Hunger a top health issue says top doc

The Academy:
Jan. 24th, 2012 – Food Share Field Trip Pictures

The Food and Nutrition class spent an afternoon at FoodShare a non-profit community organization whose vision is Good Healthy Food for All.

Day #16: Blue Monday and The Good Food Box
MadameHeringer.com | 16 January 2012.

I almost forgot about it, but today is Blue Monday. It seems that most of us is dealing with unpaid Christmas bills, nasty weather and failed New Year's resolutions on this third Monday of January, which makes it the unhappiest day of the year. Not for me though!

12 to watch in 2012: Joshna Maharaj

Theresa Boyle | Toronto Star |January 09, 2012

Though Joshna Maharaj is not a health professional, she works in a hospital and gives out lots of medicine.

A chef by training, she works with the most basic kind of medicine: food. An activist in the local food movement, Maharaj is pioneering the inclusion of fresher and healthier meal options in hospitals.

Exotic vegetables c

ADVANCE TICKETS AVAILABLE FOR RECIPE FOR CHANGE

Sheryl Kirby | Word of Mouth | Toronto.com | January 05, 2012

My very favourite food event last year was the splendidly-organized Recipe for Change, a fundraiser to benefit FoodShare and its many programs. Taking place again this year on Thursday, March 1 at the north St. Lawrence Market, the event is a tasting adventure featuring more than 25 Toronto chefs, plus wineries and breweries.

Exotic vegetables coming soon from a farmer near you

Great coverage of the World Crops Project and a collaboration with Vineland Research! FoodShare's Zahra Parvinian is active on the steering committee and we were so proud to distribute some of the first crops grown through our Good Food Boxes this past summer.

By RITA TRICHUR | Globe and Mail |January 5, 2012

Farmers see changing demographics as a boon as they try their hand at growing foreign produce to tap into the growing exotic vegetable market

Farmer Jason Verkaik sees a business case for diversity in the vegetable patch.

GUEST BLOGGER GAGA MAKES RED LENTIL AND SPINACH SOUP

Written by Ceri Marsh | Sweet Potato Chronicles | January 6th, 2012

I love that our first guest post of the year wasn't written by a parent but a grandparent. Or, more accurately, a Gaga. This Gaga is Alvin Rebick, grandfather to two of my kids' classmates, Rosie and Milo, and our paths often cross at pick up time while we're both cajoling or outright wrestling kids into snowsuits. As well as having far more patience than I'll ever have (I'll have to ask my friend Terra, his daughter, if he was such a saint when she was growing up!), he's also got a lot more experience in the kitchen.

FED #109: The Inventionator & The Buildificationator (Justin Nadeau & James Davis)

Porkosity | SUNDAY, DECEMBER 18, 2011

Status: FED
· Pappa al pomodoro
· Zucchini & Yogurt
· Kale + Arugula + Yuzu Dressing + Pecorino
· Ptitm & Cheese
· Brigitte is bringing cookies

FED: Only veggies on the menu for food sharers

Corey Mintz | December 16, 2011 | Toronto Star

Having been bitten by a gamma-radiated pig, one of my super powers is the ability to sniff out an uncommitted vegetarian.

See if your swiney sense is set off by this email from dinner guest Justin Nadeau.

"Unfortunately I recently stopped eating meat," writes Nadeau. "Other than meat, I will eat anything."

Nutrition program at Sacred Heart school is on chopping block

MIKE ADLER | December 16, 2011 | InsideToronto.com

For some students at Malvern's Sacred Heart Catholic School, "when the lunch bell rings, there's no lunch," says Debbie Lachmansingh.

Many arrive having had no breakfast, the parent council chairperson said Thursday, Dec. 15, as she watched volunteers of the school's Student Nutrition Program put together a morning meal of fruit salad and grilled cheese sandwiches.

And yet, $7,000 for the program and a like amount for another nearby school, St. Columba Catholic School, is slated to be cut from the City of Toronto budget.

Chopping-block talk: school nutrition programs

BY: STEPHEN SPENCER DAVIS | MON DEC 12, 2011 | The GRID

The proposed 2012 budget stands to affect anyone who swims in Toronto's pools, relies on its homeless shelters or frequents its theatres. In the lead-up to council debate in January, we're speaking to those organizations who could be significantly impacted by the budget—and what that means for Torontonians. Today, we speak to Sandra Best, director of Toronto Foundation for Student Success, fresh off a (what proved to be successful) deputation to the city's budget committee.

Whose responsibility is it to feed the city's children?

Jayme Poisson | December 08, 2011 | Toronto Star

When Doug Ford cut a cheque for $1,000 to help a school nutrition program in his ward, the obvious question was: What about the other 57 programs that could be scrapped?

Budget plans raise the spectre of hungry kids

Louise Brown | December 07, 2011 | Toronto Star

A hot lunch program launched in March at an east-end school — where some children used to bring Ziploc bags of cookies as their entire midday meal — may have to close if Toronto City Council agrees to cut funding to nutrition programs by 10 per cent.

Debbie Field's deputation on Toronto Budget Cuts

The executive director of FoodShare brought a letter written on construction paper. "Dear councillor, Please do not take away our snack program because some people may be sleepy when they come to school I know I have but those nutritious snacks do get me up and run(n)ing." It was one of more than 100 kids' letters Field brought along. She noted that the city would, to her knowledge, be the first in Canada ever to cut student nutrition programs.

Doug Ford gives $1,000 to help with nutrition cuts

Robyn Doolittle |December 07, 2011 | Toronto Star

If student nutrition programs take a 10 per cent cut, Councillor Doug Ford offered to pay the difference from his own pocket for a school in his north Etobicoke ward.

FoodShare Toronto's Field to Table: Social enterprise with a mission

SEE CHANGE MAGAZINE EAR TO THE GROUND
BY DEBBIE FIELD ON DECEMBER 05, 2011

For nearly twenty years, FoodShare Toronto has operated Canada's first and arguably largest and most successful social enterprise nonprofit food hub, helping thousands access healthy, affordable, local and sustainably produced food through a variety of revenue generating, subsidized social enterprises.

Toronto plans to bring relief to suburban 'food deserts'

SARAH ELTON |Globe and Mail| Oct. 29, 2011

Once a week, in a neighbourhood of high rises in North York, a van pulls up at a specified time and opens its back doors. The people who live in the towers quickly make their way to the vehicle, where they buy foods such as potatoes and coriander, bananas and carrots before whisking their groceries back to their apartments. Within minutes, the van pulls away, leaving no trace of what just happened.

This great article about the World Crops Project, of which FoodShare is a proud supporter, also profiles our work at Bendale T.I. in partnership with the TDSB to facilitate Canada's first market garden, where students in all subject areas contribute, learning hands-in Food Literacy!

Worldly Veggies Take Root in Scarborough

BY EMILY VAN HALEM |OCTOBER 28, 2011| Torontoist.com

Good things are growing in some unlikely places in Scarborough. Picture a local schoolyard and rooftop where fresh vegetables are being cultivated. But don't just picture lettuce and tomatoes; these east-end gardens are growing much more than that. They are home to a harvest of okra, callaloo, Asian eggplant, and yard-long beans—crops that are more likely to be seen in specialty grocery stores than sprouting up from Southern Ontario soil.

little house on the urban prairie

Posted on October 27, 2011 by patrick

foodshare is another one of the projects that i'd heard a lot about. it like "the stop" is in a repurposed institutional space, in this case a school. much of food shares programing goes on outside of the space. they pack thousands of weekly boxes of fresh fruits and vegetables which are distributed at community centers throughout the city.

Eat-In Ontario! with FoodShare & Fluf

Nathalie Butterfield on October 24, 2011 | Fluf

Fluf lunch bags donated to 500+ students as part of FoodShare's province-wide fall harvest celebration, Eat-in-Ontario!

Big crunch

Thursday was Great Big Crunch Day across southwestern Ontario schools, and Gr. 8 St. Joseph's Catholic School student Martin Wolfe, 13, took that literally with a massive bite of a McIntosh. The healthy snacking initiative, which involved the synchronized crunching of apples in the classroom at 10 a.m., is supported by the Ontario Student Nutrition Program.

