Sarah Burton has always loved growing food.
“Fresh produce makes all the difference and it’s so rewarding to be able to bring it from your garden to the plate,” says the second-year Horticulture – Food and Farming student.
It’s something the Barrett Centre of Innovation in Sustainable Urban Agriculture is also focused on.
The centre, on Harwood Avenue North in Ajax, is an urban farm owned by Durham College where students and staff explore new, sustainable approaches to farming.
The goal is to “reimagine how we envision agriculture,” says Kelly O’Brien, associate dean of the Faculty of Hospitality and Horticultural Science.
This includes eliminating food waste. Canadians waste more than 50 million tonnes of food annually, according to Statistics Canada.
The Barrett Centre considers how to reduce that waste, according to O’Brien.
Last year, the college partnered with Colleges and Institutes Canada on a project. As part of the initiative, a zero-waste potato dish was developed and featured on the Bistro ’67 menu.
“Instead of wasting that food by-product, turn it into something of value,” says O’Brien. In this case, potato skins were transformed into a fine powder, while typically discarded scraps were deep-fried and served as a flavourful garnish.
With a Food Handler’s Certificate built into the curriculum, students also gain the skills to safely and effectively preserve produce.
The Barrett Centre prepares Durham College students to reduce food waste and apply sustainable practices throughout the growing and harvesting process, and in their own lives.
Burton says she had an abundance of tomatoes in her garden this past summer. Rather than letting the tomatoes go to waste, she made salsa and sauces, and skinned, sliced, and froze tomatoes for winter.
Freezing produce is one of the Barrett Centre’s sustainability initiatives .
During this season, the campus orchards are full of apples. Some are turned into dehydrated apple chips, which are stored in the campus food pantry, boasting a shelf life of up to 25 years, according to O’Brien.
“A lot of the work the Barrett Centre does is showcase how we can take urban green spaces and turn them into viable spaces for local food production,” she says.
It’s something Burton would like to see more people doing.