You’ve heard about student exchanges, but how about chefs and farmers trading places?

It’s almost laughable to think of chefs exchanging their white aprons for overalls and farmers giving up their pitch forks for kitchen forks—until you consider that chefs and farmers are really in the same business: food!

David Tombs, executive chef at the Delta Sun Peaks Resort in British Columbia was inspired to send a dozen of his chefs to a couple of local organic farms and a ranch so they would better appreciate farm products.

“It was a bit of an eye opener,” Tombs says, referring to all their picking, packing and prep.

When it was their day to join the kitchen crew, the farmers learned the flip side of the business: turning raw food into tasty dishes.

Encouraging local food consumption makes sense—it’s fresher, more nutritious and easier on the planet. So it’s not surprising other chefs are also reaching out to farmers. In Victoria, BC, the Island Chef’s Collaborative supports about 80 local farmers: buying their fruits, veggies, eggs and meat, raising money for fences or irrigation, and organizing a summer market. But depending just on local food is challenging.

Consider chef de cuisine Travis Hansen, who oversees the busy dining room at The Butchart Gardens. He goes through 91 kg (200 lbs) of greens each week.

“With some of the farmers, that would be taking all of their supply,” he says.

Still, Hansen is committed to buying local. 

“It’s so valuable,” he says. “I don’t want to be buying stuff from California.”