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Article from The Toronto Star

Going with the currant

JENNIFER BAIN
INNER CHEF

WHO: Russell Blake, owner of Foxmoor Farm, Vittoria, Ont., http://www.foxmoorfarm.ca.

BORN: Simcoe, Ont., 1965.

SELECT C.V.: A University of Western Ontario, University of Guelph and Nipissing College grad, he has taught Grade 7 and 8 math, geography and physical education for 15 years. Bought Foxmoor Farm five years ago as a home for his wife and two children. He farms nine acres of black currants and has sold his currants and black currant jam since 2002.

LIFESTYLE: "I was living in town (Waterford, population 2,200) and I could not get used to it — the street lights, the noise, even having neighbours. I had a horrible time. Now we're almost out of town (the village of Vittoria, population 1,500) on the farm. We're hoping to make it more than a hobby — it's for the kids and the whole idea of the family farm."

WHY CURRANTS: "We needed a crop where all the work is concentrated in the summertime when school's out. I wanted something that was labour-intensive, rather than heavily mechanized."

PICKING CURRANTS: "I get my students to pick my currants. They're 13 and 14 years old and too young to get jobs. So I get 10 or 15 of them every summer and pay them $5 an hour, and I'm out there picking with them. They're happy to do it, but it's got to be one of the most miserable jobs. They grow on a six-foot-high bush in clusters of 3 to 10."

MISSION: "Last year we sold half our currants off the farm for $5 a quart, sold the other half to the Ontario Food Terminal and made a few cases of jam. The silly jam just sold. So this year, gosh, we're going to probably end up making 500 jars of jam."

ON FARMING: "We'll break even this year, but I don't think I'll be buying a new truck."

FUTURE: "We've got the growing and production thing under control, but now I'm getting a taste of marketing. I guess as a schoolteacher you live a sheltered life."

ON MAKING JAM: "I'm afraid my generation would much sooner buy jam than make it. It's going to be a lost art."

LEISURELY PURSUITS: "We're pretty involved with our two kids and their sports. My wife's a marathon runner and a travel agent. Between the kids' schedule and hers, it pretty much keeps me hopping. We're also building a house. We've replicated an 1860s Ontario cottage — and that's actually become the logo for our jam."

TRAVEL: "I think my wife would like to, but I'm getting kinda bad about coming off the farm. We did take the kids on a Disney cruise last year out of Florida."

CONNECTIONS: "My brother Rob Blake plays hockey with the Colorado Avalanche."

FUTURE: "Plant red currants and super-sweet gooseberries and start a pick-your-own thing on the farm."

Be sure to see the Black Currant Smoothie on the Recipe Page.

Larry Husul, the health- conscious running partner of Russell Blake's wife, created this tart power drink.

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