Government policies across the country dealing with all aspects of food – from production to consumption – are uncoordinated and lack oversight, one expert says, leading to a broken food system in Canada.
In her paper, Menu 2020: Ten Good Food Ideas for Ontario, Lauren Baker, an advocate for healthy food and sustainable agriculture, argues that a number of groups affecting or affected by food policy are presently left out of the discussion. And many that are included, she said, often don't communicate with one another. The report is one of five food policy papers released Tuesday by the Metcalf Foundation, which funds research in all areas of community and social services.
The Baker paper argues that a “good food gap” exists between struggling farmers, and consumers who want healthy food. Ms. Baker said the reason for this gap is a lack of oversight and co-ordination in the creation of food policy. Some of the groups not currently at the table during discussions, she said, may not even realize they should be. Environmental groups, social services and economic-development groups are just some of the other organizations who have a stake in food policy.
“Previously, we’ve looked at issues separately,” Ms. Baker said. “I’m proposing that we can’t find a solution to anything unless we bring the other issues together.”
Ms. Baker’s ideas are focused on Ontario, though she said provinces across the country are facing similar issues.
Rod MacRae, the author of another Metcalf paper, would like to see a national food policy that includes all the different groups from all levels of government – everyone from city planning officers to Health Canada – working together.
But some farmers have doubts. Rhonda Driediger, owner of Driediger Farms in Langley, B.C., said the last thing farmers need are more policies. “If you’re in agriculture, you’re automatically looking for better ways of farming,” she said. “It happens naturally.”
Ms. Driediger also questioned the paper’s emphasis on local, saying that the export-oriented B.C. blueberry industry produces about 80 million berries a year. “We only have so many people in B.C.,” she said. “Are you asking them to eat them all?”
But Ms. Baker said her ideas are not meant to add regulation, but rather to facilitate more discussion. She also said that though her paper emphasizes local, she’s more interested in having a balance between local and export, rather than the present focus on export.
Lauren Baker’s 10 ideas for addressing the “good food gap:”
Idea 1
Support local producers
The gap: Farmers are having a hard time making a living. Competition from cheap imports is just one problem they face. They’re also receiving a smaller share for each retail dollar from large grocers, and struggling with a lack of support from governments, especially when it comes to transitioning to sustainable practices.
Baker’s solution: Governments could provide support to local farmers by ensuring they get a floor price for their products, and receive incentives for using sustainable practices. Policies could also be created to ensure as strong a focus on local markets as on export markets.
Idea 2
New and alternative farmers
The gap: The number of farmers is on the decline, and new farmers are finding it difficult to establish themselves. Meanwhile, non-conventional growers, such as organic farmers, have an even harder time finding space for themselves among large-scale farms.
Baker’s solution: Policy makers, supply-management organizations and new producers need to begin a discussion to find ways to simultaneously encourage innovation in the field, while keeping existing supply-management systems for producers who need them.
Idea 3
Environmental stewards
The gap: Farmers are some of the largest landholders across the country, with their land providing habitat for countless species, and space for biodiversity to thrive. Yet they’re rarely seen or treated as environmental stewards.
