Move over, Greenbelt, the Foodbelt has entered the chat. Ontario is losing farmland at an alarming rate of about 319 acres a day, according to provincial data. That’s equivalent to losing an area the size of Kingston every year, says Mike Schreiner, leader of the Ontario Green Party and MPP for Guelph. Losing farmland risks... Read More
Category: Local Food
By Kevin Howe, a fifth-generation fruit and vegetable farmer in Elgin County, Ont. Our family has been farming strawberries in Elgin County, Ontario since 1913 — over 110 years on the same land rotation. To our knowledge, we are the longest generational strawberry farm in the province. That kind of longevity doesn’t come from doing... Read More
With the Canadian Grocery Sector Code of Conduct complete, attention now turns to the implementation and education around what the code will and won't provide for industry players. The code was finalized last year and will come into force in June 2025. That means there needs to be a body that overseas the code and... Read More
In this episode of The Truth About Ag, co-hosts Kristjan Hebert and Evan Shout sit down with Lisa Ashton, agriculture policy lead on RBC’s Climate Action Institute Team, to dive into the big questions shaping Canadian agriculture. Ashton shares insights from RBC’s latest reports, including the Food First Report, breaking down why RBC is investing... Read More
Canadians have made it clear in recent days that they are looking to purchase Canadian-made products and support Canadian businesses. To this end, the Canadian Food Inspection Agency (CFIA) is emphasizing the importance of accurate "Product of Canada" and "Made in Canada" labels on food products. After seeing an increase in complaints related to origin... Read More
Submitted by Penny Eaton, stakeholder relations for Canadian Food Focus Dorothy Long, managing director of Canadian Food Focus, says we need to remember that food is the part of agriculture that consumers care most about. For a long time, the ag industry has been unable to meaningfully reach consumers because we concentrate too much about... Read More
As Thanksgiving approaches, many students across the country will be making plans to head home for family celebrations. The ones that are unable to make it home though, may be looking at this upcoming holiday with a sense of impending loneliness. This fall, Think Turkey, a partnership between Turkey Farmers of Canada and the Canadian... Read More
Sarah Strautman didn't just have to navigate learning to parent; her motherhood journey included having to figure out how to nourish her kids who had food sensitivities. What started as finding safe foods for her kids to eat, ended up leading her on a whole-food journey, from field to plate and features some neat products,... Read More
Lawrence MacAulay, Minister of Agriculture and Agri-Food, announced the launch of the new School Food Infrastructure Fund (SFIF) and the next phase of the Local Food Infrastructure Fund (LFIF) this week. As part of the $62.9-million announcement in Budget 2024, Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada will deliver these two programs aimed at supporting community-based not-for-profit organizations... Read More
Thornloe Cheese may have a new lease on life, after its announced closure in October 2023. Owner Gay Lea Foods has announced the plant is set to be purchased by Triple “A” Cheese, a Mississauga, Ontario-based cheesemaker. The co-operative says it has entered into a letter of intent with Triple "A" Cheese, so the deal... Read More