By Margaret Zafiriou This past year has been one for the books – such a lot has changed from a year ago. These dramatic changes have had repercussions for Ontario consumers, the economy, and for the province’s agriculture and agri-food sector. Record high population growth, lack of housing affordability and food security concerns, on top... Read More
Category: Local Food
A new digital platform is aiming to bring the farmers’ market experience online, connecting local producers directly with consumers in a more streamlined way. Speaking with RealAgriculture, Whitney Shaw of Arvo explains the idea was born out of frustration with the current patchwork of online marketplaces. “Often for them right now it’s looking on Kijiji,... Read More
With supply chains under pressure and food insecurity growing, Calgary’s Food Resilience Program aims to strengthen local access to food and reduce vulnerability in times of disruption. Kristi Peters and Syma Habib of the City of Calgary joined RealAgriculture’s Amber Bell at the GLOBE Food Leadership Summit in Calgary, Alta., to discuss how the city... Read More
Developed in partnership with the Canadian Centre for Food Integrity and food industry leaders nationwide, today marks the launch of Canada’s Food System: Our Food. Our Future. This national initiative aims to connect Canadians to the food system, raising the profile of the complex, high-performing, and often invisible network that delivers food to Canadian tables.... Read More
For many students across Canada, a farm is something they’ve only read about—but a long-running virtual tour aims to change that. Ag in the Classroom Canada (AITC-C) has launched season five of The Great Canadian Farm Tour, a bilingual, online program that gives kindergarten to Grade 6 students live access to farms from coast to... Read More
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
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