TORONTO — Olive oil has always been an integral part of the Mediterranean diet, but North American’s fascination with the “liquid gold” has been more recent. And, while several countries, including Italy, Spain, France and Greece produce an array of such products, the marketplace for olive oils has just become a bit more crowded with the recent introduction of two products from celebrity chef Christine Cushing.

The Greek-born chef and Food Network alumni recently introduced a Vibrant Organic Extra Virgin Olive Oil and relaunched her Bold Extra Virgin Olive Oil. Produced in her native Greece, the oils are made from koroneiki olives but are distinctively different as they express the flavours of their respective terroirs.

GUELPH, Ont. — First came news of AquAdvantage genetically modified salmon, and now the debate over GMOs heats up with word of Guelph Ont.’s Enviropigs.

A recent Globe and Mail article details the transgenic conundrum that our nation is facing anew, with a report that 20 Enviropigs have been under development for more than a decade at Ontario’s University of Guelph. The goal is to breed a new kind of pig that “minimizes the environmental impact of the animals’ waste, reducing a major pollutant from large-scale production,” which will ultimately slash operational costs.

According to the Globe, as the world’s population balloons over the next few decades, some experts agree genetically engineered organisms will need to be introduced. The fast growing AquAdvantage salmon has already been declared safe for consumption by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, and the new pig may not be far behind.

TORONTO — It’s often been said that going green can make more green for restaurants, and now a new coalition is out to prove it.

Toronto Hydro, alongside Enbridge Gas Distribution and the Ontario Restaurant Hotel & Motel Association (ORHMA) is launching Green-Eats, a new program that provides one convenient location for local restaurants to source programs and financial incentives to help pay for the cost of energy-efficiency retrofits.

“The benefits of being a green business go beyond saving energy. Businesses that do the right thing are often rewarded by lower operating costs and positive customer feedback,” said Anthony Haines, president and CEO of Toronto Hydro. “Toronto Hydro is proud to support restaurant owners by offering business incentive programs like Green-Eats to our menu of conservation programs.”

TORONTO — Toronto’s food scensters were taken on a culinary journey to Spain at George Brown College’s Chef’s House this week, when Campo Viejo, the venerable Rioja-region winery, set up shop.

Far from simply arriving with a slew of Tempranillo-based vinos however, the group also brought Carles Abellán, chef and owner of Barcelona’s Michelin-starred Comerc24 and former Ferran Adrià protégé, to prepare a multi-course tasting menu to match the various incarnations of Rioja in the glass.

Abellán was joined by two of his own chefs, Arnau Muñio and Giovanni Esteve, and eight culinary students from George Brown’s Chef School who rounded out the kitchen brigade.

Determined to make his first appearance in Canada a memorable one, Abellán matched Campo Viejo’s wines — the Crianza, Reserva, Gran Reserva and a Cava Rose — with some of the signature recipes that made him a household name in Spain. Standouts included sous-vide mackerel, served with citrus segments, olive oil and aromatic herbs as well as duck rice with a foie gras ganche and toasted corn kernels.