FoodShare Toronto is one of more than 30 projects from communities across Ontario to receive part of a $3 million grant from the provincial government’s Local Food Fund.
FoodShare was the recipient of $203,000, which will go toward marketing and expanding its Good Food purchasing and distribution program in Toronto while helping other communities in Ontario start or expand their own local food distribution systems.
"We’re delighted to be one of the recipients of the first-ever food fund grant," said Debbie Field, FoodShare Toronto executive director. "We’re the first jurisdiction in the world to proclaim a local food act committed to the promoting and educating of local food."
FoodShare, a non-profit organization, works with communities and schools to deliver healthy food and food education. Its philosophy is everyone deserves access to affordable and high-quality, fresh food.
FoodShare’s grant money will go towards such projects as ‘The Great Big Crunch,’ an initiative that celebrates healthy snacking while highlighting the availability of local produce year-round through activities like cooking and tasting, nutrition, soil and composting, sustainability and community development and the like.
The 2015 Great Big Crunch will take place March 6 in schools at 2:30 p.m. and will culminate in a massive, synchronized bite into a crunchy apple to celebrate.
"We use this great little apple grown by the Norfolk Food Growers’ Association. They partner with us because they help us get their apples into schools," Field said.
The apples, explained Field, are too small to sell at grocery stores; they’re either shipped to England or made into juice.
The recipients of the grant also included ChocoSol on St. Clair Avenue West, near Dufferin Street and Greenest City in Parkdale.
Ontario’s Local Food Fund supports innovative and local food projects that increase demand and sales of the province’s food while stimulating new investment, strengthening its agri-food sector and celebrating local food.
Minister of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs Jeff Leal called the Local Food Fund recipients "pivotal to the success of our province’s agri-food industry."
"When we invest in local food projects we not only support innovation and grow our economy, we strengthen the connection between farmers and consumers," Leal said in a statement.
The Local Food Fund is part of the government’s broader local food strategy to promote the good things that are grown, harvested and made across the province. Ontario’s agri-food sector contributes more than $34 billion to the province’s economy and supports more than 760,000 jobs.
Anyone can read Conversations, but to contribute, you should be a registered Torstar account holder. If you do not yet have a Torstar account, you can create one now (it is free).
To join the conversation set a first and last name in your user profile.
Sign in or register for free to join the Conversation