MIKE BEITZ The Beacon Herald | October 21, 2011

Weekday Vegetarian: Vegetable Sub

by Kelly Rossiter, Toronto | 10.19.11| Treehugger.com

There is an organization in my very own neighbourhood called FoodShare.

Headspace: Debbie Field, Foodshare

BY LUCA DE FRANCO |OCTOBER 13TH, 2011| SPACINGTORONTO.COM

This regular online series will feature interviews with fascinating and influential urban thinkers, with a focus on discussing how Toronto can become a more engaged, accessible, and sustainable city.

To coincide with the release of our latest issue on food in the city, Spacing has conducted a series of interviews with local "Foodfighters" — individuals who are changing the way city-dwellers think about how food is produced and consumed. First in our series is Debbie Field, the executive director of Canada's largest community food-security organization — Foodshare. Founded 26 years ago to address a series of problems in our local food system, including hunger and a lack of agricultural sustainability, Foodshare now reaches over 100,000 people in Toronto through its network of healthy food distribution, student nutrition, community gardening, and classroom curriculum support programs.

Farm to School Sprouting in Canada

by Cathryn Wellner | October 13, 2011| care2.com

Good ideas have a way of spreading like a healthy virus. October is National Farm to School Month, and although it celebrates U.S. initiatives, Canadian communities are catching this virus too.

That's none too soon. In "School Lunch", a new video from Nourish, Michael Pollan says, "Most school lunch programs in America are a scandal." Canada, on the other hand, has the dubious distinction of being the only G8 country without a national school lunch program.

Globe and Mail's series on school food

School food programs lack unifying vision

By JESSICA LEEDER | October 11, 2011 | Globe and Mail

"Healthy food for all" is the noble sentiment uniting Canada's school food advocates, but the country is nowhere near a cohesive vision for national student nutrition.

Entrepreneurial programs designed to put healthy food in schools are cropping up across the country like never before, connecting farmers to school salad bars in British Columbia, putting culinary students in charge of alternative cafeterias in Ontario and improving grades in high-risk neighbourhoods.

Globe and Mail's series on school food

Farm-to-School program boosts health of students and food economy

By JESSICA LEEDER |October 10, 2011 |Globe and Mail

Integrative B.C. curriculum has won over young palettes to the joys of the salad bar while regenerating community interest in growing fresh produce

Students who line up for lunch at the 50 or so salad bars that have cropped up in British Columbia school cafeterias are in the midst of a big undertaking.

Globe and Mail's series on school food

Feed a student, feed the future

By JESSICA LEEDER|October 9, 2011 | Globe and Mail

A pilot program at Toronto's C.W. Jefferys Collegiate Institute draws a link between nutrition and academic success

When a teen was shot to death in the halls of a Toronto high school in 2007, it sparked a hunger among educators in the troubled neighbourhood for new ways to stem violence and offer a better future to their students.

Instead of putting in metal detectors in the area's schools, they came up with a unique, softer approach to reducing aggression and improving concentration in the classroom: food.

Globe and Mail's series on school food

Teaching food literacy, one school lunch at a time

By JESSICA LEEDER | October 7, 2011 | Globe and Mail

Healthy meal programs are linked to better grades, motivation and graduation rates, with at least one advocate suggesting, 'If we don't change the way kids eat, we're doomed'.

You Say You Want a (Kid's Food) Revolution?

September 29, 2011 | CBC.ca

Food literacy is an important issue - especially in schools, where kids can be learn how to eat healthy, and how to pick better foods, early on in life. On September 30, over 500 school children will head to Queen's Park, the centre of Ontario government, to raise awareness of food literacy and education. The event is organized by FoodShare Toronto, and they're calling it an "Eat-In."

Why Bruce Springsteen Matters

Debbie Field on the Strombo show talking about why Bruce Springsteen matters in honour of his birthday and his support of FoodShare.

The veggie sub designed just for students

Here's a submarine sandwich that every Ontario student should be willing to try and every cafeteria should be willing to make.

By Jennifer Bain | Food Editor |Toronto Star
September 27, 2011

Children's garden cultivates veggies and friendship

It's said many things grow in a garden that were never sown there.

That's certainly true in Malvern, where string beans, Swiss chard, okra and a cornucopia of other veggies are growing alongside blooming friendships, community spirit and a sense of pride.

The seeds of change in this neighbourhood were planted two years ago by a group of kids living in an apartment complex on Blackwell Ave. The garden was established on a piece of land tucked behind the highrise buildings once overgrown with weeds, a tangle of bushes and heaps of litter.

Leslie Ferenc | September 25, 2011 | Toronto Star

Click here to hear the interview>>

CBC Radio Here and Now: School Food Series: Pt 3

Food columnist Sarah Elton presents Part 3 in CBC's series about the people who get good food to public school kids every day across the city. This week, she visited the Good Food Café, run by the Toronto organization FoodShare, where they prove that teens and preteens will eat healthy food if they are given the chance.

Click here to hear the interview>>

CBC Radio Here and Now: School Food Series: Pt 2

In part 2 of her month-long series, food columnist Sarah Elton tells the story of another of Toronto's School Food Heroes who make sure public school kids are offered a nutritious meal in class, along with their lessons. She spoke with Jillian French, who runs the universal morning snack program at Our Lady of Lourdes Catholic elementary school, about why kids benefit from having food at school and how to do this even if you don't have a kitchen in your school.

Click here to hear the interview>>

CBC Radio Here and Now: School Food Series: Pt 1

CBC food columnist Sarah Elton launched her School Food Series, running throughout September. The series will tell the stories of this city's School Food Heroes who make sure public school children are offered a nutritious meal at school, along with their lessons.

This week, she spoke to Voula Halliday about Dundas Public School and her upcoming cookbook The Lunch Lady Cooks that will act as a resource for both families and school lunch programs

Hundreds slated to speak at city executive committee meeting

2011/09/19 | Shawne McKeown & Showwei Chu, CityNews.ca

Hundreds of people – professionals, the heads of youth programs, arts foundations and companies, among others – showed up at city hall Monday to address controversial cuts proposed for next year's city budget.

Cashing in on an urban garden

FoodShare community food programs manager Angela ElzingaCheng talks about urban agriculture and community gardening at home.

MAY JEONG |Globe and Mail | September 13, 2011

All Things Food Encourages SDG schools to participate in Eat-In Ontario

All Things Food Network, OurHometown.ca

Mountain - Sep. 8, 2011 - The All Things Food SDG Community Food Network encourages all SDG schools to raise awareness about sustainable food systems this fall by participating in the Second Annual Province-Wide Eat-In Ontario on September 30th, 2011.

At this elementary school, morning snacks become brain food

Reported by Brigitte Noel, Friday, September 2, 2011 OpenFile

For Patty Eager, the back-to-school season means a return to her typical breakfast routine: preparing hundreds of snacks.

Every weekday for the next eight months, Patty Eager will feed 155 children as part of the nutrition program at William Burgess Elementary School.

Re-inventing food literacy with coat hangers and bicycles

Reported by Brigitte Noel, Tuesday, August 30, 2011 OpenFile

Justin Nadeau's work has earned him the moniker of "inventionator." Partly since his actual title of "School Food Garden and Environmental Education Coordinator" is a mouthful, but also because the made-up word more aptly describes his job. Simply put, Nadeau is the resident mad scientist for FoodShare, a non-profit agency focused on hunger and food-related issues. His duties include designing and building mini-ecosystems and environmentally friendly gardening devices.

Jack put the self in social democracy
CHANGE, HE SAID, NEEDS PERSONAL COMMITMENT, NOT JUST GOVERNMENT ACTION

BY WAYNE ROBERTS, NOW September 1-8, 2011

The way things look now, it will be as hard to keep track of Jack's afterlife as it was to keep up with the pace he set in his all-too-brief existence down here.

His death has inspired an extraordinary outpouring of sorrow, love and spiritual reflection that will go down in history as a critical moment in our evolving Canadian identity.

