Food production ideas
From EcoReality
This exercise took place with the Advisory Council on 3 June 2006.
First, we took a few minutes for everyone to write on a piece of paper things that they would like to grow for personal or community use, as opposed to commercial use. We then brainstormed these ideas, recording the items on a flip chart. Next, we did a similar list, but limited to things we thought would be useful as a commercial product for sale to wholesalers, value-adding resellers, or the general public, and also brainstormed and recorded those on a flip chart.
After recording the two lists, we then put tick marks next to items we wanted the most: five per person on the first list, three per person on the second list.
The following is in order of the number of votes each item got on each list. Items with equal votes are listed alphabetically.
Grow for our own use
- (5) almonds/hazelnuts/walnuts/piñon
- (4) berries: salmon/elder/blue/huckle/rasp/black/cran/marion
- (4) cherries
- (4) herbs: stevia/dill/chives/oregano/echanacia/sage/basil/sweet grass/peppermint/spearmint/roibos/hops/tea tree
- (3) beans: soy/bush/yellow/purple/green/pole/lentil/chick/kidney/black/lima
- (3) carrots
- (3) salad greens/kale
- (3) yams
- (2) beets
- (2) gourds/squash
- (2) grains: rice/oats/wheat/buckwheat/millet/quinoa
- (2) kumquats
- (2) olives
- (2) onions/garlic/ginger
- (2) stinging nettle/fiddle heads
- (1) apples
- (1) artichokes
- (1) asparagus
- (1) coppice wood
- (1) corn
- (1) fennel
- (1) flax
- (1) green house exotics: avocado/lime/mango/papaya/lemmon/banana
- (1) kiwis
- (1) plums/nectarines/apricots
- (1) rapeseed
- (1) tomatoes
- bees
- celery
- cucumbers
- eggplant
- figs
- flowers: aster/edible/honeysuckle
- grapes/oregon grape
- ground cherries
- hemp
- hot/green peppers
- leeks
- maple wood
- peaches
- poppies
- potatoes
- radishes/turnips
- rhubarb
- salal
- sprouts: alphalfa/mung bean
- sunflowers
- sweet potatoes
Ca$h crops
- (5) berries: raspberries/blueberries/etc
- (5) herbs: cooking/medicinal
- (4) cut flowers
- (4) salad greens: kale, long-lasting
- (3) all beans
- (2) hazelnut trees
- (1) asparagus
- (1) broccoli
- (1) grapes
- (1) honey
- (1) hops
- (1) peaches
- (1) soaps
- apples
- beets
- corn
- dandelion --> wine
- garlic/onion
- plums
- soy beans
- sprouts
- tomatoes
- walnuts
Observations
- Because some items were grouped together, some people found it difficult to vote for their favorite. For example, someone who really wanted apricots, but didn't at all want nectarines, tended to not vote for the single line that contained them both.
- A fair number of things got high votes; many got no votes
