Meet Liisa and Lindon, of The Apple Lady
Liisa Hawes imported her first box of apples from Avalon Orchard in January of 2010 to fill holiday gift baskets, never expecting it to become the new career path it did. In seeing the smiles with which those apples were received, she quickly discovered that there was a disconnect between consumers such as Calgary's, hungry for quality fruits, and orchards such as Avalon, with a surplus of apples but without the scale to qualify within the present storage and distribution systems, which greatly favour the largest producers. It's a potentially dooming situation that many small BC growers are currently facing. Liisa responded to this need and has since taken it upon herself to be that connection between great growers and great eaters.
Avalon Orchard, in Oliver, B.C., is owned and operated by third-generation orchardist Russ Klatt. Although Russ is not a certified organic grower, he employs many traditional horticultural methods and organic practices on his farm.
Thanks to Liisa's support he is now marketing a greater variety of fruit, planting thousands of new trees, bettering his practices, employing more people, and even diversifying by interplanting throughout the orchard with organic field crops. Liisa is always sure to relay any feedback she gets from buyers about the fruit, and Russ always listens intently, whether it involve a need, a dissatisfaction, or praise.
In addition to apples, Liisa also sells dried apple chips that Russ makes himself from russeting apples. Russeting is a natural, weather-related process that discolors and roughens the skin of a fruit, but does nothing to reduce the taste or nutritional value of it.
In order to further reduce the waste of these otherwise fine fruits, Liisa has made a point of educating her buyers about russeting and the waste associated with it and many have now begun to buy the aesthetically imperfect apples, significantly increasing Russ's saleable crop (he sends his gratitude).
Further in the season Liisa will also have a wider variety for sale, including plums, peaches, cherries, pears and tomatoes. And, if you're craving something that's not on her table, ask her about the possibility of sourcing it for you! If Russ can't provide it, chances are good that one of his neighbors can.
What's even more, as Liisa is a recent affiliate member of YYC Growers and Distributers, CSA-style shares of her fruit are also now on offer. She'll be at the Hillhurst Sunnyside Farmers' Market every Wednesday this summer, from 3pm to 7pm. You can find her there, or at various other farmers' markets and special events around the city.
