The Pulse: March 31, 2022

An incomplete trek on the Pacific Crest Trail and a battle with Type 1 diabetes led Edmonton's Lisa Bélanger to launch her freeze-dried meal company, Flat Out Feasts.

Bélanger was two months into the hike, which runs more than 4,000 kilometres along the U.S. coast from Mexico to Canada, when she had to stop.

"My body was starving to death, I couldn't move the energy from food into my cells while I was hiking this trail," she said of the 2019 trip. "It was quite a shock and I ended up having to come home and deal with that."

Once she was diagnosed with Type 1 diabetes, Bélanger resolved to learn as much as possible about the lifelong autoimmune disease, including how she could continue to lead an active lifestyle. She quickly figured out that a low-carbohydrate diet would help her manage the ups and downs of her blood sugar.

"But I discovered that there were no backpacking meals or dried meals available that were low-carb. They all had a base of carbohydrates, whether it's rice, pasta, potatoes, or beans, which would really cause havoc on my health," Bélanger explained. "This was becoming a barrier for me in terms of finding food that I could eat on multi-day backcountry trips."

The idea for Flat Out Feasts, which launched in January, was born about a year after her diagnosis, as part of an effort to not only create healthier and better-tasting backcountry food but also to make multi-day hiking more accessible for people with specific dietary needs.

Like her hike on the Pacific Crest Trail, it was not easy to get the company off the ground. The most challenging part of getting to market, Bélanger said, was meeting all the required regulations and completing all the steps associated with high-risk food products like meat, before it was even possible to test how well the packaged meals would do with customers.

Bélanger and her husband, Colin Pals, developed food safety plans for each recipe and packaging to meet federal regulations. They also found a commercial kitchen facility where they could work, using Ocean Odyssey Inland's space. Armed with those tools, they were able to apply for a food handling permit, but Alberta Health Services told them they were the first to do so for a freeze-drying process, meaning there was no precedent on which to base the application.

"Neither of us knew, AHS didn't really know what they were looking for," she said. "I think we just tried to keep moving forward one step at a time and one challenge at a time ... just overcoming that until we could get it approved and launched."

• Some experts are forecasting a sixth COVID-19 wave this spring, pointing to a rising infection rate driven by the BA.2 Omicron sub-variant and loosened health measures, Global News reports. At his weekly briefing, Health Minister Jason Copping acknowledged the rising prevalence of COVID-19 in wastewater in Edmonton and Calgary, saying increased transmission was not unexpected given the lifting of most public health measures. "There are simply more opportunities for the virus to spread as more and more people work from the office, return to travelling, socialize in various settings and resume their regular routines," he said.
• Albertans are generally more stressed, angry, lonely, and depressed than the rest of Canada, suggests a Canadian Mental Health Association survey that assessed the impact of COVID-19. The survey found that around 46% of Albertans have experienced a decline in their mental health since the start of the pandemic. Around 10% of respondents said they have had recent thoughts or feelings about suicide. Meanwhile, 64% of respondents were concerned about new COVID-19 variants.
• The city's new Clean Energy Improvement Program (CEIP) pilot has seen "incredible interest" since it launched, the city announced, with all the funds now allocated to residential projects and some applicants joining a waitlist. The city is now looking for ways to expand the program.
• Four Edmonton police officers fired their guns at a 55-year-old man who suffered fatal wounds near the LRT tracks on 95th Street on March 25, the Alberta Serious Incident Response Team said in a news release. "Two potential improvised firearms and a modified imitation firearm were located at the scene," says the release, showing pictures of two of those objects. A spokesperson declined to provide further details to CBC about whether those items were considered functional. The man was the fourth person killed by Edmonton police this year.
• Edmonton police have arrested and charged three Ontario men in relation to a string of Ford F-150 thefts that police first warned about in February. The police say the thieves were using "sophisticated technology" to breach the trucks' anti-theft systems but provided no further details. EPS's most recent investigation found that more than 40 F-150s were reported stolen in Edmonton and only seven have been found.
• Lucy the elephant is getting a permanent therapeutic wading pool, Postmedia learned a day after international advocacy group In Defense of Animals said Edmonton Valley Zoo was North America's worst zoo for elephants. The pool is a recommendation made last year by an animal health expert who said it would be an "enriching experience" for Lucy.
• Prairie Sky Gondola, the company planning to build a gondola across Edmonton's river valley, announced it is working on an "urban ropeway" in Red Deer. The $25-million project would connect a development to a recreation area on either side of the Red Deer River. President Jeffrey Hansen-Carlson said this won't derail Edmonton's gondola project, which is aiming for completion in 2025.
• "A community rich in spirit turned my starter home into my forever one," writes Cheryl Whiskeyjack in describing the Lymburn neighbourhood for The Henday Project, CBC Edmonton's ongoing series about Edmonton's suburbs. Whiskeyjack is the executive director of the Bent Arrow Traditional Healing Society.

