There is an agricultural area with endless fields just 20 minutes away from the consumer district and the malls in Laval. On Perron Avenue, people can buy fresh apples, lamb, strawberries and raspberries straight from the farmers.

In the summer, Agathe Vaillancour, Vyckie’s grandmother, welcomes people with her smile and her good mood. “How are you?” she says to each of her customers. Her granddaughter brings up the importance of buying locally. “During strawberry season, can we please buy fruit from Quebec as opposed to those from California, which have travelled thousands of kilometres before arriving here?” Vyckie says. She is a farmer with O’Citrus and is in the process of taking over the family farm business, La Ferme d’Auteuil in Laval.

Their website, lessamedisalaferme.com, highlights an important point. Most food travels approximately 2,500 kilometres before it is available in grocery stores. That is the equivalent distance of going back and forth from Laval to Halifax! “When people come and buy fruits and vegetables picked that very morning at the farm, they develop a closer relationship to the grower,” she adds.

Why Buying Local Matters
By favouring local products, the consumer provides support to the Vaillancourt family, the Beaulieu family (lamb producers), and the Gibouleau family (apple growers).

Should 16,000 Laval families invest $25 per month (or 83 cents per day, less than the cost of a coffee), this would generate $4.8 million dollars in the local economy.

A Passion for Organic Food
Many foodies choose to buy organic food. “A number of shop owners buy organic vegetables from Mexico. Here, in Quebec, it is very complicated for farmers to acquire this famous certification.”

Vyckie notes an inconsistency here. Organic tomatoes from Mexico travel approximately 5,000 kilometres before landing in our plates. She and other farmers grow tomatoes in an environmentally-friendly way, by avoiding chemical fertilizers or products. “I have never used pesticides for my greenhouse tomatoes,” she explains.

A Shift in Mentality
In Quebec, well-known chefs like Norman Laprise highlight local produce. For instance, he indicates on his menu the source of the vegetables or the cheese. This phenomenon is widespread in Europe.

Recently, the head of O’Citrus had a discussion with a restaurant owner who imports his lemons from Japan. “Does it bother you that you import lemons that travel 10,000 kilometres when I could provide you with some?” she told them. Clearly, due to production cycles, the Laval company cannot provide citrus year round. “The chef and their buyer must be amenable to the possibility that they may not have any during certain periods.”

Imagine if the majority of Quebec restaurant owners showed local products with pride on their menus, including innovative products like Asian citrus grown, in a greenhouse in Laval? Companies like O’Citrus could then expand and create more jobs right here in our province.