Are Canada's organic farmers, fishers and artisan cheese-makers fit to dine with royalty?
A select group of culinary-minded commoners will find out tonight when they break bread with Prince Charles and his wife Camilla at a special dinner at Rideau Hall in Ottawa.
"We always serve fresh, seasonal, organic products," says Julie Rocheleau, a spokeswoman for the office of the Governor-General of Canada. "In this case, we did give [the dinner] a particular twist, knowing that the Prince himself is really interested in organic food. For the first time, the farmers and producers that we use through the year have been invited."
Ms. Rocheleau would not release a full list, but invitees include Robert Clark, executive chef of Vancouver's C Restaurant, and Willem van den Hoek, a purveyor of fine farmstead gouda from Upper Economy, N.S.
The Prince of Wales should hold his own, though. He's the author of The Elements of Organic Gardening, and his Duchy Original organic products are made from crops from his own farm in Gloucestershire, two hours west of London.
