- Stories from the Ground
NourishFest 2025
The idea for NourishFest 2025 began as a launch for our new cookbook, What’s for Lunch?, a celebration of our beautiful Grow Eat Learn Trailer, and a showcase of the positive impact of youth food programs in schools and communities in Nova Scotia. Over the course of planning for the big day, NourishFest blossomed into a vibrant event buzzing with excitement and energy.
The event showcased Nourish Nova Scotia’s programs and many of our valued partnerships. We filled every corner of the beautiful Halifax Brewery Market, even its outdoor courtyard! with colourful food stations, engaging art activities, and fun with food for all ages.
Celebrating Connection, Community, and Food
Nourish Nova Scotia executive director, Aimee Gasparetto, opened the event along with Minister of Education Brendan Maguire. There were “so many beautiful moments filled with joy and laughter, moments that highlighted the deep connections we all have to food and the power it has to bring us together”, she notes. “The energy in the room was palpable!”
Read on for some highlights of the day that happened at each of the 5 station categories; Cook, Grow, Create, Eat, and Learn.
Cook
Our Smoothie Lab is one of our most popular activities and NourishFest was no different. “We had the ‘berry’ best time at the smoothie lab!” says Claire Allely, Youth and Community Food Coordinator. Our partners from the Mi’kmaw Native Friendship Centre shared information about our Youth Food Leaders partnership while program participants led the way with the blenders – encouraging attendees to spin the wheel and try a new ingredient in a classic smoothie.
Folks also got to ‘choose their own food adventure’ in other ways, building their own yogurt parfaits with Nova Scotia Loyal and adding toppings to potato soup served up by teacher Paul Heighton and students from the Karma Lunch crew at Northumberland Regional High School.
Grow
Even in October, there is planting to be done, and attendees had a chance to learn how to properly plant garlic from our friends at Common Roots Urban Farm. Soil health is important for planting too, so students from the Admiral Westphal and Caledonia School Garden Clubs led a pH experiment. Meanwhile, a food forest temporarily grew in the courtyard! Cape Breton Regional Garden Mentor Ruth Lapp recalls that attendees were “excited to see and touch some native flora like Joe-Pye weed, blue-flag iris, swamp milkweed, and fireweed that had gone to seed. Attendees also received packages of seed for pollinator-friendly plants with germination instructions.
Read more https://nourishns.ca/meet-zach/
Create
From making bracelets at the Eating Disorders Nova Scotia, to writing postcards to MPs expressing concerns about climate change, to Speakers Corner where youth could share their thoughts about food, there were plenty of opportunities for attendees to flex their creative muscles and have their voice heard. Emma FitzGerald, who created the beautiful illustrations in the cookbook, led a series of art workshops that had folks laughing and creating, while kids and adults alike let their creative side shine at a zine-making workshop hosted by Prince.
Bria Chiome-Miller, Regional Garden Mentor and visual artist, led a visual potluck activity where participants drew their favorite comfort foods. “Many were deeply focused, adding intricate detail to their drawings of their favorite dishes,” they share. “Together, we created a beautiful collaborative art piece that is definitely a visual feast for the eyes and FULL of color and life.”
Eat
Attendees had a chance to try a variety of new foods, from Pumpkin Polka Dot Bars made by the Station Food Hub to making their own kale chips and sampling local fresh vegetables. “It was such a joy to watch people’s faces light up as they tried these colorful snacks many for the very first time,” says Dawn Hare, Farm to School Snack Coordinator. “Crinkle-cut turnip sticks were definitely the fan favorite!”
In a highlight of the event, the team at Upward Kitchen served popular dishes from the Nova Scotia School Lunch Program like Butter Chicken, French Toast Bake and Chicken Shawarma. “It was truly wonderful to see an absolute hit with both kids and adults alike,” says Aimee Gasparetto.
Learn
The Grow Eat Learn Trailer anchored the outdoor courtyard space, where attendees could speak with trailer designers OSO planning + design and explore all the trailer has to offer. Nearby, attendees played pollinator bingo. “It was beyond exciting to see our learning tools in action and to see community members and youth connecting with the awesome growing processes we highlight within Grow Eat Learn,” says Jess Ross, School Community Garden Project Lead.
Inside, participants shared their thoughts about food with Feed Nova Scotia, learned about farming in Nova Scotia with the Nova Scotia Federation of Agriculture, and joined in the Great Big Crunch by biting into juicy apples.
And of course – folks were able to flip through the cookbook, enjoy the art and stories, and purchase a copy for themselves!
Thank You
Thank you to everyone that attended NourishFest to celebrate with us! Special thanks to the contributors who made this event a grand success: Jenny Osburn, who cooked up the idea of NourishFest; Leann Grosvold, who managed the event planning and brought our wildest dreams to life; all of our partner organizations who participated in the day; the youth who joined us at many of the booths; the volunteers who showed up in a big way to carry pumpkins and welcome guests; Michelle Doucette for the great photographs capturing the day; and all of the Nourish Nova Scotia staff who brought dedication and enthusiasm!
Photo credits: Michelle Doucette and Lia Chin-Yet