Food bank funding to bring health programs to Bathurst and Finch

FoodShare is proud to be a collaborative partner on this great food project. We are one of the groups working on a community garden that will bridge the space between the new hub and the high school right next door, a project that hopes to build a community garden, composting system, rain water system, a learning garden, and a small fruit tree orchard. Our role is to ensure good urban agriculture practices and good community development practices, through our work on community food animation.

FANNIE SUNSHINE, InsideToronto.com August 10, 2011

A new food bank set to run out of Northview Heights Secondary School this fall received a $192,900 funding boost from the Ontario Trillium Foundation.

FoodShare Toronto -- A Spark Advocacy Grant Project

Another great video on FoodShare's work in schools and our Recipe for Change initiative, produced by the Heart and Stroke Foundation of Ontario!

Click here to view it >>

A preview: Growing Good Food Ideas

A snippet of the great video coming soon to highlight all of FoodShare's work in schools and on Food Literacy and is part of a partnership project called "Growing Good Food Ideas" being launched this fall by Sustain Ontario in cooperation with the film makers at Powerline Films .

Click here to view it >>

Outside the big box

In an era of increasingly competitive marketing strategies, how do independent retailers stand out and draw crowds?

BY EVA SALINAS, FINANCIAL POST JULY 19, 2011

When the local FoodShare pickup location closed, Swati Bhagat offered to host it at her Toronto print shop. The move paid off.

Click here to read the rest of the article and watch the video>>

Good food box

Tue Jul. 19 2011 9:29:59 PM | Special to CTV News.ca

When a can of Coke is cheaper than a bag of carrots, you can see why it's easier for someone to choose junk food over good food.

That's where the Good Food Box comes in, offering cheap and local produce in reusable boxes. You can set up your own Good Food Box drop-off point in your 'hood by rustling up four other friends who are interested.

Community market a small oasis in Malvern's food desert

by Steve Kupferman | Toronto.openfile.ca | Monday, July 11, 2011

"This is very much a community where people don't really know their neighbours a lot," said Alex Dow, manager of Malvern Action for Neighbourhood Change, who, at age 28, has lived in Malvern for most of his life. "If you have a job or go to school, you get in your car or get on the bus, go do your thing, get back at the end of the day, have dinner with your family, and that's kind of your experience of the neighbourhood."

Ontario Election 2011: Time for Good Food

Sustain Ontario, | Ravenna on June 15, 2011 with Wayne Roberts

Three huge issues will be front and centre in Ontario's 2011 election – health, health and health. All three issues – medical health, economic health and environmental health – have one thing in common. Good food is indispensable to success with all of them.

Pavement vs. paradise

Litlle Portugal residents facing uphill battle to preserve community garden in Green P parking lot

By Ben Spurr | 06/15/2011 | Now Toronto

Parking lots are the villains of urban infrastructure. There are few city spaces less visually inspiring than a bare expanse of concrete, and Joni Mitchell famously sang about them flattening paradise. So it's easy to feel sympathy for Sophia Ilyniak, who says the city parking authority is threatening to tear up her community's garden.

Fuel for School

Reader's Digest Open Kitchen, June 1, 2011 by Valerie Howes

You may have heard of British celeb chef Jamie Oliver's campaign to get children on both sides of the Atlantic eating healthy school meals. There were tears along the way–and not on the part of the kids.

Jamie came up against a brick wall in some North American cities, trying to convince parents and catering staff that "breakfast pizza" washed down with pop doesn't make for focused, hard-working students. Luckily, Toronto cook Voula Halliday has had a much smoother ride serving up nutritious lunches at Dundas Elementary School.

Recipe for Change media coverage:

Braised e-fu noodles with king oyster mushrooms

June 08, 2011, Jennifer Bain, Toronto Star

Toronto chef Winlai Wong made this childhood favourite for the Recipe for Change fundraiser in May. The Spice Route chef says: "Noodles are thought to symbolize a long life and to nourish the soul."

Click here to read the rest of the article >>

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Recipe for Change

Recipe for Change was a celebration of food with a purpose, supporting FoodShare's innovative and multi-faceted work toward Good Healthy Food for All and specifically the Field to Table Schools program, which returns Food Literacy to students from Junior Kindergarten through Grade 12.

Click here to read the rest of the article >>

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Cooking for Food Literacy

By Wyndham Bettencourt-McCarthy in Torontoist.com May 27, 2011

Toronto food fanatics are always looking for a fine excuse for a feast. Lucky for us, non-profit FoodShare's annual fundraiser, Recipe for Change, brings together local chefs and diners in an effort to promote the importance of food literacy for future generations.

Click here to read the rest of the article >>

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Recipe for Change

By Lauren Simmons | SpotlightToronto.com | 27 MAY 2011

There are more than a few food fundraising events in Toronto, but few offer an evening of delight like FoodShare's Recipe for Change. Take your favourite chefs, cooking small dishes using local produce, add some local wine, put it all in a historic venue, sand you've got a recipe for success, and, indeed, Recipe for Change.

Click here to read the rest of the article >>

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Sheryl Kirby
Food, Life and the World at Large

Recipe For Change Recap
May 30th 2011

Foodshare‘s fabulous Recipe For Change event migrated to the North St. Lawrence Market this year, allowing for more space, which in turn allowed for more chefs and more guests. I love that organizers make a point of not overselling the event, so it’s never packed; line-ups at food stations are short or non-existent and there is no sense of frenzy involved.

Click here to read the rest of the article >>

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Fresh Local Intern at a Fresh Local Event

Emma Moe Berrigan, Greenbelt Foundation

As the most recent addition here at the Greenbelt Foundation, I was as surprised as anyone that I managed to claim one of the two tickets we had for the ‘Recipe for Change’ FoodShare event last night. As a result, I hadn’t prepared by ensuring an empty stomach, making the task a formidable, but a welcome challenge. Just in time to catch the rain in between the sunshine, I biked down to meet my colleague Julienne at the St. Lawrence Market.

Click here to read the rest of the article >>

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INTORONTO

Recipe For Change

Some highlights from Recipe For Change, an all-you-can-eat fundraiser in support of FoodShare, a Toronto-based non-profit organization dedicated to providing solutions to hunger and food problems facing children, families and communities. The event took place on May 26 in the North Building of Toronto's bustling St. Lawrence Market and featured 31 of top Toronto Chefs (alongside 8 local wineries and a local brewery), serving up mouthwatering meals, samples and desserts.

For INTORONTO's Caught in the Act photo gallery for Recipe for Change, click here >>

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Cranberry bannock
May 25, 2011

JENNIFER BAIN/TORONTO STAR

We'll eat to that. On Thursday, 31 Toronto chefs will cook up a fundraising meal for food literacy in schools while eight local wineries and a local brewery provide drinks.

FoodShare – be there or be square

James Chatto |May 20, 2011 | JamesChatto.com

This is the season for festivities and fund-raisers when important and worthy charities call upon the community to do its bit for the general good. Of course, they also call upon chefs and restaurateurs, wineries and breweries to provide the necessary bait that will lure the general public into showing up and opening their wallets. It never ceases to amaze me how often and how selflessly the hospitality industry donates time and treasure and expertise to these worthy causes. In a business where profit margins are at best limited, the effort expended is even more commendable.

City sees boom in urban gardening

Theresa Boyle |Toronto Star | May 22, 2011

There are far more than vegetables growing in Len Mirander's garden. As the onion seeds he planted a few weeks ago start to sprout, passersby take notice and ask him how they, too, can become urban farmers.

RECIPE FOR CHANGE: A FOODSHARE EVENT

Enroute May 23, 2011

A celebration of food – with a purpose. FoodShare, a not-for-profit organization that aims to bring healthy food to all and battle hunger in urban communities, is hosting its 2nd annual fundraising dinner.

On the Menu

Communal Table

Jenny and I have been lucky enough to attend a bunch of great food-related events in and around Toronto, most of which we've found out about from contacts we've made through Communal Table.

Five things to do this week: May 21-27

Recipe for Change may just be the perfect foodie fundraiser: With proceeds to the FoodShare Field to Table Schools program, which takes a holistic approach to teaching nutrition to kids, the evening will see locavore-loving gastronomes chowing down on dishes from the likes of...

