Page 31 - RealDirtENG2020

DID YOU KNOW?
In Nunavut, the cost of groceries can be three times the Canadian average, with some items costing up to ten times more. The Arctic Research Foundation has set up “grow pods” powered by wind and sun to grow fresh vegetables in the village of Gjoa Haven67.
Food insecurity
Even though Canadian food in general is relatively inexpensive compared to other countries around the world, there are still many Canadians who struggle with affordability and accessibility—an issue called “food insecurity”. “Food deserts” are urban neighbourhoods, or even rural areas, where residents have little or no access to stores and restaurants that provide healthy, affordable foods, and where they may be forced to rely more frequently on convenience stores or fast food outlets66.
In northern Canada in particular, fresh food is scarce, and the high cost of transporting food into those regions makes many products, particularly healthy food choices, very expensive.
QUICK
FACT
The Global Seed Vault on a remote island in northern Norway is home to almost one million samples of food crop seeds, so we can preserve plant life through crises like war and climate change68. It’s a bit like storing your photos in the cloud or on a backup hard drive, so you’ll still have them if you lose your phone!
NordGen
Career Pro le
Container Farm
ColdAcre
In the far north of Canada where the climate isn’t conducive to growing most crops, especially year round, ColdAcre Food Systems specializes in indoor all-season food production in the Yukon. They grow, harvest, and sell more than 30 varieties of leafy green vegetables, microgreens, edible owers, herbs and mushrooms all year long. Since opening its second shipping container-style growing facility, ColdAcre provides weekly fresh-harvest products for retail, restaurants, and subscription box clients and are already planning expansion for 2021. “There is an enhanced interest and focus in northern markets around locally grown food,” said Carl Burgess, CEO of ColdAcre.
They also build customized growing systems and offer training to Northern communities and businesses seeking food security options and opportunities, including residential and commercial clients. “The technology changes quickly and soon these advances will help people to grow a broader array of food at a smaller scales. ColdAcre wants to help set families and communities up for success.” said Burgess. He also explained that young people are very interested in the technology and predicts that they will be a driving force behind indoor local food production in the future. It’s harvesting in the north for the north.
Photo courtesy of GBP Creative/Gary Bremner
Chapter 5: Food security, eating local 31 and the cost of food
Milestone: In 2020, the Cherokee Nation became the rst North American Indigenous tribe to donate heirloom seeds to the vault, including a sacred corn used in cultural events69.
Foodbanks serving up food security70
There’s hunger and need even in a country as wealthy as Canada. Even before the COVID-19 pandemic hit, Canadians were making about 1.1 million visits per month to food banks. A variety of circumstances can lead to food insecurity, including unemployment. But even the number of full and part-time workers who require access to foodbanks is growing, with one in eight people who access these services being employed.
Farmers step up
About 40 per cent of food distributed by Canadian food banks is fresh, like milk, eggs, meat, and produce. A lot of that food is donated by Canadian farmers. Many provincial and national farm organizations have regular food bank donation programs, including grain, fruit, vegetable, egg, dairy, pork, beef, turkey and chicken farmers.