Found - Working with the grain

As demand for artisanal bread and craft beer continues to grow, Hattie Klotz meets the people building Ontario's small-scale grain sector from the ground up

- Hattie Klotz

BEFORE THE DAYS WHEN AIR FREIGHT brought mangoes, strawberries, and avocados to our stores year-round, and before a globalized food system raised our expectations to absurd heights - dark red cherries at Christmas, sushi spotted far from any ocean - we ate what was produced locally.

In a limited way, those who shop at farmer's markets and subscribe to CSA deliveries do this now, to the extent that the Canadian climate allows. However, when it comes to flour and bread, this has always been more difficult. Grains, mostly produced over thousands of acres of monoculture and plied with environmentally harmful fertilizers and pesticides, are shipped worldwide, severing the link between producer and consumer. For our daily bread, it has been nearly impossible to know your farmer.