Jason Rehel May 20, 2011, National Post

Adrienne DeFrancesco Discusses Recipe for Change

On May 26th, Foodshare is hosting round two of their annual Recipe for Change. It is set to be an unforgettable evening of socializing, drinking and eating with Toronto’s top chefs. Chef Anthony Rose from the Drake Hotel, Chef Albert Ponzo of Le Sélect Bistro and Chef David Garcelon from the Fairmont Royal York, along with Chef Donna Dooher of Mildred’s Temple Kitchen, Chef Zane Caplansky from Caplansky’s Delicatessen and 26 other top chef’s will be participating in Recipe for Change to help advocate a healthy lifestyle for Toronto families and bring Food Literacy back to schools. The evening event will be held at the St. Lawrence Market in the North Building and tickets are a bargain at $100. Foodshare’s Adrienne DeFrancesco, Fundraising and Communications Manager, was kind enough to share with me her personal philosophy of good food and discuss the upcoming Recipe for Change.

Posted on May 20, 2011 by Kylie Meyermann Good Food Revolution

How can you make a difference?

Livin' on the Veg Tuesday, May 17, 2011

At The Cutting Veg, we try to inspire and support people to take action in their relationship with food to improve their quality of life, while making a difference. A healthy world starts with healthy lifestyles. Here are a couple options of how you can take action to enhance your relationship with food, and the health of the planet:

A boom in urban gardening

There is far more than vegetables growing in Len Mirander's garden.

MetroNew: Toronto May 16, 2011

How does thy garden grow? Five tips for eating locally

The sun is shining and the asparagus is growing – so what on earth are you doing at the supermarket? Southern Ontario’s growing season is picking up and filling gardens, farmers’ markets and local greengrocers with fresh produce that hasn’t trekked halfway across the globe. If there was ever a time to pay attention to where your food comes from, lower your carbon footprint and support an Ontario farmer, it’s now.

By Saira Peesker PostCity.com May 13, 2011

Urban food learning centre unveiled

Green thumbs rejoice - the Toronto Urban Food and Agriculture Learning Centre officially opened its doors with a wee bit of pomp and circumstance, Friday afternoon, May 6.

Whether you're a researcher, practitioner, advocate or simply one who's interested in urban food and agriculture, this resource is for you.

Lisa Rainford, InsideToronto.com May 9, 2011

Is Your School Ready?

This spring another Canadian organization has jumped on board to Live Right Now! FoodShare is challenging its network of parents and schools to help kids get excited about healthy eating.

CBC.ca

Quince Fundraiser in support of FoodShare

A huge silent and live auction and gala dinner was held at Quince restaurant on Wednesday May 4th in support of Food share a local non profit agency. Founded by four local women who dubbed themselves "both hands" put together this one night mega event in hopes of raising $25,000 in one night to support Food Share a local non profit agency.

The Top 10 organic food delivery options in Toronto

Organic food delivery in Toronto is a perfect marriage of two great loves--good food, and not having to get up to do chores. Many organic food delivery services allow you to do your produce shopping (and sometimes other grocery shopping) from your computer, and have your box of organic goodies dropped off to your door a week later. An added element of excitement, as least in my opinion, is never knowing what will end up in your box (unless, of course, you peek online beforehand) and suddenly having to come up with a recipe using Hawaiian Ginger. Great fun?! Anyway, here are some options for organic food delivery in Toronto.

Robyn Urback BlogTO/ MAY 3, 2011

QUINCE BISTRO HOLDS FUNDRAISER FOR FOODSHARE

April 15, 2011 by: Sheryl Kirby | Toronto.com

A recently renovated Quince Bistro (2110 Yonge St.) hosts the annual Both Hands fundraiser. Quince owner Jennifer Gittens is part of a group of four women invested in the community and working towards change.

April 15, 2011 by: Sheryl Kirby | Toronto.com

World crops come home

While I hope we will never be able to produce local mangos or bananas, Ontario growers are starting to look beyond carrots and cucumbers.

BY JOSH HUME, NOW TORONTO, April 14-21, 2011

What Happens at FoodShare

FoodShare was started in the 1980s by the (then) City of Toronto as resource for people looking for food banks, and they still operate the FoodLink hotline that connects people to food. But, since the ealry 90s, under the leadership of Executive Director Debbie Field, FoodShare has been at the forefront of innovative programming around good food in Toronto.

by Malcolm Jolley: Good Food Revolution, March 31, 2011

Time to talk about the birds and the bees

Mark Cullen, TorontoStar.com April 01, 2011

Father to pre pubescent son: "It is time for you and me to talk about the birds and the bees."

Click to watch the video >>

Women's Habitat Good Food Market

The Women's Habitat Good Food Market was recently profiled by Susan Hay on Global News.

Click here to hear the interview >>

Urban Agriculture on CBC Radio's Metro Morning

FoodShare's Ian Hepburn-Aley spoke about FoodShare's many urban agriculture initiatives with Matt Galloway on Metro Morning, February 1, 2011.

Creative solutions to handle food waste

FoodShare's efficient composting model has been cited by Jennifer Bain in the Toronto Star as an important and creative solution to food waste problems in City of Toronto, an opportunity to "cut waste management costs, cut smells, encourage urbanites to grow food and enrich our soil."

Jennifer Bain, Toronto Star January 14, 2011
Click here to read the rest of the article.

Click here to watch the videos on Youtube.

Focus on Food

Find out more about FoodShare's Focus on Food program by watching two great videos by this group of interns!

Focus on Food

Grant helps Bathurst-Finch leaders look at food security

InsideToronto.com December 13, 2010

Kids in the Bathurst-Finch community will get more active and eat healthier food, thanks to a grant from the Heart and Stroke Foundation of Ontario.

FoodShare: Compost Build

from The Healthy Footprint, Jennifer Lem

Last Saturday, I dusted off my cordless drill and hammer, moseyed on over to FoodShare, and helped to build compost bins for some Toronto schools!

FoodNet Ontario promotes local food

John Phair, Today's Farmer News, Nov. 16, 2010

A broad range of issues relating to the local food movement were presented at the annual meeting of FoodNet Ontario, held Nov. 8 in London.

FoodNet Ontario is province-wide network of organizations and individuals committed to achieving community food security and creating sustainable local food systems.

Back to Bendale
An edible education

Jennifer Bain, Toronto Star November 03, 2010

Let's have the Swiss chard tell the story of Toronto's most ambitious school garden.

Back to Bendale
Bendale Swiss chard rolls

Jennifer Bain, Toronto Star November 03, 2010

The day I visited Bendale high school, the culinary arts students helped make Swiss chard rolls covered in homemade tomato sauce for the teacher's cafeteria. They're served here with garden veggies an

Back to Bendale
Bendale's chocolate truffle beet cake

Jennifer Bain, Toronto Star November 02, 2010

Tatiana Vorobej, a Bendale baking instructor, taught this creation to her Grade 9 class on the day I visited. This recipe has been scaled down from Vorobej's version, which makes three cakes (two for eating immediately and one for freezing). You can use any icing, or even just dollops of crème fraîche. I used Ghiradelli cocoa and Lindt 99-per-cent cacao.

"I saw the future of food this morning."
Listen to Sarah Elton's first-hand report about Bendale School Garden on CBC Radio One's Here and Now.

Click here to listen

These Corners are Coming Around

Jane and Finch

by Denise Balkissoon, The Globe and Mail, October 30, 2010

FoodShare delivers farm-fresh produce to neediest

by Leslie Ferenc, Toronto Star, October 12, 2010

Thinking Outside the Lunch Box

by Wendy Leung, The Globe and Mail, October 8, 2010

Toronto Board of Trade: VoteToronto2010.com

DEBATE 3: Discussion Paper – Put Food at the Top of the Municipal Election

Put Food at the Top of the Municipal Election

by Debbie Field Executive Director, Food Share Ontario

B.C. program schooling kids with fresh, local fare

By Adriana Barton
Globe and Mail August 29, 2010

B.C.'s Farm to School program is providing fresh, local fare to students while teaching them about where their food comes from - and the kids are eating it up

Just one thing . . .

