foodsources
Spreads the Word
Flora & Farmer preserves a place at the top
Kim Bialkoski has dedicated the last six years
proving to Canadian consumers that her jars are
filled with more than sweetened produce. Setting
herself apart in the preserving industry, Kim
founded Flora & Farmer to create preserves using
only quality ingredients and methods without
compromise.
Historically, food preservation has permeated
every global culture, yet has seen a recent
resurgence in Canada. Emerging on Toronto’s
food scene several years ago, fermenting, canning
and pickling have become an extension of an
artisanal movement celebrating the return of
pre-industrial aesthetics and flavours.
More than a culinary trend for Kim,
preserving has become her lifelong passion. A
gardening enthusiast since youth, she collected
issues of Ciao! magazine while her peers found
amusement in Seventeen. A keen sense for
crocking pickles, Kim was soon concocting
flavourful combinations for spreads, relishes and
sauerkrauts. Hitting the mark with her wares at
local farmers’ markets, her hobby is now her
ultimate career.
The goal to maintain authenticity of flavour
and health-conscious preparation is behind
Flora & Farmer’s promise to produce only high
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ciao! / apr/may / two thousand eighteen
quality products. The growing selection of
products is largely made without additives
to ensure optimally healthy condiments.
Implementing a slower simmering process
helps reduce and condense her mixture, rather
than using the commercially used pectin as a
thickener. Although this method is more time
consuming and expensive - as liquid is lost as
it evaporates - the health benefits and added
flavour outweigh the costs.
The practice “goes against the food rule of
today,” says Kim “which is to produce as much
as you can as fast as you can. Mass-produced
jam companies can charge $3 per jar because
sugar costs a tenth of the price of fruit.”
Adapting to Manitoba’s short growing season
and sourcing organic fruits means getting
crafty with year-round freezing of all fruit.
The ongoing challenge allows Kim to up her
creative ante in the off-season, stemming
creatively blended preserves.
Kim’s f lair for combining flavours gained
local recognition in 2016, when she claimed
bronze in the Great Manitoba Food Fight
for her original and single best selling item -
applekraut. The uniquely sweet and pickled
condiment serves as an anti-inf lammatory
(products)
By Kelsey Schaefer