Taste of Santa Barbara
May 16 – 22, 2022

Rock Front Ranch and the Cuyama Valley Food Action Network
Friday, May 20 at 11:30 a.m.
New Cuyama

Join Rock Front Ranch to see first-hand how regenerative practices are applied in a high desert climate. Farmer Alisha Taff will discuss how to cultivate the finest, purest, most healthful honey in the world, why jujubes are an ideal superfruit to grow in the Cuyama Valley, and how together, farmers in her community are developing a resilient food system model via the Cuyama Valley Food Action Network. Tour is part of the Taste of Cuyama Package offered by the Cuyama Buckhorn and includes a honey tasting.

Watch this storytelling video to learn more about how jujubes are thriving in the high dessert at Rock Front Ranch.

Restoration Oaks Ranch and Santa Barbara Blueberries
Sunday, May 22 at 10:00 a.m.
Gaviota

Join farmer and rancher Ed Seaman at his family’s more than 900 acre ranch to learn how they have applied agroecology principles to produce food in partnership with nature. See how limited resources such as water and topsoil and wild habitats are carefully managed – and meet the thousands of worms who transform local food scraps into “black gold” that builds soil fertility. If the berries come early, stay after the tour to pick – and taste – blueberries in the u-pick fields. If not, tour will include a complimentary $10 coupon for picking when the season does start. Keep in mind most years start in early June.

Read more about how Restoration Oaks is building healthy soil through vermicomposting.

*Ticket price $25 per person

Rodeo Farms Strawberry Field Day
Sunday, May 22 at 10:00 a.m.
Santa Maria

Join grower Luz Gudino in the strawberry field to learn how this sweet fruit is grown and harvested. See first-hand how Rodeo Farms employs sustainable practices, such as drone technology for pest management, careful pruning to keep plants healthy, and organic amendments to boost soil health. Pick your own sun-ripened Monterrey and Cabrillo strawberries off the vine to take home – and taste them dipped in chocolate or topped with whipped cream. Tour includes two-pound clam shell basket to pick your own take home strawberries.

*Ticket price $25 per person

Piedrasassi Wine & Bread (21yrs+)
Friday, May 20 at 2:00 p.m.
Lompoc

Join farmer, miller, and baker Melissa Sorongon and winemaker Sashi Moorman at their winery/bakery Piedrasassi, located in the Lompoc Wine Ghetto. Learn how Melissa transforms locally grown grains into artisan bread, naturally fermented with grapes from her vineyard. Learn about heritage wheat, see how grains are milled, and taste the tang of traditional fermentation. Do a barrel tasting with the winemaker, then come back to the tasting room to taste finished wines and bread. Tour includes wine and bread tasting and take-home sourdough starter. Attendees must be 21 years or older to participate.

Read more to learn how the Central Coast and Southern California Regenerative Equipment Sharing Alliance is leveraging a cooperative sharing model among grain farmers to increase access to quality farming equipment.

*Ticket price $25 per person

Center for Regenerative Agriculture at Jalama Canyon Ranch
Sunday, May 22 at 10:00 a.m.
Lompoc

Join Jesse Smith, White Buffalo Land Trust’s Director of Land Stewardship, and other members of the WBLT team at their 1,000-acre Center for Regenerative Agriculture, where they are working to restore the ecosystem via agriculture. Visit their vineyard and learn how what you eat (and drink) can improve the world. Enjoy tasting products from WBLT’s regenerative food brand, Figure Ate, and discover how these delicious products address ecological needs.

Read more to learn how WBLT is modeling the restoration of our ecosystem through agriculture for the next generation of land stewards.

*Ticket price $25 per person

Trinity Community Gardens and Organic Soup Kitchen
Sunday, May 22 at 11:00 a.m.
Santa Barbara

Join Trinity Community Gardens and the Organic Soup Kitchen to see first-hand how non-profit organizations can work together to grow food, provide nourishment, and build community. Tour the three-acre organic garden and “food forest” orchard, learn about small-scale sustainable practices and closed-loop systems that any gardener can employ, and taste a variety of delicious garden-to-bowl soups. Tour includes soup tasting.

Read more about how Organic Soup Kitchen is using organic, locally sourced, nutrient-dense produce to support cancer and chronic illness recovery.

*Ticket price $25 per person

Rebuilding Our Food System
Saturday, May 21 at 3:00 p.m.
Garvin Theatre, Santa Barbara City College

Learn from local, national, and global leaders who are tackling our most pressing food-related challenges about how place-based, community-led, cross-sector collective action can build a more sustainable, resilient food system in Santa Barbara and beyond.

Join SBCFAN Executive Director Shakira Miracle, U.S. Congressman Salud Carbajal, Food Tank President Danielle Nierenberg, and a panel of regional food system changemakers moderated by Julia Child Foundation Executive Director Todd Schulkin:

• Sarah Koyo is Šmuwič (Chumash) and Tohono O’odham, working to revitalize her community’s connections to traditional foods and medicines through food sovereignty, ethnobotany, and traditional Indigenous knowledge.
• Stefan Selbert is a next generation farmer and operations manager at Las Cumbres Ranch where he is rebuilding the soil with cows via rotational grazing and closed loop systems that give back to the land more than they take.
• Melissa Sorongon, owner and farmer at Piedrasassi Wine & Bread, coordinates a cooperative equipment sharing alliance that provides farmers with the critical regional infrastructure they need to get food from their farm to your table.
• Jessica Vieira, Senior Director of Sustainability at Apeel Sciences, leads the company’s sustainability efforts by applying data-driven analyses and life-cycle thinking to maximize Apeel’s positive impacts related to climate change and food waste.

The discussion will be followed by a reception featuring beverages and light bites showcasing the bounty of the region.

Those who want to see first-hand how resilience is being built into our local food system from the ground up should attend a regional farm tour on Friday or Sunday. Tours of countywide farms, ranches, community gardens, and processing facilities will demonstrate regenerative and sustainable agriculture and food production practices.

*Ticket price $25 per person

Santa Barbara Farmers’ Market
Saturday, May 21 9:00 a.m. to noon
119 E. Cota St., Santa Barbara CA 93101

Join us at one of the most diverse farmers’ markets in California to see, smell, and taste the bounty of our region. Visit the Taste of Santa Barbara booth for seasonal food demonstrations and tastings, an immersive scavenger hunt, and a live recording of the Inside Julia’s Kitchen podcast featuring local chefs Pascale Beale and Jeremy Tummel. Connect with the Santa Barbara County Food Action Network and meet food system actors who are helping build a more resilient foodshed.

Route One Farmers’ Market
Sunday, May 22 10:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.m.
3745 Constellation Rd, Lompoc, CA 93436

Join us at the newest farmers’ market in our region to see, smell, and taste the bounty of Santa Barbara County. Visit the Route One and Santa Barbara County Food Action Network booths for seasonal food demonstrations and tastings, a tour of the mobile farmers market truck that is expanding food access in North Santa Barbara County, and meet food system actors who are helping build a more resilient foodshed. Live music and food trucks will be on site to make this the perfect stop to lunch from and learn about our food system.