Summerhill Winery wants to tackle sustainable food production

Photo: Artist Rendition

The owner of Summerhill Pyramid Winery says the time has come to develop a "sustainable food culture for the future of humanity."

To that end, Stephen Cipes is proposing what he calls the Culinary College for Humanity on the winery property.

Cipes will need the blessing of both Kelowna city council and the Agricultural Land Commission for a non-farm use for his vision to become reality.

He is proposing a four-storey building on 0.3 hectares on the winery property

In a plan submitted to city planners Thursday, Cipes says our current food system is one of the main causes of climate change and environmental degradation.

"The Culinary College for Humanity is a place for leaders from around the world to gather and to learn the technology of regenerative agriculture which will restore nutrient levels," he said in the city filing.

"A headquarters for world food production education with a holistic, immersive concept to entice food production entrepreneurs, activists and executives from around the world."

Cipes says Kelowna is an ideal location for such a project with our abundance of local produce, meats, fruits, wines and dairy, along with fresh fish from inland lakes and farms, and the nearby coast.

While the facility has drawn from other culinary facilities and schools around the world, Cipes says the Culinary College for Humanity has a specific focus built on a program based on a fully regionalized, zero waste, organic food system.