As part of the Your City, My City series, The Star is asking prominent residents the same question: What one thing would you suggest to improve life in Greater Toronto?

Toronto Star Aug 22, 2010

Debbie Field, Executive director of FoodShare:

"My Toronto would shout 'Yes to food!' and become the new global standard for universal access to healthy, high quality food... Municipal politicians need to publicly acknowledge the enormous potential of food, saying 'Yes' to community gardens, markets and bake ovens in parks and to healthy street carts. We need a food ambassador in the mayor's office to ensure all departments work together to prioritize food, and to work with provincial and federal governments to ensure that everyone has adequate access to healthy food.

Click here to listen to the interview

CBC Radio's Here and Now interview on Childhood Nutrition

CBC's Here and Now interviews FoodShare's Meredith Hayes

National food policy pitched in Flemingdon Park

LISA QUEEN, InsideToronto.com
August 6, 2010

Using "food desert" Flemingdon Park as a backdrop, FoodShare Toronto, Canada's largest community food security organization, released a poll saying most Canadians want a national food policy and federal action on childhood nutrition.

Click here to watch the video

Heart and Stroke FoodShare

Global TV's Making a Difference series July 26, 2010 about our Field to Table Schools' Recipe for Change initiative, funded by the Heart and Stroke Foundation.

Your address could make you fat

July 15, 2010, NANCY J. WHITE

The Health Zone

You want to lose weight? Live near a supermarket — but far away from restaurants.

In a recent study, researchers at the State University of New York at Buffalo looked at women’s body mass index in relation to their neighbourhoods’ food amenities.

The miracle of R.V. Burgess Park

By Catherine Porter, July 14, 2010 TORONTO STAR

Want to know what a difference six women can make?

Go to R.V. Burgess Park this Friday night.

Garden in the City

Growing food, growing friendships. A look at urban churches involved in community gardening.

Click here to download the Spring 2010 issue of Mosaic. The article is on pages 12 to 13.

Farmers' market vouchers help poor eat farm fresh

Catherine Porter, Toronto Star, July 07, 2010

I went out to the Stonegate Farmers’ Market in south Etobicoke one afternoon this week.

It was exquisite: potted basil, fresh apricots, pickled white asparagus, mustard seed loaves all on display in the parking lot of a little Anglican church.

FoodShare: 25 Years of Good Healthy Food

by Sheryl Kirby in TasteTO.com June 24, 2010 at 12:00 pm

There's always something bittersweet about a food charity celebrating a big anniversary. Sure there's all of the progress and hard work that deserves to be honoured, an account of all the people who have been helped. But on the other hand, there's the fact that said charity still needs to exist at all. That issues such as hunger and food security in our city have not been sufficiently addressed and that individuals and families still need these organizations to help them make ends meet.

Sharing Food in Toronto

By Spring Gillard in The Compost Diaries on June 23, 2010

A few years ago, I was the keynote speaker at the American Community Garden Association annual conference, held in Toronto. The organizers put together a fabulous event. One of the activities was a tour of FoodShare with Executive Dynamo Debbie Field. That was really my first introduction to this amazing group. They were trailblazers then and they are leading the way now.

A struggle to eat in Toronto’s food deserts

June 14, 2010 VANESSA LU/TORONTO STAR

Tamara Sanchez plops lemons, blackberries, asparagus, avocados and cucumbers on the folding table in the courtyard of her Toronto Community Housing complex.

Cashier Aasma Badoodi carefully weighs produce and tallies the bill on a calculator for Sanchez, who is doing part of her weekly shopping a stone’s throw from home.

A NEW RECIPE FOR CHANGE FROM FOODSHARE TORONTO

By Lauren Baker, Sustain Ontario
on June 8, 2010

Canadians crave Federal Action on Student Nutrition

Last week FoodShare Toronto (Canada’s largest community food security organization) released the results of a public opinion poll related to school food and food literacy programs: 85% of Canadians support the idea of providing universal access to healthy snacks and lunches for all school aged children across Canada.

Eating Our Way to a Better Toronto

June 08, 2010
votetoronto2010

By Darcy Higgins

Toronto is now the 16th most livable city in the world, according to a study of 221 large cities conducted by the Mercer Quality of Living Survey. Clearly, we’re doing pretty well. We’re no Vancouver, ranked fourth, but not bad. The survey framed liveability upon a recipe including economic environment, health and sanitation, recreation, and natural environment.

One item takes root in all of these categories, but hasn’t been given much thought by government thus far: food.

Kate's Kitchen

Read about FoodShare's community kitchen, Kate's Kitchen, in Homemakers, June 2010.

Download PDF

Beekeeping booming in Toronto

May 18, 2010

Stuart Laidlaw, Toronto Star

Time was, when Greg Thomson went to parties and told people he sold beekeeping supplies in Toronto, he was guaranteed a disheartening laugh.

“I just got kind of fed up,” the manager of F.W. Jones & Son Ltd. in Downsview says now. “I’d say, ‘Yeah, beekeeping, laugh it up’.”

But no more.

Fabulous fundraiser feast

Marion Kane, Food Sleuth Blog

I’ve attended plenty of fundraisers for food charities over the years and most are not to my taste.

Toronto’s urban gardens grow. Here’s how to get your patch

By Lia Grainger, National Post

When it comes to eating locally, it doesn’t get much closer to home than your backyard. But what to do if you’re one of the many Torontonians who doesn’t have one?

NOT-FOR-PROFIT FOOD SHARE HELPS TORONTO GET FED

By Maia Filar, CityBites May/June 2010

Paul DeCampo is excited about a bag of smaller than average red apples. “It’s prod- ucts like these that make Food Share work,” he says, climbing over crates of fresh produce to grab the Norfolk Fruit Growers bag.

Eating local is a simplistic prescription

Environmental impact of food consumption requires real thought

MOIRA WELSH
Toronto Star, April 17, 2010

Every day, Debbie Field walks a few blocks from her home to the stores on Roncesvalles Ave. and buys food for her dinner. She visits shops that sell locally grown food, where she might, for example, buy a leg of lamb from Guelph, carrots from Holland Marsh and cheddar cheese from Prince Edward County.

How to build your own worm composter

BlogTO APRIL 28, 2010; posted by Lauren
( click for some great photos)

On Monday night I went down to the old re-purposed high school that is the FoodShare headquarters for a fun and informative night on how to best get worms to eat your garbage. And those little suckers can EAT.

FoodShare on Radio Canada International Chinese program April 26

2010 Green Toronto Awards Winners include youth, community groups and businesses

This evening, the City of Toronto in partnership with Green Living, celebrated the people, organizations and neighbourhoods helping lead the way to a greener Toronto at the sixth Green Toronto Awards ceremony at Exhibition Place.

Trash Talk: Earning EcoSchool status

April 23, 2010

Ellen Moorhouse
Special to the Star / yourhome.ca

At Maplewood High School in Scarborough, they make killer butter tarts in the industrial kitchen and handsome three-bin cedar composters in the shop.

What's for Dinner?

By Kate Bruce-Lockhart, Junior Journalist, Global Voices Program

The question "What's for dinner?" has become more complicated.

Our social conscience whispers questions in our ear as we browse the fridge. Is it healthy? Is it organic? Is it local? Answering yes to one of these questions is often difficult, let alone all three.

Finding their Grove

THORNCLIFFE GOES DUFFERIN GROVE — CAN THE CITY HANDLE A LOCAL-CONTROL EPIDEMIC?

BY ANDREW CASH, NOW Magazine April 7-14, 2010

Celebrating the Greenbelt's 5th anniversary at FoodShare

Ontario Minister Jim Bradley celebrates the Greenbelt's 5th anniversary with students from FoodShare's Guardians of the Greenbelt.

Click for video

Portrait of a Composter

"Portrait of a Composter" is a video by FoodShare's Emi Paternostro, profiling FoodShare's own Master of Compost, Mike Nevin.

Click for video

From Farm to Porch

by Julia De Laurentiis Johnson/Torontoist.com

Back when Torontoist was briefly a Londonist, we got our weekly veg dropped off at our door through an organic delivery company. The produce was not only organic, it was also local and seasonal when possible.

