Food Swap!

On Sunday we held our first Food Swap here at Little City Farm!  I had been reading about food swaps taking place in cities all across North America, bringing people together to share their harvests, preserves, and love of local food.  Food swaps are opportunities for local food entrepreneurs to showcase their new food products; for local homesteaders and urban gardeners to meet others; for food lovers to share extra preserves in exchange for new varieties; and communities to gather in a unique setting to practice the ancient art of bartering.  Food swaps are part marketplace, part food festival, part community potluck, part gathering.  Very fun indeed!  For our first swap we had 11 participants (plus a gaggle of kids), sharing 32 varieties of food items: everything from kimchi to wood-fired bread; zucchini muffins to strawberry jam; plum wine to freshly harvested honeycomb; herbs to handmade curry paste; granola to freshly squeezed juice; rendered duck fat to pickled diakon radish; yam cranberry loaves to jarred peaches; gorgeous bunches of kale, chard, beets, herbs and lavender bundles to dandelion jelly, etc. 

We estimate that aproximately 150 items were bartered in the span of about 2 hours (no money changes hands at a food swap), everyone going home with boxes and baskets of newly aquired items, fully bellies, and happy smiles on their faces.  Thanks to everyone who came and made this event the success it was!  We'll definitely host this event again - look for it in the spring.