Downtown Dining Week, an annual event organized by the Edmonton Downtown Business Association (EDBA), returns as more staff are expected to resume working in offices.

Running March 30 to April 10, this year's iteration will see a record 60 restaurants participate. A dozen establishments are involved for the first time, including several restaurants that opened during the pandemic such as 5th Street Food Hall, Envie, Jack's Burger Shack, and May. Restaurants range from fast-casual eateries to more formal dining options, offering multi-course dinner, lunch, and brunch menus for $20, $35, $50, and $65.

The focus of this year's event is on staff returning to the core. "Many workers returning to the office are looking forward to socializing with their coworkers and going for lunch at an old favourite or new spot," said Tracy Hyatt, marketing and communications manager with the EDBA. "If the pandemic has taught us anything, it's that people crave that face-to-face interaction and restaurants are so important for socializing."

Last year's Downtown Dining Week coincided with the start of indoor dining restrictions, so the event had to be reconfigured entirely for take-out and delivery. With the lifting of restrictions earlier in March, the vast majority of participating restaurants this year are highlighting table service options. "Profit margins are super slim for restaurants, so nothing beats dine-in where people can order a drink and also try something off the regular menu," said Hyatt.

Still, there are some options for those looking for alternatives to dining indoors, including several restaurants that are equipped with heated patios, such as The Cask & Barrel, Rocky Mountain Icehouse, and The Common, and fast-casual eateries, including A Bite of Brazil, Buok, and District Café, that will offer take-out. Hyatt also recommends checking with individual restaurants that offer table service to confirm if their menus are available for take-out.

Hyatt is hopeful that the community will rally around local restaurants. "Everyone is eager to support our downtown businesses given what they've been through for the past two years and this is a great opportunity to do it."

Photo: A steak dish from May, one of 60 restaurants participating in Downtown Dining Week. (Edmonton Downtown Business Association)

In Episode 9 of Bloom, co-hosts Emily Rendell-Watson and Faaiza Ramji interview Lisa Bélanger, who launched Flat Out Feasts in January, making freeze-dried, low-carbohydrate meals for people who travel, hike in the backcountry, or need a quick, easy option at work.

"(Remember) that every challenge you encounter in setting up a new business is essentially a barrier to entry for somebody else," Bélanger said. "If you're facing that barrier, and you can get over it, then you're more likely to be successful and unique in doing that. Good things are hard, otherwise everybody would be doing it."

Rendell-Watson and Ramji also discuss Startup TNT's Cleantech Investment Summit, which is slated for April 7. Three Edmonton companies — Environmental Material Science, Nanode Battery Technologies, and Quantum Silicon — are among the five finalists, and the goal is to raise more than $500,000.

Plus, Air Trail, Cash 2 Crypto, The Public Food Hub Co., and Umay are pitching at the Alberta Accelerator by 500's demo day; True Angle Medical and 2S Water are participating in Plug and Play's spring programs; and applications are open for the 2022 YEG Startup Community Awards.

You'll also hear a message from Bloom's sponsor, Innovate Edmonton, in which CEO Catherine Warren continues her conversation about inclusive innovation with Taproot's co-founder, Mack Male.

Bloom is available on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, Stitcher, and everywhere else you get your podcasts.