Five Minutes with Fiona Veikkanen, Canberra Environment Centre

Who are you?

Fiona Veikkanen, I’m the director of Canberra Environment Centre and the former co-owner of the Polo Restaurant. I’m also a keen urban food grower.

How did you get involved in the hospitality industry?

My husband Adam and I were given an opportunity to run the restaurant at the Polish White Eagle club in Turner. Over six and a year years we built a business that was really focussed on as much local food as we could afford. A big part of my role was training staff, sourcing ingredients and reducing waste to landfill through a community composting system.

We’ve got five young children so at the end of the day we needed to be able to give more time to the family so we decided to take a break from the restaurant and find other avenues to pursue our passions.

Tell me about your role at Canberra Environment Centre

The Canberra Environment Centre is all about empowering people to be more sustainable and environmentally friendly and giving them practical ways to do so. We want to be actually doing these things, not just talking about them, so we have a community garden and the Recyclery bike workshop. We also have the Local Environment Heroes podcast, which features interviews with local people who are doing great things. We want to empower people to make a difference for the environment wherever they are today.

Did you have a dream job as a kid?

I thought I was going to be a writer, an artist, or a performer; it was definitely something creative.

What is your food philosophy?

I’m really passionate about locally grown food that’s eaten at its peak! I’m super lucky to have a chef husband, and we eat lots of healthy food like different coloured veggies and, of course, not waste anything.

I’m also really into my front yard veggie patch and urban food growing. It’s important to remember that we can all contribute to our food systems. We’re not just at the mercy of food corporations; we can play an active role through our decision-making and even grow our own food.

What is your favourite ingredient when cooking?

Frozen berries! In summer, we take the family blackberry picking, and our goal is to pick around 50 kg, which will last us a year! I love having frozen berries; they are such a good treat, and they make snacks, breakfast and desserts special.

What’s an underrated Canberra venue that you love?

Pizza Artigiana in Jamison is delicious. They used to make a pizza called Bizmarc with an egg cracked on at the end, but I think they’ve taken that off the menu recently.

Who do you admire in the Canberra food scene?

Fiona Buining from Ainslie Urban Farm is knowledgeable, generous, and an amazing communicator. She and her partner Michael really want people to get into growing. They’re also very active in the hospitality scene, supplying restaurants with microgreens.

Where’s the best place for a drink or coffee in Canberra?

We don’t go out for a drink very often, but Adam and I will go to Candamber Liquor at Cooleman Court to pick up a bottle for home. They have a great collection of wines.

For coffee, Niugini Arabica at Duffy Shops. They roast their coffee on-site, and I love the way the beans smell; sometimes, I can even smell it from my house! We pick up their spent coffee grounds and compost them, so they’re also fuelling our garden.

Who is your dream dinner party guest, and what would you make them?

Ronni Kahn is the founder of Oz Harvest. She’s so motivated to reduce food waste and get food to those who need it, which aligns with my philosophy of not wasting food. I’d love to talk to her about her endurance and how long she’s been running the organisation.

I’d make her a meal out of foraged, found and homegrown ingredients: I think she’d be into that. There’s so much excellent food that can be diverted from landfill if you look outside the box. You need to dig a little bit deeper (sometimes even in the skip out the back of a Coles or Woolies!)

What are your current food obsessions?

I’m really obsessed with everything in the garden: zucchinis have started, tomatoes are ripening at my place, and we’re picking lettuces and leafy greens.

What’s the best thing you’ve eaten recently?

When the Canberra Environment Centre celebrated its 50th birthday, Adam cooked pizzas for the whole event. The pizzas were delicious, but the cold pizza leftover the next morning was even more delicious!

What’s a food that reminds you of your childhood?

It would have to be something really bland, like steamed potatoes, boiled carrots and peas. We would have that like five nights a week!

What’s a normal breakfast for you?

A piece of Under Bakery sourdough toast with a filter coffee. Adam bakes the bread at Under so we always have some of that on hand.

Where do you shop for groceries?

We grow a lot of our own food and forage, but outside of that, we go to the Southside Farmers Markets every week.

When you can’t be bothered to cook for yourself, where do you go and what do you eat?

With five hungry children, takeaway meals aren’t super economical!

I felt like this last night, so my first stop was the chook pen and we had those eggs on Under toast. We also do a lot of bulk cooking, so there’s always something bean-based in the freezer for lazy meals.

Where are you travelling next?

We’re going on a camping trip down the coast in January. Last year, we tried Mystery Bay, but we might try Burrill Lake this time.

Tell me something you love about living in Canberra

I love that almost anywhere in Canberra, it’s really easy to walk to some bush. No matter where you live you’re always near nature.

What TV show are you watching right now? Or any podcasts you’re enjoying?

I’m studying right now, so I don’t have much time for TV, but I enjoy Fisk on ABC iView. Kitty Flanagan is so funny; I love her humour!

I’ve also been listening back to all the Local Environment Heroes podcast conversations as I edited them!

An easy one to finish – what’s your go-to coffee order?

Just a cappuccino

Find out more about the Canberra Environment Centre.