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Food Insider

Canada's National Observer's section on food regulation at the federal and provincial levels. We also cover what we eat, how we grow it, restaurants, food delivery systems, the impact of food on climate change, culture and how we live. And more delicious topics.

 

260 Articles

What will it mean for food industry workers if there's another lockdown?

Lia Moody is worried. Worried about layoffs. Earlier this month, faced with soaring cases of COVID-19, B.C. provincial health officer Dr. Bonnie Henry mandated the closure of nightclubs and banquet halls, and put additional restrictions on restaurants and bars. It’s the latest hit to an industry still battered by the pandemic — and winter is coming.

British Columbians want local meat. Proposed abattoir rule changes might help that

The path from pasture to plate for B.C.’s 22 million farm animals might soon get easier. Earlier this month, the provincial Ministry of Agriculture released an intentions paper outlining proposed changes to slaughter and meat processing regulations. It’s the latest step in a process to make local meat more available — and increase British Columbians’ food security.

Canada's seed system is complicated. Does it need an update?

“Farmers are the ultimate stakeholders when it comes to food systems,” Aabir Dey said. “They assume virtually all the risk when it comes to putting food on our table. They do the majority of the work. They’re the most impacted by all kinds of decisions related to agriculture. To exclude them from all of the essential production processes of agriculture just doesn’t make sense.”

'I just hope everything doesn't start shutting down again'

Paul Natrall misses balmy, busy, bustling evenings serving bannock at summer festivals. That's been the norm for the Squamish Nation chef and food truck owner who specializes in Indigenous fusion cuisine. Since he opened his business in 2017, Natrall — better known as “Mr. Bannock” — has been a popular fixture at festivals and other gatherings across B.C.’s Lower Mainland.

Canadian seed growers vote against corporate merger — for now

Last Thursday, Terry Boehm breathed a sigh of relief. The Canadian Seed Growers' Association, which represents 3,500 seed growers across Canada, voted against a proposed merger with four other seed industry organizations. It was a decision Boehm, a farmer and Saskatchewan representative for the National Farmers Union, hopes will protect farmers' independence — and the integrity of Canada’s farms.

Steers, rams, and hogs: B.C.’s meat industry, by the numbers

In British Columbia, livestock is controversial. Especially killing livestock. The problem is hitting small-scale meat farmers particularly hard, Julia Smith, president of the Small-Scale Meat Producers Association and a rancher, said. They’re pinched between a regulatory maze that’s decimated both local abattoirs and the small livestock farms — and skyrocketing demand for local meat.

B.C. is updating its abattoir rules, but some advocates are hungry for more

Julia Smith is lucky. Her pigs have a date with the butcher. That was far from guaranteed, says the Merritt, B.C. rancher and president of the Small-Scale Meat Producers Association. B.C. abattoirs and butcher shops are in short supply, Smith explained, limiting the availability of local meat in the province — and recently announced changes to provincial abattoir laws might not do much.

Feds extend deadline, eligibility for COVID-19 business credit. That's good for farmers, advocates say

Even in a pandemic, seeds germinate, livestock grow — and farmers keep working. That rhythm, vital to Canada’s food supply and rural economies, belies the uncertainty farmers face from bad weather, markets — and now, COVID-19. It’s an uncertainty advocates hope will ease with changes to the Canada Emergency Business Account announced Monday.