30CanadianFoods: Join the Challenge!

Over on BlueSky, the place where all the proactive people hang out, a post caught my eye. #30CanadianFoods challenged people:

Post one of your favourite Canadian foods. One a day for 30 days. Regional or national. A recipe. A delicacy. A brand or product. Small business or large.

“What a great idea!” I thought. With the push to buy Canadian and boycott American products, there couldn’t be a better time to share some of the more delectable sides of Canadian culture and the businesses we may treasure but others might not know about.

I’m curious by nature and always want to know what motivates people, so I tracked down the original hashtag post and reached out to the creator, Brok Windsor (@brokwindsor.bsky.social), who confirmed he came up with the idea. I pestered him to tell me more, and he kindly obliged.

Originally from Sooke, British Colombia, Brok now lives in Montreal with his American wife and husky. The couple has been living between New York City and Montreal for the last 15 years, making the permanent move back to Montreal when Trump won the election.

When I asked Brok what inspired him to come up with the idea, he explained:

“I’m ex-military (2nd Regiment, Royal Canadian Horse Artillery) but never considered myself particularly patriotic. I was a proud Canadian but not the flag-waving type. When Trump started talking about tariffs, I thought it was ridiculous, but a trade war is no big deal. Then he started with the “51st State” garbage and talking about erasing the border and annexing our territory; that just pissed me off. That’s when I got all 'elbows up’.

“I’m 100% on board with retaliatory tariffs, boycotting the US, and buying Canadian. I saw a lot of apps and websites that helped people make sure they were spending their money on Canadian products, but I thought starting the #30CanadianFoods hashtag might be a fun way to trade ideas on foods, products, and companies that people might not know about or knew were Canadian.”

As for some of his personal favourites, since his wife is vegan and Brok by extension, he’s enjoyed promoting some vegan products he likes, like Odd Burger. “I’m also a big fan of Silk Road tea out of Victoria. Although I do miss Schwartz’s Deli [home of Montreal Smoked Meat since 1928] and will probably post that too. But my favourite Canadian snack of all time is Hawkin’s Cheezies, so that was my first post.”

Inspired by Brok’s passion and creativity, I’m jumping on board. For the next 30 days, I’ll be sharing 30 recipes on my blog with product recommendations from coast to coast. And since I’m a bit of a nerd for facts and history, I’ll give you a side helping of Canadian content.

Follow me on BlueSky to get notified about my daily posts, and follow Brok for more of his #30CanadianFoods journey. Post your Canadian products, and don’t forget to use the #30CanadianFoods hashtag!