Willamette Valley Sustainable Foods Alliance

Please join us for the 3rd annual Fun with Fermentation Festival at the WOW Hall, Saturday, January 14, 2012!

This event draws more than 400 people each year, and features sampling of  locally produced fermented foods, and learning about fermentation processes from food producers and workshop presenters.

This years Fun with Fermentation will run from 11am – 4pm.  The workshop schedule is as follows:

11-12: Yaakov Levine: “Fermented Foods: A Key to Healthy Digestion”
12-1: Jennifer Burns Levin, OSU Master Preserver and writer of Culinaria Eugenius - “The Fermentation Basics”
1-2: Eight Nine Tempeh- “Live Quinoa Tempeh Demo”
2-3: Elyse Grau & Katya Davis of OSU Master Food Preservers: “Fermenting with Dairy”
3-4: Aaron Brussat of Falling Sky Brewery: “The Gifts of Honey: Mead & T’ej”

We will have a raffle again this year, so remember to bring your dollars to enter to win great prizes donated by local businesses while supporting a good cause.

If you are a local food business that makes or uses fermented ingredients, please contact info@wvsfalliance.org for information about tabling at our event.

Filed under: Fun with Fermentation on December 19th, 2011 | No Comments »

TASTE OF THE VALLEY – Sunday, October 2, Noon-6pm, Lane County Fairgrounds (Expo Hall #2)

Join us in celebrating the bounty of the Willamette Valley during harvest season!

“Taste of the Valley” is a one-day event sponsored by the Willamette Valley Sustainable Foods Alliance, and serves as a benefit for the WVSFA and FOOD for Lane County.  Individual admission is $5 with 2 cans of food, and family admission is $10 with 2 cans of food.  Price includes one raffle ticket!  Children under 12 admitted free.

Free Samples of Locally Grown and Produced Foods!

More than 2o WVSFA member businesses will share free samples of locally grown and produced foods, including Grateful Harvest Farm, Boondockers Farm, Wintergreen Farm, Sweet Water Farm,  Sweet Creek Foods, Cafe Mam, Holy Cow, Sweet Life, GloryBee Foods, Hummingbird Wholesale, Toby’s Family Foods, Conscience Confections, Cousin Jack’s Pasty Co., Hop Valley Brewing, 16 Tons Beer and Wine, Pure Peppers and Premrose Edibles.

Cooking Demos by Local Chefs!

Local chefs will demo cooking with surprising local ingredients in delicious ways!

12pm-1:30 – Anton Ferreira from Holy Cow Restaurant and Catering

1:30pm-3pm - Shane Tracey from Nib Modern Eatery

Time TBA – Catherine Reinhart from Sweet Life Patisserie

Chef TBA

Classes and Demos on Local Food Production:

Noon-1pm: Bee Friendly Bee Keeping by Bill Wood of Beeologique

1pm-2pm: Seed Saving with Boondockers Farm

2pm-3pm: Home Food Preservation with Donna Croisar of the Master Food Preservers

3pm-4pm: the Joy of Sauerkraut with John Karlik from Sweet Water Farm

4pm-5pm: Home Fermentation with Christina Sasser, fermentation enthusiast

5pm-6pm: What you Need to Know About GMOs with David ResSeguie

Find our Event on Facebook – share with your friends!

http://www.facebook.com/event.php?eid=219963084726579

Filed under: Events, Fun with Fermentation on August 8th, 2011 | 1 Comment »

The Willamette Valley Sustainable Foods Alliance now has a Facebook page – please take a moment to “like” us!

Following us on Facebook will give you the most up-to-date information about our upcoming events, and much more!

http://www.facebook.com/WVSFAlliance

Filed under: Fun with Fermentation on August 8th, 2011 | No Comments »

Travel Lane County is hosting their annual gala dinner on Tuesday, June 14th. The event is for their membership and will be dominated by tourism industry professionals. The theme is “local bounty” and the featured chef will be creating a meal utilizing ingredients from within a 100-mile radius. By encouraging hotels to use local products as a lure to potential customers, Travel Lane County is very much in line with our organizational goal of establishing a ‘regional brand’ in our bountiful valley. Look out, Napa… we’re working on our own world-renowned branding!

The Marketing Committee will be staffing the WVSFA table, and many of our members will be providing sample products to be featured at this gala event. Travel Lane County has requested both product for display (which can be returned at the end of the event) and for donations to be used as door prizes for their members. If you’d like to be featured or to donate a door prize, please contact board member Kylie or Marketing Committee member Kristie.

Filed under: Events on May 31st, 2011 | No Comments »

We are hosting an Educational Forum for WVSFA members on Waste Management,  Wednesday, June 1, 5pm-8pm at the Vet’s Club (Veterans Memorial Association, 1626 Willamette St. Eugene).

This Educational Forum will feature presentations and discussions about Master Recycling, Zero Waste, Composting, and BRING Recycling’s ReThink program!   Hear what Alliance members are doing to increase recycling and/or become a zero waste business, and learn what community services are available to help businesses set and achieve waste management goals, including composting. Explore topic-specific issues at smaller break-out discussions.

5pm-5:30pm: Networking and Local Food*

5:30pm-7pm: Presentations

How Alliance members are addressing waste management:

- Shawn Donnille (Mountain Rose Herbs)

- Kristie Steele and Jimmy Brougher (Hummingbird Wholesale)

Community resources to help our member businesses:

- Carolyn Stein (Re:Think Business, BRING)

- Jake Hoke (Rexius)

7pm-7:45pm: Break into round table discussions. Each presenter will hot a table discussion, giving you a chance to explore the topic more in-depth.

