Growing Northern Ontario’s Local Food System
Posted: January 15, 2014
Categories: Food in the News / GoodFoodBites / Local Procurement / News from Sustain Members
Photo provided by Belluz Farms for their featured Sustain Ontario Member Profile.
With financial support from the Province of Ontario, the Greenbelt Fund announced three grants last week that will enable the growth of fresh and healthy local food options for broader public sector institutions in Thunder Bay. The grantees have been awarded a combined value of $210,000 to implement initiatives designed to make long-term impacts on local food accessibility that will contribute to the expansion and enrichment of the northern Ontario food system.
Funding will support the City of Thunder Bay’s Strengthening Connections Between Local Food, Public Daycares, and Long-Term Care Facilities (awarded $80,000) project in the development of a local food procurement model and a series of educational events intended to help regional and municipal facilities, such as day cares, long-term care homes and post-secondary institutions, serve more local food.
Sustain Ontario member, Belluz Farms, will create Superior Seasons Packaging and Storage Facility (awarded $85,000) to fill a processing niche for small to medium local farmers. Implementing a point-of-origin traceability system, the sustainable farmers at Belluz will work with producers and suppliers to meet local demand.
LA Quality Foods, in collaboration with Rainy River Regional Abattoir and the Thunder Bay Cattlemen’s Association, will develop a Local Beef Aggregation and Traceability System (awarded $45.000) that will enable institutions to track the origin of individual cuts of meat.
Visit Ontariofresh.ca for more information about the Greenbelt Fund including more details about this announcement and photos from the event.