Happy Spring! While Island farmers grow delicious food year-round, spring brings even more local goodness to the table. Supporting local means fresher flavours, a stronger economy, and a more sustainable food system.

By choosing Island Good farmers, like Farmer Ben’s Eggs pictured above, you’re not only getting top-quality food, but you’re also helping to build a resilient local food network and supporting businesses in our communities.

From grass-fed meats and organic produce to cider, wine, and artisan foods—Island farmers have you covered.

Meet Your Island Farmers:

40 Knots Winery – Located in Comox they farm sustainably and use the best practices to craft wines distinctly shaped by the ocean breeze and sun-soaked climate.

A & S Microgreens – This Nanaimo-based farm grows 40 varieties of microgreens, freeze-dries Vancouver Island organic fruits, and even ferments Cowichan Valley black garlic.

Alana’s Acres – Raising premium-quality chicken and producing delicious chicken sausage.

Averill Creek Ranch – A small ranch, homestead, and greenhouse growing plants, produce, and animals.

Babe’s Honey – Providing raw and unpasteurized honey, a natural sweetener with local Island flavor.

Cowichan Station Creamery Ltd. – A creamery and cheese shop specializing in artisan cheeses made from their grass-grazed cows.

Eatmore Sprouts and Greens – Fresh, locally grown, organic sprouts, grown year-round in the Comox Valley.

Field Five Farm Ltd. – Growing grains and pulses on the Saanich Peninsula, Field Five Farm is expanding into malted barley, wheat, oats, rye, and sprouted grains for food markets.

Farmer Ben’s Eggs – A locally owned and family-run egg production operation in the Cowichan Valley, providing 100% Island-produced eggs.

Fat Chili Farm – Choose from a wide range of hot sauces and preserves made from specialty chili peppers grown on their farm.

Foragers Galley – Love mushrooms? Foragers Galley provides grow-at-home mushroom kits and dried mushrooms so you can enjoy fresh fungi all year round.

Galey Farms – A staple in the local farming community, Galey Farms offers a variety of fresh produce, herbs, and seasonal goods.

Gobind Farms – Specializing in premium-quality fresh produce and berries, Gobind Farms is a must-visit for berry lovers.

Island Hothouse Inc. – Located in Saltair, this farm focuses on growing tomatoes, cucumbers, eggplants, beans, and peppers, ensuring fresh, flavorful produce.

Island Vegetable Cooperative Association – They represent the following growers on Vancouver Island: Galey Farms, Gobind Farms, and Michell’s Farm

Sea Cider Farm & Ciderhouse – Award-winning ciders made with local apples.

Springford Farm – Based in Nanoose Bay, Springford Farm supplies free-range eggs and locally raised beef, ensuring high-quality and ethical food choices.

The Ukrainian Gourmet at AngelStar Farm – Producing Ukrainian specialty foods such as relishes and pickled items, dry mixes, mustards, BBQ & hot sauces, spices & seasoning blends, dips & rubs, and more.

Ultimate Microgreens – A fantastic source for fresh, healthy, naturally grown microgreens packed with nutrients.

Unsworth Vineyards – a family-built winery committed to handcrafting wines of distinction in Vancouver Island’s Cowichan Valley.

VI Farm Products – A collective of Island farmers passionate about feeding Vancouver Island with fresh, local food. Farmers in this group include Rages Farms, Lazo-Tyee Farm, Dove Creek Produce Farm, Cowichan Bay Produce, Hilltop Greenhouses, and Coastal Black Estate Winery.

Zanatta Winery – A small family winery committed to producing premium Cowichan Valley wines from their single estate vineyard.

How to Support Island Farmers:

• Shop Local – Look for the Island Good label.
• Buy Direct – Farm stands and online options available.
• Visit BC Farmers’ Market – Meet the people who grow your food.
• Spread the Word – Share your favourite finds!

Island Good Spotlight – Tofino Hotsauce Co.

Tofino Hot Sauce Co., owned by Lise Richard, is a locally crafted hot sauce manufactured in Tofino with a flagship lineup of three flavours – Hot Tuff (Lime & Cilantro), Hotter Tuff (Mango – Turmeric), Hottest Tuff (Hibiscus – Tamarind).

If your product could speak, what would it say about you?

We, the sauces, love how Lise makes us with such pride and excitement. Hot Tuff here loves how she takes her time, carefully blending every ingredient. Hotter Tuff (that’s me!) appreciates how much attention Lise gives to each one of us, ensuring that we’re all at our best for the families who welcome us into their kitchens. And Hottest Tuff? Well, I love how she reminds us that our purpose is to bring people together—to add flavour, spark conversations, and create memories over shared meals and stories. Together, we know it’s an honour to be a part of so many lives.

What’s one thing you wish more people knew about your business/products?

The original Mermaid on our label was designed in 2014 – long before I ever imagined owning a hot sauce business. It started as part of an ‘intuition’ activity with a childhood friend back home in Nova Scotia, shortly after my Grandfather passed away. The exercise was to draw something non-real or fictional, assign it a function, and give it a name.

I sketched a Mermaid. Her function? Inspiration. Her name? Mairead/Maighread—Gaelic for Margaret.

When my friend explained this activity was to reveal a Spirit Guide, I wept—Margaret was my Grandmother, and my greatest source of inspiration.

A few years later, in 2019, while back in Nova Scotia, I conceived the idea of Tofino Hot Sauce Co. I knew instantly that my labels would be of Mermaids – one of them being a version of my 2014 Spirit guide drawing.

Each Mermaid was designed to reflect the essence of the sauce they represent. They each have a name and a character profile, a backstory, a whole life (that exists mainly in my imagination). They were all designed to reflect the beautiful variation of women’s bodies and personalities so that customers might see themselves, or someone they know, reflected in them.

What’s your favourite part about sourcing or creating right here on the Island?

My favourite part about sourcing locally and creating my products on the Island is how well I sleep at night knowing that my products contribute to the increased quality of life for people I meet. I can look at myself in the mirror knowing that Tofino Hot Sauce Co. creates as much positive impact as possible—both for people and our planet.

In business, there’s often pressure to become desensitized to the human cost of maximizing profit. The better the deal you get on overseas products, the more likely it is that someone, somewhere, is paying the price.

The Island is a beautiful place filled with incredible craftspeople who LOVE what they do. We all know that when it comes to food the most important ingredient is love (as cliche as that sounds, it is true).

I also love how I get to honour my Grandparents and everything they stood for. As ardent supporters of cooperative movements on the East Coast, they grew food at home and traded for what they needed to provide for their children. From infancy, I witnessed the impact and beauty that comes from holding each other up. That’s what I want my business to stand for, too.

Find all the retailers that carry Tofino Hot Sauce Co. sauces here