For all children and youth in Ontario to have healthy food environments, where they experience equal access to healthy and sustainably produced food and where food literacy is supported through a range of educational and hands-on activities.
To bring together individuals and groups in Ontario that are connecting children and youth with healthy food systems. The network seeks to better enable these champions to share resources, ideas, and experience, work together on advocacy, and facilitate efforts across the province to get children and youth eating, growing, cooking, celebrating, and learning about healthy, local and sustainably produced food.
Such champions may include not-for-profit organizations, public health units, farmers, teachers, administrators, food service employees, and many others.
For many years educators, parents, and organizations across Ontario have undertaken important work to improve food environments for children and youth. Many others have wanted to initiate such efforts but have lacked the resources or the expertise.
The Ontario Edible Education Network developed out of the need for better coordination, information sharing, and advocacy among these individuals and groups to:
More about the need for this network.
As a network, we believe in:
That all children and youth:
Which will enable them to make smart healthy choices, and carry these learned skills through life.
The Ontario Edible Education Network is governed by three leadership bodies: the Steering Committee, the Advisory, and the Network Chair.
“We can now say that Canada is joining the other G7 countries, and most countries in the world, in recognizing the importance of school food programs,” shared Sustain’s Carolyn Webb, who supports the national coordination of the Coalition for Healthy School Food, yesterday in Ottawa. Sustain Ontario joins the Coalition for Healthy School Food—alongside several […]
read moreThis event, held March 26, 2024, brought together experienced school food program providers from across Ontario for a knowledge-sharing event hosted by the Ontario Chapter of the Coalition for Healthy School Food (chaired by Sustain Ontario). This event was our second school food financing webinar. Check out the recording here. The event began with an […]
read moreFarm to Cafeteria Canada, in partnership with Indigenous and non-Indigenous organizations including Sustain Ontario, is looking for around 10 community members from across Canada to join its Circle of Advisors to inform its Nourishing Indigenous Food and Foodways in Schools initiative. The partnership is looking for Advisors who can bring experience and/or interest in supporting […]
read moreIn partnership with the Whole Kids Foundation, Farm to Cafeteria Canada is pleased to announce that they are launching their 5th cycle of the Farm to School Canada Grants program! Delivered directly to schools, the grants are valued at up to $10,000 each and are designed to bring more healthy, local foods into school communities. They […]
read moreFarm to Cafeteria Canada has announced the first recipients of its new Dig In Seed Grants, with 9 grants to Ontario schools! These flexible grants, delivered in partnership with the Schad Foundation, provide a total of $75,000 directly to 27 schools across 9 provinces and 1 territory allowing them to jumpstart their farm and local […]
read moreFarm to Cafeteria Canada, in partnership with Farm to School BC, is hosting a 2-part webinar series aimed at helping schools make the most of hydroponics and other types of indoor growing systems. This series will feature guest speakers from schools who will share their first-hand learning experiences from getting started to the impacts their […]
read moreOn October 31, 2023, the Government of Canada released the What We Heard Report on the National School Food Policy Engagements. The public consultations that informed the report took place nearly a year ago and stakeholders across the country have been waiting to learn about the report’s findings. The What We Heard Report makes it […]
read moreOn September 30th, Sustain Ontario’s Carolyn Webb was featured on the Food for the Future podcast to speak about the need for a national school food program. Earlier in the month the show also featured Alicia Martin, PhD student at Guelph University and co-author of Sustain Ontario’s policy brief to inform Bill 216 – Food […]
read moreOn October 5, 2023, the Ontario government announced that it will provide an additional $5 million to the Student Nutrition Program (SNP) and First Nations Student Nutrition Program (FNSNP). This announcement was made by Minister of Children, Communities and Social Services Michael Parsa in recognition of the need to help more children and youth access […]
read moreThe Coalition for Healthy School Food has initiated a House of Commons Petition asking the federal government to implement and fund a National School Food Program. Please sign the petition before October 20th! Please share the petition in your newsletters, on social media, and circulate the digital brochure. Together, we can improve the health and […]
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