{"id":45113,"date":"2018-08-31T13:31:41","date_gmt":"2018-08-31T20:31:41","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/world.edu\/?p=45113"},"modified":"2018-08-31T13:31:41","modified_gmt":"2018-08-31T20:31:41","slug":"farm-to-school-movement-takes-root-in-canada","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/world.edu\/farm-to-school-movement-takes-root-in-canada\/","title":{"rendered":"\u2018Farm-to-school\u2019 movement takes root in Canada"},"content":{"rendered":"

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\nA\u00a0\u201cfarm-to-school\u201d movement<\/a>\u00a0is growing fast across Canada.<\/p>\n

More than 40,000 students were eating local fruits and vegetables at 150 Ontario schools during 2017-18, via the\u00a0Tasty Ontario Tuesdays<\/a>\u00a0program.<\/p>\n

Led by the southwest branch of the\u00a0Ontario Student Nutrition Program (OSNP)<\/a>, supported by the Greenbelt Foundation and Foodland Ontario, this program has purchased and delivered over $55,000 of local produce to schools from Ontario farmers.<\/p>\n

Farm-to-school is a long-established phenomenon in the United States. The\u00a0health impacts<\/a>have been well-researched and the economic benefits,\u00a0such as the creation of new jobs<\/a>, have been documented.<\/p>\n

According to the last United States Department of Agriculture\u2019s\u00a0Farm-to-School Census<\/a>, 42,587 schools participated in farm-to-school activities, reaching 23.6 million children and incorporating almost\u00a0$800 million worth of local foods<\/a>.<\/p>\n

As a former OSNP practitioner and\u00a0Arrell Food Scholar<\/a>\u00a0at the University of Guelph, I am researching the economic impact of the spread of these programs throughout Ontario, with my PhD adviser\u00a0John Smithers<\/a>. Our research will examine the farm-to-school phenomenon as an agri-food value chain and assess how these programs might evolve to expand the scope and sustainability of local food systems in Ontario.<\/p>\n

Little attention has been paid to this \u201cfarm\u201d side of the farm-to-school equation, or how small and medium-sized farmers can benefit from this rapidly expanding market and adjust their practices to meet the needs of schools.<\/p>\n

Fostering food literacy<\/strong><\/h4>\n

\u201cFarm-to-school\u201d in Canada includes preschool to campus initiatives, all of which strive to put more healthy, local food on the minds and plates of students.<\/p>\n

While models and activities are unique to each school and community, common to all are their efforts to: bring healthy, local food into schools; provide students with hands-on learning opportunities that foster food literacy; strengthen local food systems and enhance community connectedness.<\/p>\n

Tasty Ontario Tuesdays, for example, provides a weekly seasonal feature and educational materials for schools to incorporate into student nutrition programs.<\/p>\n