Recipe for Change-Foodshare

Last night Susan and I went to this amazing event hosted by Foodshare called Recipe for Change. It was fantastic!

FoodShare's Recipe for Change fundraiser

Published On Mon Feb 22 2010, Toronto Star.com Susan Sampson

Let 25 Toronto chefs feed you. Gastronomes are invited to graze at FoodShare's Recipe for Change fundraiser on Thursday. Participating chefs include Adam Colquhoun of Oyster Boy, Mark Cutrara of Cowbell, Donna Dooher of Mildred's Temple Kitchen, Brad Long of Veritas, Luis Valenzuela of Torito and Anne Yarymowich of Frank. The chefs are preparing small plates for the FoodShare warehouse party, accompanied by local beer and wine.

A recipe for change

BY SEAN KELLY KEENAN EYEWeekly, February 18, 2010 14:02

Pop quiz! Aside from being some of the brightest culinary lights in town, what else do chefs Mark Cutrara (pictured), Anne Yarymowich, Donna Dooher, Fabio Bondi, Brad Long and David Chrystian have in common? Along with a slew of other Hogtown top chefs (25 in total), they’re all going to be at FoodShare (90 Croatia Street), a Toronto based non-profit organization that is working on food security and hunger issues, on Thursday February 25 to cook up a whole lot of tasty support for a good cause. And for a mere $100 you can get in on all the taste bud-tingling, tummy-pleasing and community sustainability action.

Click here to watch the United Way video

Food Deserts

United Way member agencies FoodShare and West Hill Community Services have partnered to create the East Scarborough Festival Market which brings affordable produce to isolated neighbourhoods, helping residents improve their personal and family diets.

Download the Jan/Feb 2010 TYFPC Newsletter

Toronto Youth Food Policy Council Bi-Monthly Newsletter

The January/February Newsletter features an article from FoodShare Intern Nikki Jo Mattina, titled "A Taste for Change".

How eating local can enhance our food security

KATE BRUCE LOCKHART; Toronto Star Global Voices; January 06, 2010

The question "What's for dinner?" has become more complicated.

Golden Whisk Awards: Our top 10 recipes of 2009

Toronto Star, December 30, 2009

A nomad chef, activist finds downtown a good fit

Toronto Star, December 19, 2009

David Hayes
Special to the Star

Bashir Munye is a multi-tasking blur of activity in his kitchen, preparing several dishes for our brunch while simultaneously maintaining a steady stream of conversation.

From cinnamon roll to honour roll: How a healthy breakfast propels students to the top of the class

December 1, 2009 mikecrisolago
How We Learn

Fresh Start
The first rule of Breakfast Club: everyone talks about Breakfast Club. Precisely why sixteen-year-old Malcolm Wyllie stands over a grill in the family studies kitchen at George Harvey Collegiate Institute. He’s palming a fresh loaf of whole wheat bread.

Youth cooking contest lets teens shine at Royal

Fledgling cooks keep their cool to make dishes on a tight budget with Ontario ingredients for So You(th) Think You Can Cook?

By Jennifer Bain, Food Editor, Toronto Star
Published On Wed Nov 11 2009

Hard to swallow
KIDS NEED FOOD INTELLIGENCE MORE THAN LIBS’ FINANCIAL LITERACY BRAINWASH

BY WAYNE ROBERTS, NOW, November 5, 2009

Download the PDF newsletter here >>

Toronto Youth Food Policy Council Newsletter
November-December 2009

FoodShare's Focus on Food Intern, Cortney Arnesen, has written about a recent food adventure.

Gardens in the sky, but no fruit in sight
Awesome green roof designs invade cities, but, sigh, on-high agriculture isn’t ready for its closeup

I was feeling a little over the top at the Cities Alive Conference, so as chair of the October 19 session on urban agriculture, I opened the event as a wedding ceremony.

“Dearly beloved,” I intoned, and proceeded to join together sustainable urban design and food production.

I made a big miscalculation about the couple, who are really just newly-mets. The fact is, almost no one is growing food on rooftops in Toronto, as FoodShare’s Debbie Field points out later in the session. Skyward agriculture hasn’t risen to top of mind yet for green roof visionaries.

BY WAYNE ROBERTS
NOW | October 28-November 4, 2009 | VOL 29 NO 9

Cafeteria serves cuisine
Pilot project proves kids will eat healthy food when it tastes good

The future of school lunches is happening now at the Good Food Café in Toronto's west end.

Jennifer Bain, Food Editor, Toronto Star, Oct 20 2009

Click here to see the video

Oct 7 episode of The Agenda Going Gourmet:
Part I of our look at food. What our refined palate means to our health, our farms, and our culture. Guests include FoodShare's Paul DeCampo

Students lack healthy food options

Canada is the only westernized nation without a national, federally funded school food program, and students are paying the price.

Creating a national school food program could address multiple problems facing Canada's youth, from soaring obesity rates to poverty and even to learning challenges.

Margaret Webb, October 13, 2009, Toronto Star

Composting is worming its way into communities

Riverdale co-op shows that multi-residential composting can work and has for 20 years

Getting rid of household waste has become somewhat of an obsession these days, with multiple ways to sort what we throw away. There are blue and green bins but those who really feel committed to reducing their impact on landfill sites also compost, if they have the know-how.

Jennifer Brown, Special to The Star, Sat Oct 03 2009

FOOD FOR THOUGHT: Reading, writing, growing

Home economics may be long gone, but food is infiltrating the curriculum in Toronto schools with the quiet creation of several dozen school gardens.

Jennifer Bain, Food Editor, Toronto Star, September 29, 2009

Garden projects 'a teaching tool'

Schools part of thriving community network growing fruits, veggies

The old proverb "Give a man a fish and you feed him for a day – teach a man to fish and you feed him for a lifetime" applies equally to gardening.

Helping those who need a hand up rather than a hand out is what FoodShare and its partners are doing through school and community garden programs across Toronto.

Policy-makers, city staff and community partners got a chance to see what's growing around town recently during the fifth annual tour of community food projects.

Leslie Ferenc, Toronto Star, September 29, 2009

Youth and the food agenda

More than 70 people crammed into a Toronto City Hall meeting room last week for the launch of what they believe to be the world's first youth food policy council.

Jennifer Bain, Toronto Star, September 18, 2009

Pressure on charity
United Way sets fundraising bar at $107M

United Way Toronto fundraisers have more than 107 million reasons to work hard this year.

By BRETT CLARKSON, SUN MEDIA, September 16, 2009

In hard times, United Way holds the line

Campaign kicks off with $1 million gift and renewed resolve

Generating as much excitement as a red-carpet premiere, United Way Toronto launched its annual fundraising campaign with a full house of supporters and a $1 million goody bag from BMO.

LESLIE FERENC/TORONTO STAR, September 16, 2009

Compost: Bin there . . . do that

Five weeks without collections a reminder that solution might be in our own backyards.

You could call it an unplanned garbage audit. During the strike, many of us got close and personal with the things we normally slam a lid on.

CATHERINE PORTER, Toronto Star, August 03, 2009

Join the Cult
Ten mostly legal steps to virtuous eating

1. GROW YOUR OWN
Depending on the size of your back 40 (or balcony), you can grow anything from heirloom tomatoes to corn to black mission figs. FoodShare provides tips at foodshare.net.

By Chris Nuttall-Smith, Toronto Life, July 2008

Constant gardeners: Young Urban Farmers shows us how to cheat at backyard farming

Most urban foodies would love to grow their own organic spinach, but most of us barely have time to stop at Sobeys on our way home from work. Recognizing Torontonians’ collective lack of time (read: laziness), three recent business grads started Young Urban Farmers, a service that turns clients’ yards into produce departments.

July 21, 2009, Josh Dehaas, Toronto Life Daily Dish

Good Food Box opens up to the public

The Good Food Box had something cooking at the Lions Hall last week...

"It's a celebration about the Food Box; we want to educate people about health, and promote local businesses and food producers," said Food Box volunteer Darlene Bilawski. "We've got a lot of people here.