WHAT TO BRING:

1. Your up-to-date promo materials: when the WVSFA has a table at a conference or festival, we display YOUR businesses logos, stickers, brochures, cards, small posters, books, etc.  Our current box is out of date and depleted – please help us promote you by bringing us any of your up-to-date publicity and promo items!

You can arrange with Kylie anytime to provide us with your materials, but it’s so easy to bring them with you to the Ed Forum!

2. Your 2011 member dues if you have not already renewed your membership this year!

*If you would like to donate food or beverages (non-alcoholic due to venue rules) please contact Megan at info@wvsfalliance.org or (541) 331-0644.

Filed under: Events on May 18th, 2011 | No Comments »

We are hosting an Educational Forum for WVSFA members on Trucking & Distribution, Tuesday, March 29, 5pm-8pm at the Vet’s Club (1626 Willamette St. Eugene).

The purpose of this Ed Forum is to support sustainability, and to increase efficiency and collaboration of delivery and distribution routes among member businesses.  We will have presentations by and discussions with several local and regional distribution company representatives.

The schedule for the evening is:

5pm-6pm: Networking and Local Food*

6-6:30: Brief presentations from SnoTemp, Organically Grown Company, NFR (Turtle Mountain), Peddler’s Express, Grease Lightening, Brand Freight and Julious Jones Small Freight.

6:30-7:30: Round Table Discussions with representatives of your choice. We will have a pause during the discussions, giving you a chance to move to a different table as needed.

WHAT TO BRING:

1. Your up-to-date promo materials: when the WVSFA has a table at a conference or festival, we display YOUR businesses logos, stickers, brochures, cards, small posters, books, etc.  Our current box is out of date and depleted – please help us promote you by bringing us any of your up-to-date publicity and promo items!

You can arrange with Kylie anytime to provide us with your materials, but it’s so easy to bring them with you to the Ed Forum!

2. Your 2011 member dues if you have not already renewed your membership this year!

*If you would like to donate food or beverages (non-alcoholic due to venue rules) please contact Megan at info@wvsfalliance.org or (541) 357-7085.

See you Tuesday!

Filed under: Fun with Fermentation on March 27th, 2011 | No Comments »

On March 16th, Capella Market will complete it’s sixth year in business, serving up delicious natural foods and personal care products. In celebration of this milestone, the independent grocer is hosting its annual wine sale the following weekend, on Saturday March 19th and Sunday March 20th. Customers can enjoy tasting wines, cheeses and other gourmet goodies around the store from 11 am to 6 pm both days, as well as 15% off all regular priced wines all weekend.

Each year Capella coordinates a raffle at this event to benefit a local non-profit, and this year the WVSFA will be the beneficiary. Four to six prizes are raffled each day. Most prizes are donated gifts from the local wineries, including a package of four tasting flights at Territorial Winery, a New Belgium gift basket, a Red Ridge Olive Oil gift basket, and an afternoon at Brigadoon Winery including appetizers, wine tasting and a private tour. The grand prize, one nights stay at Red Ridge Farms’ guest suite with accommodations for up to four people, will be raffled off at 4:00 pm on Sunday. Red Ridge is located in Dundee wine country minutes away from 200 wineries, and their guest sweet has two bedrooms, a kitchen and balconies with a panoramic view. See the Red Ridge Farm website for more details.

Please join Capella Market for this celebration and benefit for the Alliance. One cannot go wrong with good eats, good drinks and a good cause!

Tasting Schedule:

Saturday

• Amity Vineyards and Owen Roe 11:00 – 1:00
• Brigadoon Winery and Durrant Vineyards 1:30 – 3:30
• Tyee and Mad River Brewing 4:00 – 6:00
• Cheese and cured meats tasting 11:00 – 3:00

Sunday

• Sweet Cheeks and Five H 11:00 – 1:00
• Lumos Winery and 2 Towns Cider 1:30 – 3:30
• Odisea 4:00 – 6:00
• Grocery gourmet samplings 11:00 – 3:00

Filed under: Announcements, Events on February 28th, 2011 | No Comments »

The Food Justice Conference’s purpose is to explore the history and future of our food system with a focus on three themes: community, equity and sustainability.  On Monday, WVSFA will have a table at the Food Fair, where we will promote member businesses and eating natural, locally produced foods.  We hope to see you there!

Filed under: Events on February 8th, 2011 | No Comments »

Last January, WVSFA hosted the first Fun with Fermentation Festival at the WOW Hall.  The event drew over 400 people, who enjoyed sampling locally produced fermented foods, and learning about fermentation processes from food producers and workshop presenters.  We collected 2 barrels of food donations and raised over $2000 for FOOD for Lane County.

We plan to do it again this January the 15th, from 12 to 5 pm.  We will be welcoming back presenters Christina Sasser and Jason Carriere, who will share about the history and benefits of fermentation, vegetable ferments and alcohol ferments.  We are very excited to also have Andhi Reyna presenting on goat cheese and goat yogurt this year.

In the back lot Devour and Viva Vegetarian Grill will be serving up hot meals with fermented ingredients, yum!

We will have a raffle again this year, so remember to bring your dollars to enter to win great prizes donated by local businesses while supporting a good cause.

If you are a local food business that makes or uses fermented ingredients, please contact info@wvsfalliance.org for information about tabling at our event.

Filed under: Fun with Fermentation on December 14th, 2010 | No Comments »

Title: A Night of Bliss
Location: Eugene Waldorf School
Link out: Click here
Description: Come and enjoy ‘endless bliss’ and eat Coconut Bliss sundaes with us! “A Night Of Bliss” Gala Fundraiser, in Eugene, Oregon supports local education & sustainability focused groups, including the Alliance this year!
Starts at 5 pm.
Date: 2010-11-06

Filed under: Events on November 2nd, 2010 | No Comments »