Galt goes green and explores local food for Earth day

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The Galt Museum is celebrating Earth Day, April 22 by taking a look  at the faces of our locally produced food.Jackie Chalmers, Anine Vonkeman and Dan Rollingson look for worms in the Galt Museum’s worm composter. Photo by Richard Amery
 So for Earth Day, April 22, the Galt Museum in collaboration with Slow Food Alberta, will be inviting numerous food producers to talk about producing  environmentally friendly food and, even better, offer free samples.
 There will be everything from home grown garlic, worm compost,  home made granola bars and sausages plus a lot more.
 Earth Day  is a cultural celebration which began in 1970. The Galt is pleased to be holding a variety of Earth Day activities, April 22 from 1-4 p.m. The event fits in perfectly with their latest exhibit on climate change.


 Jackie Chalmers, president of Slow Food Southern Alberta noted buying food form local producers not only helps the earth by reducing fuel consumption due to transportation costs but also processing costs. Plus when you talk to a local producer, you can ask exactly what goes into the production of food.


“It’s a real neat opportunity to talk to people about where there food comes from,” she said of participating in the Galt Museum’s Earth Day celebrations.
 Slow Food Southern Alberta has produced a directory featuring over two dozen Southern Alberta producers complete with biographical information and contact information. But you will be able to ask many of them in person at the Galt, and sample their wares.


 Chalmers noted the Slow Food Movement is a nod to the past when you had to get your food locally or  produce it yourself. She noted the Slow Food movement began in Europe as a protest against one too many fast food outlets. It has since spread across the oceans.
“It is very much based on tradition,” she said, noting there is a movement going on in 1,000 Garden movement going on in Africa to teach people how to grow their own food in their own gardens.


“Slow food believes the world can feed itself, so we provide people with the opportunity to grow their own food,” she said adding having a lot of slow food producers  at the Galt will give people the opportunity to ask them questions.
 One of the  producers at the event will be Coaldale area vermiculturalist Dan Rollingson of Earthly Matters Vermiculture, which produces and sells worm compost as well a s composters as well as the worms themselves.


“It’s good and clean,” he said adding food grown in worm compost tastes good and doesn’t depend of pesticides or herbicides to thrive. They eat pretty much any organic waste including vegetable, meats, cheese and dairy waste. he said worm composters can be easily  created with a plastic bucket and a bedding of cardboard and paper. He said it doesn’t even stink.

The event will also be the last day to check out the Galt Museum’s Climate Change in The Balance exhibit.
 Earth Day events begin 1-4 p.m., Sunday, April 22. There is no charge to attend.

— By Richard Amery, L.A Beat Editor

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