Upon arriving at the front entrance of the Green Living Show, I looked at the map of exhibitors. My plan was to cover as much ground as I could possibly manage in one afternoon. I wanted to see, taste, touch and participate in all that this show had to offer.
I was definitely impressed with the amount of green products, services and innovations at the show. It was, in my opinion, well balanced. I say this because as I walked around I noticed that I wasn’t overwhelmed by one section over the other.
There were many things that stood out for me this year, one of which was the section displaying a variety of greener transportation, from bikes to a modified car with a solar power roof.
After walking through the full show, I would have to add Ecostems to my top 3 exhibits. They’re an environmentally and socially sustainable flower shop. Not only did they have the nicest display of air plants, they are also dedicated to being environmentally conscience, going so far as to deliver your flowers by bicycle.
Another stall that caught my interest was by Mayukori, a company based in Montreal. Their feature product is a buckwheat hull pillow. This is a naturally hygienic product which has been used in Korea for many years.
I also loved learning about the “furoshiki” bag alternatives. It was originally created in Japan and used to carry groceries and other items. Me to We was also present at the show. They opened a store a few years ago in Toronto and have continued to sell their fashion and jewelry goods to help people from all over the world.
Now, I am a food lover, so when I ended up in the food and beverage section I slowed down considerably; there was more chewing and less walking. The first thing I tasted was a Greek style yogurt with coconut by Olympic (Krema); it was so good I immediately wanted to line up again and get another one. It tasted like a cheesecake, but since it had natural ingredients and cane sugar I had no guilt eating this on my own. I’ll be searching for this yogurt on the grocery aisle soon.
Right across from this exhibitor, my eye caught a very interesting packaging design, but what was inside was even better: coffee (which happens to be one of my favourite beverages). Coffeecology is a company that roasts coffee beans every week and delivers them to your place within days. The beans they use are from some of the poorest countries in the world. Their mission is to “effect positive change…by promoting great coffees that are traded fairly and grown sustainably."
As I kept walking I was on the hunt for chocolate, and I found it. Camino had a variety of chocolates available for tasting. The one that really impressed me was the chocolate with sea salt, and I particularly loved the salty finish to each bite. I continued to walk down to the next exhibitor and found LPK’s Culinary Groove. I tried, and thoroughly enjoyed, their coconut lime cupcakes.
I didn’t want to stop eating yet. I still had the Farm Fresh Fare and all their chefs cooking up a storm using local, fresh and sustainable, Ontario-grown foods to create their delicious dishes. I had many dishes, six to be exact, but I’ll focus on one – mixed organic mushroom soup garnished with wild leeks and fried onions. The soup was created by chef Robin Pradhan, owner of Rocky Racoon Cafe. This soup had four different types of mushrooms, all blending into the perfect medley of earthy mushroom flavours. I ended my Green Living Show feast by drinking a fresh young coconut chopped right before my eyes.
Green Living Show
www.greenlivingonline.com/torontoshow
