SUPPORT RESILIENT AND EQUITABLE FOOD SYSTEMS

HELP BUILD BETTER FOOD SYSTEMS FOR OUR PLANET, OUR PEOPLE, AND A NEW GENERATION OF FARMERS.

Farmers are at the foundation of a resilient, diverse food system — from where food is grown, to how it is distributed. Today there is a groundswell of young people committed to sustainability and local food production. Through access to land, and by growing food using ecological methods, food production can regenerate air, water, soil and biodiversity, reduce greenhouse gas emissions, and conserve healthy forests, wetlands and waterways.

Yet, securing access to land is a major barrier to new farmers. In the next few years, half of Canada’s farmers will retire. The majority have no succession plan in place and their farms are at risk of falling into the hands of agribusiness or developers for other uses, threatening both our food security and our environment.

CREATE MORE EQUITABLE FOOD SYSTEMS

Poverty, racism, and other forms of oppression create barriers that prevent equitable access to food and restrict participation in the food system. Much of Canada’s food is grown by Black and racialized people, and Indigenous and Black households are more likely to be food-insecure than similar white households. Yet when it comes to creating food policy, these groups are rarely at the decision-making table. These issues demand systemic solutions, starting with access to land, linking farmers and eaters, and supporting community food programs.

We must start seeing hunger, farming practices and land access, government policy, and racial justice as interconnected pieces of a broken system. By supporting leaders and initiatives making change on the ground — farming, organizing, building community — we’ll see a growing movement for food justice.

—Ama, Natasha, and Lauren, co-curators

JOIN THE MOVEMENT: A RESILIENT FUTURE OF FOOD

ABOUT the Land and Food Justice Fund

Support the leading organizations that are improving access to land and promoting ecological food systems. The Land and Food Justice Fund includes more than 40 charities from across Canada that are substantially focused on land access, ecological food systems, and food justice.

The charities in this fund are connecting organizations, farmers, and community leaders across Canada to build resilient, equitable food systems. Organizations in this fund support access to healthy and culturally appropriate food, while preserving the ecological and cultural heritage of the land, enhancing health and well-being, and stimulating the local economy. They are working towards food sovereignty and food justice in Canada and addressing the underlying structural issues that lead to land and food insecurity.

The list of charities was curated by issue experts working in the areas of land access and food justice. To see the current list of charities included in this Fund, click here.