Blue Mountains News

“Australia wastes about 7.6 million tonnes of food annually, with households responsible for around a third of this,” Cr Greenhill said.

“The Food Security Fair will help households tackle food waste by providing hands-on demonstrations of food preservation as well as introducing new plant-based cooking techniques to help people produce healthy meals more cheaply.”

The day will start with a delicious breakfast with Good Fat Pastry’s baker Michael talking about the cooking innovations that can help bakers produce mouthwatering treats, and feature a range of workshops and stalls including:

•     Dr Milena Bojovic from the University of Technology Sydney (UTS) on her research on the future of food
•     Wholefood chef, author, educator and co-founder of Sydney’s Iku Wholefoods, Holly Davis, on a range of fermentation techniques
•     Renowned permaculture teacher Nev Sweeney on how to make a solar powered food dehydrator and different ways to preserve food
•     Dr Teya Brooks Pribac from Plant Inspired on innovative ways with plant-based dairy and egg substitutes
•     Marnee Fox from Forage to Feast on how to use wild edibles
•     Manu Prigioni from Farm it Forward on theNational Food Security Strategy
•     Erin Hall demonstrating how to Weave with Weeds. This workshop will identify how invasive weeds that smother habitat for wildlife can be removed and woven into numerous useful objects, like baskets and bowls.

The event will also launch the new Upper Mountains Seed Saving group to help gardeners grow more edible plants suited to our climate. Bring along seeds for a seed swap.

There will be edible native plants available for sale, beneficial to both humans and wildlife.

The Blue Mountains Food Security Fair will run from 9am to 4pm on Saturday 18 October at the Blue Mountains Planetary Health Centre - 33-39 Acacia St Katoomba.

Bookings for workshops are essential as places are limited. Register via here or ring 0407 437553 to find out more.

The Food Security Fair is supported by the Australian Association of Environmental Educators.