By Chris Simon The Innisfill Scope, July 1, 2009

Growing your own in a new age

Through the front door of a lopsided old Riverdale home, past the sound system playing Schubert in the living room and the unimportant television, out the side door, beneath eaves dripping with rain, is a vegetable garden that takes up every square inch of what was once a neglected backyard.

FRANCINE KOPUN, Toronto Star, June 30, 2009

FoodShare Serves Up Big Ideas with a Side Salad

In the shadow of the Dufferin Mall and No Frills, FoodShare is planting the seeds of a radical food system.

By Kate Rabinowicz in Torontoist Culture, Events on June 24, 2009

Art Gets a Move On

FoodShare's van gets a makeover as part of the Art on the Move project.

Toronto Star June 22, 2009

FOOD INC.

Hungry for Change? Then go see FOOD INC.
You are what you eat. It is a simple expression that bears scary implications as you watch the acclaimed documentary, FOOD, INC.

Watch the panel discussion that took place at the film's Toronto premiere. Panle members are Wayne Roberts (Toronto Food Policy Counci), Lauren Baker (Sustain Ontario) Debbie Field (FoodShare) and Gary Hirshberg (Stonyfield Farm)

Backyard chickens? Toronto thinking it over

Allowing residents to raise chickens on their property would provide families with fresh eggs, say supporters of the idea. (Canadian Press)
New York and Chicago already have it — now Toronto is considering joining those cities and allowing residents to raise chickens in their backyards.

Tuesday, June 16, 2009 CBC News

Fresh, local produce comes to the city
Getting your hands on locally produced food doesn't have to be difficult or expensive

With summer comes the bounty of fruit and vegetables that appear in colourful waves at farmers' markets and supermarkets in the city as farmers in central and southwestern Ontario bring the efforts of their spring labour to market. And with more people interested in becoming locavores – by eating local produce –the idea of growing your own vegetables or at least knowing more about where they came from has become more popular.

But sometimes the cost of farmers' markets or organically produced food is out of reach for some budgets.

JENNIFER BROWN
SPECIAL TO THE STAR Jun 06, 2009

Gardening to the glory of God

TORONTO, ON—Gardening is a vital form of Christian witness, one that too many churches are ignoring, says Paul Abell, stewardship coordinator for A Rocha.

By Mags Storey, ChristianWeek.org, June 5, 2009

CEREAL KILLER: Too many mouths to feed
Funds can't match breakfast plan demands

For the past decade, Francoise Naraine has sent her children to school early for breakfast.

After separating from her husband, putting food on the breakfast table got a lot tougher for the 47-year-old single mom.

The Nutritious Students breakfast program at Highfield Jr. Public School has been a "godsend," Naraine said.

"If it wasn't for the program, I don't know what I would do," she told the Sunday Sun. "It means a lot (to my family) and my kids love it."

Naraine has worked as a volunteer since 2000 with FoodShare, a grass-roots non-profit dedicated to helping individuals and communities feed themselves.

By SHARON LEM, SUN MEDIA, 31st May 2009

Getting fresh in the city

Here's one advantage of Toronto's sweltering summer: our fruit and vegetable markets. A decade ago, there were a handful at best, but as Sasha Chapman reveals, farmers these days are setting up stalls all over the city, selling local produce when it is at its crisp and delectable best.

SASHA CHAPMAN
Special to The Globe and Mail, Monday, May. 25, 2009

Food bank targets freshly laid off

Forget French fries. Make a low-cost salad instead.

Tough economic times have prompted one major Canadian food bank to ramp up efforts to appeal to families who may never have used a food bank, but now find themselves struggling to afford nutritious meals.

CARLY WEEKS, Globe and Mail, Thursday, May 21, 2009

Eat Your Veggies

Good Food boxes deliver local fresh produce to churches

Noelle Boughton
Manadate Special Edition May 2009

Click here to read the rest of the article ( PDF download)

Food is not just about fuelling the body

At Winchester Public School, students have developed a taste for kale and parsley.

Anywhere else in the city, these two leafy greens would be universally reviled by the elementary-school set, but these kids have helped sprout the seeds, tend the plants and harvest the vegetables.

KIM HONEY, FOOD EDITOR April 10, 2009, Toronto Star

Before peas, there are shoots

A sea of tender green pea shoots mature in a greenhouse behind CAMH.

PAMELA CUTHBERT Mar 30, 2009 Toronto Star,

Tis The Season To Eat Local, Toronto

With Spring upon us, and the potential for a bountiful growing season just around the corner, Toronto food lovers and locavores alike have a lot to look forward to.

Posted by Lauren, BlogTO.com, March 28, 2009

Click here for video link

The Great Big Crunch 2009 Media:
Rogers TV: A GREENER TORONTO

EPISODE 20 - MARCH 26TH 2009

Taming T.O.'s fear of food production

URBAN FOODIES PUSH CITY TO SOW UP SWATHS OF WASTED PUBLIC SOD

Sometimes it seems as though our “world class” city can provide just about everything except the fundamentals of life.

MIKE SMITH, NOW | March 17-24, 2009

Hunger a top health issue says top doc

Toronto's chief medical officer called on the Ontario government yesterday to "put food in the budget" to improve lives--and life-expectancies--of the poor.

Sun Media March 19, 2009
Click here to read the rest of the article

The Great Big Crunch 2009 Media:

Great big crunch for dietary change

Kenora Daily Miner and News
By Jon Thompson March 5, 2009

The Great Big Crunch 2009 Media:

A great big crunch (with video)

Posted By Heather Rivers, HEALTH REPORTER
WoodStock Sentinel Review
March 7, 2009

The Great Big Crunch 2009 Media:

The Great Big Crunch in Sudbury

By: Mr. Productions on 3/12/2009 2:36:19 PM
NorthernLife.ca: Sudbury

The Great Big Crunch 2009 Media:

Great Big Crunch

Tri-County Regional School Board

Created at 3/9/2009 3:40 PM by Bill Curry

The Great Big Crunch 2009 Media:

The Great Big Crunch

Miramichi, NB School District 6

The Great Big Crunch 2009 Media:

Big Crunch

The Wingham Advance-Times, Wingham ON
March 11th, 2009

Click here to read the rest of the article
Click to SEE THE VIDEO

The Great Big Crunch 2009 Media:

Big Crunch, a taste of healthy living

About 4,500 Sarnia-Lambton students bought into healthy eating on Thursday by simultaneously — and loudly — biting into apples at exactly 9:30 a.m.

“Last year we had two schools take part. This year we’ve had 14 so we’ve enjoyed a huge success this year,” said Leslie Palimaka, the county’s student nutrition coordinator.

TYLER KULA, March 6, 2009 The Observer (Lambton county)

The Great Big Crunch 2009 Media:
all the way from New Brunswick

An apple a day...

How do you like them apples? Well, District 16 students liked them just fine last week as they participated in a national challenge to encourage healthy eating.

February 16th, 2009; Wendy Patterson The Miramichi Leader

Savour

Vol. 1 Serve Up The Jewels Of Ontario’s Farmland

Also In This Issue: Earth to Table: A Restaurant & Farm Relationship - Ruth Klahsen & The Montforte Brand - A Day In The Life Of A Go-Between Team - Cooking Up A Storm Brings Job Barriers Down - Pressure Cooker Tv Works Up A Sweat.

Click to donwload free PDF of the first issue of Savour

EPISODE 15 - FEB 19, 2009

A Greener Toronto

click on link to view video featuring FoodShare's Good Food Box and compost king Mike Nevin >>

Farms in the city win backing-but not pigs in the city

Councillor backs away from permitting chickens or livestock

Corn stalks growing along the Gardiner Expressway, tomato plants lining University Avenue, and chicken coops in thousands of backyards.

Friday, February 06, 2009 Presented by Financial Post

Activists envision crops along Gardiner

Urban farmers push city to grow food instead of grass and flowers in public spaces

Imagine turning the rink at Nathan Phillips Square into a vegetable garden. Or seeing corn stalks along the Gardiner Expressway. Or filling the median along University Ave. with a row of tomato plants.

