A federal program to get food to those who need it, using stockpiles of perishables created by the COVID-19-related shutdown of the dining sector, is now taking applications. The $50 million Surplus Food Rescue Program — which Prime Minister Justin Trudeau telegraphed in a funding announcement May 5 — will take applications from “organizations addressing […] Read more
Federal surplus food program now taking applications
Qualified NGOs sought to move, distribute perishables to 'populations in need'
Details on federal food surplus program expected in ‘days’
Ottawa already at work with businesses, minister says
Ottawa — Detailed plans of the federal government’s food buyback program are expected soon, according to Agriculture Minister Marie-Claude Bibeau. Ottawa tabbed $50 million of its COVID-19 response funds for agriculture to buy surplus food from farmers and redistribute it to communities in need. The challenge Bibeau and her federal colleagues are faced with is […] Read more
4-H online auctions to help charities and food banks
Reading Time: < 1 minute Albertans are invited to support local charities, and uplift 4-H members as they complete their livestock projects in new online ways. From now through June 30, there will be 77 sales where 4-H members will be showcasing and offering steers, lambs, hogs and/or goats for purchase. There are 24 charity projects — 22 steers and two […] Read more
Big support seen for 2019 food bank campaign
Reading Time: < 1 minute Enough food was donated during Farm Credit Canada’s Drive Away Hunger campaign to provide more than 16 million meals for rural food banks. During the campaign, held in October and now in its 16th year, FCC teams drive tractors through various communities to collect food and donations. “The annual food drive goes a long way […] Read more
The need keeps growing for rural Alberta food banks
Reading Time: 3 minutes Times have been tough in Alberta, and that’s been obvious to volunteers at the Mayerthorpe Food Bank. There are just over 500 homes in the town but in many, it’s a struggle to put food on the table. “We serve about an average of 14 families a week,” said Tammy-Lee Gilroy, the food bank’s administrator. […] Read more
When it comes to food waste, the system is broken
An astonishing amount of food spoils or is thrown out — it’s time to take action
Reading Time: 3 minutes Between my home and the Victoria airport is a big sign urging “Let’s reduce food waste.” If you are reading this column from your farm table, you may already be an expert at the preservation of food and the use of leftovers. Typically, we eat all we grow on the farm. In the store however, […] Read more
Drive Away Hunger food drive surpasses target
Reading Time: < 1 minute Farm Credit Canada’s annual Drive Away Hunger initiative has provided more than 9.5 million meals for food banks and feeding programs nationwide. To mark the 15th anniversary of the program, teams drove tractors through various communities to collect food and donations for 15 days this fall. The effort in Alberta generated more than 570,000 meals. […] Read more
We have the ability to do something about food waste
Reading Time: 4 minutes Lois Schultz of Wetaskiwin won top honours in the 2017 Canadian Young Speakers for Agriculture Competition at the Royal Agricultural Winter Fair in Toronto last month. Here is her prizewinning speech. Seven hundred and fifty million is a huge number. But it seems even more gigantic when you discover that it represents the number of […] Read more
Food insecurity is not just a Third World problem
The situation in a country like Sudan is much more dire, but there are parallels to our own country
Reading Time: 3 minutes The United Nations has developed 17 sustainable development goals. The second one is “zero hunger.” This includes a mandate to end not only hunger but poverty everywhere and to achieve food security, improve nutrition, and promote sustainable agriculture. I would like to focus on food security in this column. Food security was defined at the […] Read more
Annual Drive Away Hunger campaign now underway
Reading Time: < 1 minute Camrose and Lloydminster are two of the stops on Farm Credit Canada’s Drive Away Hunger tractor tour this year. The Drive Away Hunger campaign collects food and cash donations for food banks and hunger programs. Beginning Oct. 10, tractors pulling trailers will visit communities in five provinces to collect donations, which can also be made […] Read more
Cyber-Savvy Farmer
