Tea Creek + Amisk + IFSA = Big Wins
A partnership between Tea Creek and our sister organization, the Indigenous Food Sovereignty Assn (IFSA) enabled us to deploy the Tea Creek model for the first time in another location. Julian Napoleon and his partner Gabby Applegarth own and operate Amisk Farm at Moberly Lake. Amisk is Julian’s ancestral home, and was his grandparent’s farm that he has revitalized.
Julian joined the Tea Creek team and received mentorship and support to deploy the Tea Creek model and IFEAST training at Amisk.
IFSA purchased half of Amisk farm’s produce, which was then given away through community farmstands and meals. This was a powerful experience for everyone at Amisk, and it brought much happiness to the community including elders and youth.
The success with Amisk this year proves that the Tea Creek Model can be deployed to other Indigenous-led, land-based locations through the IFSA network.
IFEAST Program Launch
Tea Creek partnered with SkilledTrades BC to launch our Indigenous Foodlands Employment Apprenticeship Skills Training (IFEAST) program this year. Our target was 30 enrolled trainees, and we had over 70 First Nations and Indigenous people enroll hoping to participate in our first season. As of this writing our first year of training is underway in two locations, at Tea Creek and Amisk Farm in Treaty 8 territory.
IFEAST is for unemployed or under-employed Indigenous peoples in BC ages 18 and up.
A big success this year was having 100% of trainees joining IFEAST at Amisk farm unemployed or underemployed, and then exit the program into jobs.
New Root Cellar & Multi-use Building
With core support from the FPCC Braided Infrastructure grant and other IFSA and Tea Creek funders, a state-of-the-art root cellar and multi-use building was designed and built using local labour and materials. IFEAST carpentry trainees gained valuable training and experience at every stage of the building process.
This fall Gitxsan hereditary chiefs were invited and attended a blessing ceremony to open the root cellar.
It is currently storing thousands of pounds of potatoes and other vegetables from the fall harvest.
The contents include precious rare local Indigenous varieties of seed potatoes which will be planted for next year.
Upstairs is a beautiful open multi-use space with a deck facing our food forest and Xii Dii (Tea Creek). Staff, trainees, volunteers and guests will enjoy being inside a timber-framed space using lumber donated by Simoigyet Gaxgabaxws. The space has already hosted community lunches and is the future home of IFSA and partner organization office spaces.
Local Economic Development
Employment continued to be the top expense at Tea Creek this year, with over 70% of revenues going toward employment expenses. Coupled with other local and regional spending on materials and supplies, well over 80% of Tea Creek revenues were spent in the local economy, meeting the definition of social enterprise.
Tea Creek is often the first job for many people. It is also a place where people have re-trained and started their new careers. It is also a place where people start and develop their own businesses. Creating future paths for Indigenous people is a key part of our vision: “Resilient healthy local Indigenous communities and economies built on land-based programs and abundant local food.”
Tea Creek Film Premiers, Wins Awards
The Tea Creek Film - which started production in 2022 - premiered at DOXA in Vancouver to rave reviews and was one of the few screenings to sell out. Since the premiere, the film has won best documentary at the Saskatchewan Film Festival and has continued to be selected for exclusive festivals such as Planet in Focus.
The film is popular, and is showing a strong appetite for Indigenous stories and the solutions and hope that Tea Creek offers. The trailer alone went viral on Facebook and was viewed 162,000 times prior to the film coming out.
The film was created by filmmakers Ben Cox and Ryan Dickie, and was executive produced by CBC here in Canada. It is free to watch on CBC Gem here.
King’s Coronation Medal
Tea Creek’s Jacob Beaton was awarded the King’s Coronation Medal - one of three recipients in BC selected for leadership in Agriculture.
“I want to acknowledge my ancestors, my teachers - and all the Indigenous food sovereignty knowledge holders and practitioners who have protected and revived IFS through ongoing systemic racism and oppression. And to those who continue to work for a better community, economy, and planet for all of us.
Many thanks to our funders and supporters this year - Tea Creek and IFSA wouldn't exist without you! Also to those who nominated me, and many thanks to the Staff and Crew who work hard to run all our programs and initiatives.” -Jacob Beaton
Hundreds Participate in Community Harvest
With frost coming and still many crops in the field, we posted this video inviting community members to come and harvest - it went viral, getting tens of thousands of views overnight. We’ve done this in previous years, but turnout has been low. This time, we had 400 people come and harvest over two days, completely gleaning our fields and harvesting out over 10,000 pounds of fresh, nutritious food.
A wide range of crops were harvested from corn to tomatoes to potatoes and quash. The fresh food ended up feeding families, elders, community groups, and even school kids through a lunch program. Beyond food, it reawakened good memories in elders and families around gardening farming - memories that were shared with youth.
Families came from far and wide. The most impressive was a family from Metlakatla, who got up bright and early to catch a water taxi to Rupert, and then drove all the way here to harvest as a family. It was a massive success that we may make an annual event.
Longhouse Food Hub Design
With the support of FPCC and other IFSA funders, a lengthy and beautiful design and pre-construction process was completed for a new longhouse at Tea Creek farm. The work done includes:
Environmental study
Geotechnical survey
Architectural concepts and engineered schematic drawings
Pre-construction planning
We are fundraising to build this beautiful complex, which would facilitate large-scale food processing, culture and education work, and trades programming. The cost for 1 longhouse is $2.5m, and the whole complex would be $7m. If you would like to support this vision, please contact us.
New Ponds and Waterlines
With thanks to the ministry of JEDI and the REDIP program through IFSA, two new 400,000 litre irrigation ponds were added to the farm. A new 1.5” waterline “backbone” was added to the farm to move water between the ponds, fields, and the new irrigation well. Construction on the ponds and waterlines was completed, and the new system was used this summer to keep the crops watered and producing through a severe drought.
The ponds fill passively with snow melt and overflow into each other.
Our region of BC experienced a level 5 drought, which is the highest level in the provincial system. Until the fall rains, we had received less than 5” of rainfall all year.
In addition, frost-free standpipes were added and a portable solar-powered high-pressure water pump was set up to move water from any pond into the system.
