Food Security Resources, Publications and Educational Materials
A selection of useful food security resources is grouped below under the following topic areas:
Islands Trust Reports and Plans
Food Security Resources
Food Security Publications
Food Security Education Materials
Food Security Media Articles
Islands Trust Reports and Plans
This report is about planning tools and actions that can be used to strengthen our local food system. It provides an overview of food system planning, relevant legislation, local challenges, opportunities and policy tools which can guide food security in land use policy and community development.
This Area Farm Plan resulted from a collaborative area farm planning process between the Salt Spring Island Farmers Institute, and the Island Natural Growers in collaboration with the BC Ministry of Agriculture and the Islands Trust. One of the purposes of the Area Farm Plan was to help inform the Salt Spring Island Official Community Plan review process. In May 2007, the Steering Committee submitted a series of policy proposals to the OCP review process.
Food Security Resources
The Food Security Gateway is an excellent “one stop” resource for food security practitioners and others in British Columbia who want to make “healthy eating the easy choice” and build food-secure communities. The Gateway is meant to inform and link people to projects, initiatives and organizations in BC as well as publications, tools, guides, news and events.
Food Secure Canada provides this “one-stop shop” for identifying and accessing resources to support food security work in Canada. It is intended to use used to provide credible, practical, accessible information that will be of use to community activists, academics, policy makers, farmers and anyone interested in food security.
The BC Agriculture and Food Climate Action Initiative website provides information for BC's agricultural producers and food processors about how climate change is impacting the sector and the challenges and opportunities associated with taking action. It also provides information about on-farm GHG management techniques, clean energy production, energy efficiency, and an introduction to on-farm offset generation and adaptation.
Food Security Publications
This 2008 resource guide was designed by the Provincial Health Authority to assist local governments promote food security and support food systems in BC. It showcases a sample of the wide range of innovative projects being developed or supported by local governments across the province. It includes examples that are meant to pique your curiosity and inspire you to action, whether your community is just starting out or well on its way to creating a strong and healthy food system.
A 2009 guide on how local governments can support Community Gardens.
This report provides an introduction to community gardens and offers some background information designed to help local governments understand the benefits and challenges of community gardens. It also provides some practical tools and templates that can be used or adapted by local governments.
This 2009 report results from a study to identify key operational strategies practiced by existing farms that operate within a community farm framework in BC, and to identify challenges for the implementation of new community farms. The report was produced as a result of a collaborative effort between FarmFolk,/CityFolk, The Land Conservancy of BC, and Simon Fraser University.
Produced by West Coast Environmental Law, this 2005 publication includes suggestions for zoning bylaws and case studies of agriculture supportive zoning bylaws.
This study presents information about the amount and types of commercial produce production on Salt Spring Island. It also provides information about the resources that are used to produce local food. And, finally, it provides preliminary information about assessing the amount of food production in home gardens. The study was sponsored by the Islands Trust in collaboration with the Salt Spring Island Agricultural Alliance, and was conducted between January and March 2010.
The report, produced by the Island Natural Growers represents the results of an eight-month 2005 commercial produce agriculture study on Salt Spring Island. The report discusses the key findings and recommends immediate to longer-term actions designed to strengthen and support produce agriculture on Salt Spring. Funding for this report was provided by the Islands Agri-Food Initiative, the Capital Regional District and the Islands Trust.
Prepared by the Salt Spring Island Community Services in 2006, this document is one of a number of initiatives that set the stage for the Area Farm Plan.
This 2010 report provides the results of the livestock production survey conducted in June and July 2009 on Salt Spring Island. Livestock includes: 1) animals sheep, cattle, pigs, goats; and 2) poultry chickens, turkeys, geese and ducks.
Food Security Education Materials
A six minute animated film made by Vancouver, BC native Jody Kramer. It features Tina Biello, who cooks dinner for her family while explaining where each of the Vancouver Island ingredients came from. Kramer made the film for the 100 Mile Diet Society in Vancouver.
Food Security Media Articles
The BC Food Security Gateway’s Food Security News page is a useful source of up-to-date food security news. Selected Islands Trust Area food security related news stories are also listed below:
Lambs to Slaughter: Salt Spring Island lamb is legendary and has never been more threatened. The Tyee, March 11, 2010.
Could SSI become the nut capital of Canada?, Gulf Islands Driftwood, March 10, 2010.
Island bee colonies decimated. Nanaimo Daily News, February 19, 2010
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