Dine Alberta Connects Chefs, Producers and Consumers

Chefs need high-quality food products daily, but might not know any farmers who can supply them. Alberta farmers and ranchers are experts at growing and raising the world’s best food, but might meet professional chefs only rarely.

Enter Dine Alberta, which links Alberta’s producers and growers with chefs, to bring the best of the province’s bounty to local restaurants, cooking schools and catered events.

The Alberta Regional Cuisine Sourcing Directory helps make Dine Alberta happen. Started five years ago and updated yearly, this publication lists 130 farmers, ranchers, beekeepers and processors able to provide local ingredients. All participating Dine Alberta restaurants, cooking schools and caterers receive a printed edition. The directory is also available online, in a searchable format for chefs and consumers at www.dinealberta.ca.

“We’ve traditionally focused on the month of September to bring producers, chefs and consumers together to celebrate Alberta’s regional cuisines,” says Marlene Abrams, Lead, Regional Cuisine Initiative, with Alberta Agriculture and Food in Stony Plain. “But with today’s interest in locally grown foods, we’re encouraging chefs and consumers to use these products all year long.”



Should you be in the directory?
Abrams explains that chefs are looking for unique, locally grown foods like meats, fruits and vegetables. In addition to being of the highest quality, these foods must be available on a consistent basis in the required quantity and to exact specifications.

“This market isn’t for everyone,” says Abrams. “If people can't produce and deliver as needed, then this isn't the channel for them. But we encourage a collaborative approach, where producers work with neighbours to fill an order together if one of them is short of supply.”

By working together, chefs and producers can support each other’s interests and promote each other’s businesses. When chefs are creating menus with regional ingredients, Dine Alberta asks them to identify the producer and region where the product originates. LaRonde, for example, the revolving restaurant atop Edmonton’s Crowne Plaza Chateau Lacombe, proudly declares its support for local farmers on its menu and website.




Distributors add value for chefs and farmers
Many chefs like to work with producers on a one-on-one basis. Others, over time, have asked for an intermediated approach. “Some have said, “I don’t have time to talk to five or 10 producers. Give me one person to talk to’,” says Abrams. In response, a new generation of food service companies has risen to the challenge. These companies add value by meeting the chefs’ need for consistency with the producers’ need for distribution.

Full Course Strategies of Edmonton has been in business for 10 years, “before local was cool,” according to President Lori Menshik. The company serves both chefs and producers with a range of services.

One is distribution. The company can warehouse and ship a variety of products, sending product to restaurants as the chef needs it. This saves the producer from having to ship small amounts on a regular basis.

Another service is education, with Menshik believing each party needs to understand where the other is coming from.

“Consistency of portion size and year-round availability are the number-one issues for restaurants,” says Menshik. “We work with a lot of producers on ensuring they have a consistent product that’s there when the restaurants need it.”

For example, Full Course Strategies’ key lamb producer – who also sources lamb from five other producers – has gradually implemented a program of year-round lambing.

Chefs are experts on food preparation, but like urban people generally, might have very little knowledge of agriculture. The company addresses this gap by bringing chefs out to the country to meet producers, see how farms operate and understand what goes into growing the products.

As more chefs grasp the value of locally grown foods, Menshik expects the local-food industry to grow. She’s always looking for producers who can supply consistent, high-quality meats, vegetables, fruits and other products.

“It’s all about being small, flexible and able to go in any direction that’s needed,” says Menshik. “Many restaurants change their menus six times each year according to what’s in season, so there’s always a demand for something new.”

For more information on Dine Alberta and regional cuisine opportunities for producers, please contact Marlene Abrams at 780-968-3519 or marlene.abrams@gov.ab.ca.