‘the mustard seed is an ancient metaphor for great things coming of small beginnings,’ as mentioned in the membership passport.
Additionally, it is the only Co-op grocery store in Hamilton. Allen-Cillis foresees either opening another location in Hamilton or encouraging the sprouting of another Co-op by sharing the Mustard Seed Co-op’s success. Allen-Cillis always stresses that everything accomplished is through the cooperation of the Co-op’s members, staff and community.
The Mustard Seed Co-op’s members are able to attend general assembly meetings where they can vote and take part in specific committees, like the sourcing committee, which focuses on where local food is coming from, or committees like the one that made the café a reality.
Walking through the grocery aisles, café and community space seems like the perfect intersection between conscious eating and supporting the community. For the health conscious shopper who loves to give back by purchasing locally sourced produce, the Mustard Seed Co-op is a great grocery store and now, a great café with a community space you can call your own.
[thesil_related_posts_sc]Related Posts[/thesil_related_posts_sc]
While Hamilton is home to more than 700,000 people, nearly 80 per cent of the city is made up of rural and agricultural land. That’s why, in recent years, the city has changed its mind regarding urban farms.
In 2013, a report titled Urban Agriculture Policy, Planning, and Practice was submitted to the Neighbourhood Development Strategy Office by the Urban Agricultural Working Group, representing various departments and neighbourhood action planning teams.
The report was intended to assist policy and decision makers at the city of Hamilton as they investigate how urban agriculture might be better enabled by the City’s programs and regulatory framework, citing various benefits to urban farming and structural recommendations for the city to review.
The city’s Planning and Economic Development Department began removing barriers to urban agriculture in the following year. That year saw new city bylaws that would allow more urban farms and community gardens to grow in our city, including in residential, commercial and institutional areas.
These rules would allow on-site sales of produce grown on urban farms on properties of atleast 0.4 hectare where growing is the primary use. On properties less than 0.4 hectare, produce can be grown but not sold on-site, while in downtown or pedestrian-predominant streets, food growing would be limited to rear yards or rooftop gardens.
Since then, several urban farms have started sprouting around the city. In fact, there are nearly 100 functioning farms in Hamilton’s urban areas.
These urban farms vary in size and need, depending on the farm’s structure or where it is located geographically. Some farms are strategically located in Hamilton’s food deserts, or areas and neighbourhoods that lack access to healthy, nutritious food.
McQuesten Urban Farm was founded in 2015 as part of an initiative to increase food security in the McQuesten area. Not only does the farm address the issue of securing a nutritious and sustainable food source for the community, but also provides volunteer opportunities for citizens of all ages, adds economic value to the community, and fosters strong bonds amongst residents in McQuesten.
Patricia Reid, longtime volunteer and pioneer of McQuesten Urban Farm, hopes to help the neighbours learn new skills surrounding urban agriculture and to share their new-found skills with their family and friends.
“This project is very rewarding at so many levels and a great achievement of the McQuesten neighbours,” said Reid. “Having experienced food insecurity over the years has made me keenly aware of the need to provide alternatives to fast food.”
https://www.instagram.com/p/BjztMQiHuV7/?taken-by=mcquestenurbanfarm
Backyard projects have also come to life following the city’s new bylaws surrounding urban farms.
Miguel Feston, a McMaster graduate, began farming in a backyard of his friend’s student house when he was in school. He continues to farm at this property, in addition to a larger farm in Carlisle, Ontario, and sells his produce at two local markets.
“In my fourth year [at university], I met somebody who grew in people’s backyards and sold at a local market,” said Feston. “He was really curious about this cool idea of growing vegetables in the city. I wanted to help him and got to learn more about it and I eventually decided I didn’t want to use my math degree. I just wanted to do this.”
Hamilton’s 2016 to 2025 Strategic Plan sees environmental sustainability as one of its top priority projects. The project’s key directions include a focus on natural features that the city has to offer, leadership and awareness initiatives, and considering environmental impacts in decision making processes.
While there is still a long way to go, the growing number of urban farms in the city, in addition to the opportunities that follow seem to be addressing a major aspect of this Strategic Plan.