VANESSA LU February 06, 2009 Toronto Star

Urban farming catches interest

Urban food production isn't just for backyards anymore, and the city's parks and environment committee yesterday heard from urban farming fans trying to help develop a new city policy on growing fruits and veggies in the Big Smoke. The committee report is expected in a few months.

By BRYN WEESE, SUN MEDIA, 6th February 2009,

The whole city is a farm – but not for chickens

Corn stalks growing along the Gardiner Expressway, tomato plants lining University Avenue and chicken coops in thousands of backyards were among the food for thought offered to Toronto policy makers yesterday as eager greenthumbs advocated returning swaths of the city to its agricultural roots.

by Allison Hanes February 05, 2009, 4:26 PM, National Post

Nutrition programs need cash

Advocates say school breakfast initiatives need $1.48M more from city this year to survive.

Laurie Monsebraaten Toronto Star, Jan 09, 2009 04:30 AM

He works wonders with food scraps

For Mike Nevin, composting is a way of life.

Every week, the 65-year-old collects about 250 kilograms of vegetable waste and food scraps while working as the compost facilitator for FoodShare, a Toronto-based non-profit organization that aims to improve access to affordable and healthy food.

Kenyon Wallace, Toronto Star, January 29, 2009

Winter biking basics

You’ve got the will. Now here’s how to avoid taking a spill.

by Anil Kanji greenlivingonline.com

If United Way campaign fails, 'city will suffer'

United Way-funded agencies fear cutbacks if urgent appeal fails to bridge $4 million gap

If the United Way of Toronto fails to make its 2008 fundraising goal it will mean less food, shelter and other crucial services for the city's needy, warn local agencies.

"We have a social safety net in the city and it's made up of community agencies," said Debbie Field, executive director of FoodShare Toronto. "If it wasn't for the United Way, we couldn't survive.

"If the United Way doesn't make its target, then the whole city of Toronto will suffer."

JASON MILLER, NOOR JAVED, The Toronto Star, January 08, 2009

Leslie Ferenc, Toronto Star, September 29, 2009

Youth and the food agenda

More than 70 people crammed into a Toronto City Hall meeting room last week for the launch of what they believe to be the world's first youth food policy council.

Jennifer Bain, Toronto Star, September 18, 2009

Pressure on charity
United Way sets fundraising bar at $107M

United Way Toronto fundraisers have more than 107 million reasons to work hard this year.

By BRETT CLARKSON, SUN MEDIA, September 16, 2009

In hard times, United Way holds the line

Campaign kicks off with $1 million gift and renewed resolve

Generating as much excitement as a red-carpet premiere, United Way Toronto launched its annual fundraising campaign with a full house of supporters and a $1 million goody bag from BMO.

LESLIE FERENC/TORONTO STAR, September 16, 2009

Compost: Bin there . . . do that

CATHERINE PORTER, Toronto Star, August 03, 2009

Join the Cult
Ten mostly legal steps to virtuous eating

1. GROW YOUR OWN
Depending on the size of your back 40 (or balcony), you can grow anything from heirloom tomatoes to corn to black mission figs. FoodShare provides tips at foodshare.net.

By Chris Nuttall-Smith, Toronto Life, July 2008

July 21, 2009, Josh Dehaas, Toronto Life Daily Dish

Good Food Box opens up to the public

The Good Food Box had something cooking at the Lions Hall last week...

By Chris Simon The Innisfill Scope, July 1, 2009

FRANCINE KOPUN, Toronto Star, June 30, 2009

FoodShare Serves Up Big Ideas with a Side Salad

In the shadow of the Dufferin Mall and No Frills, FoodShare is planting the seeds of a radical food system.

By Kate Rabinowicz in Torontoist Culture, Events on June 24, 2009

Art Gets a Move On

FoodShare's van gets a makeover as part of the Art on the Move project.

Toronto Star June 22, 2009

FOOD INC.

Hungry for Change? Then go see FOOD INC.
You are what you eat. It is a simple expression that bears scary implications as you watch the acclaimed documentary, FOOD, INC.

Backyard chickens? Toronto thinking it over

Tuesday, June 16, 2009 CBC News

But sometimes the cost of farmers' markets or organically produced food is out of reach for some budgets.

JENNIFER BROWN
SPECIAL TO THE STAR Jun 06, 2009

Gardening to the glory of God

TORONTO, ON—Gardening is a vital form of Christian witness, one that too many churches are ignoring, says Paul Abell, stewardship coordinator for A Rocha.

By Mags Storey, ChristianWeek.org, June 5, 2009

CEREAL KILLER: Too many mouths to feed
Funds can't match breakfast plan demands

For the past decade, Francoise Naraine has sent her children to school early for breakfast.

After separating from her husband, putting food on the breakfast table got a lot tougher for the 47-year-old single mom.

The Nutritious Students breakfast program at Highfield Jr. Public School has been a "godsend," Naraine said.

"If it wasn't for the program, I don't know what I would do," she told the Sunday Sun. "It means a lot (to my family) and my kids love it."

Naraine has worked as a volunteer since 2000 with FoodShare, a grass-roots non-profit dedicated to helping individuals and communities feed themselves.

By SHARON LEM, SUN MEDIA, 31st May 2009

Getting fresh in the city

SASHA CHAPMAN
Special to The Globe and Mail, Monday, May. 25, 2009

Food bank targets freshly laid off

Forget French fries. Make a low-cost salad instead.

CARLY WEEKS, Globe and Mail, Thursday, May 21, 2009

Eat Your Veggies

Good Food boxes deliver local fresh produce to churches

Noelle Boughton
Manadate Special Edition May 2009

Click here to read the rest of the article ( PDF download)

Food is not just about fuelling the body

At Winchester Public School, students have developed a taste for kale and parsley.

Anywhere else in the city, these two leafy greens would be universally reviled by the elementary-school set, but these kids have helped sprout the seeds, tend the plants and harvest the vegetables.

KIM HONEY, FOOD EDITOR April 10, 2009, Toronto Star

Before peas, there are shoots

A sea of tender green pea shoots mature in a greenhouse behind CAMH.

PAMELA CUTHBERT Mar 30, 2009 Toronto Star,

Tis The Season To Eat Local, Toronto

With Spring upon us, and the potential for a bountiful growing season just around the corner, Toronto food lovers and locavores alike have a lot to look forward to.

Posted by Lauren, BlogTO.com, March 28, 2009

Click here for video link

The Great Big Crunch 2009 Media:
Rogers TV: A GREENER TORONTO

EPISODE 20 - MARCH 26TH 2009

Taming T.O.'s fear of food production

URBAN FOODIES PUSH CITY TO SOW UP SWATHS OF WASTED PUBLIC SOD

Sometimes it seems as though our “world class” city can provide just about everything except the fundamentals of life.

MIKE SMITH, NOW | March 17-24, 2009

Hunger a top health issue says top doc

Toronto's chief medical officer called on the Ontario government yesterday to "put food in the budget" to improve lives--and life-expectancies--of the poor.

Sun Media March 19, 2009
Click here to read the rest of the article

The Great Big Crunch 2009 Media:

Great big crunch for dietary change

Kenora Daily Miner and News
By Jon Thompson March 5, 2009

The Great Big Crunch 2009 Media:

A great big crunch (with video)

Posted By Heather Rivers, HEALTH REPORTER
WoodStock Sentinel Review
March 7, 2009

The Great Big Crunch 2009 Media:

The Great Big Crunch in Sudbury

By: Mr. Productions on 3/12/2009 2:36:19 PM
NorthernLife.ca: Sudbury

The Great Big Crunch 2009 Media:

Great Big Crunch

Tri-County Regional School Board

Created at 3/9/2009 3:40 PM by Bill Curry

The Great Big Crunch 2009 Media:

The Great Big Crunch

Miramichi, NB School District 6

The Great Big Crunch 2009 Media:

Big Crunch

The Wingham Advance-Times, Wingham ON
March 11th, 2009

Click here to read the rest of the article
Click to SEE THE VIDEO

The Great Big Crunch 2009 Media:

Big Crunch, a taste of healthy living

About 4,500 Sarnia-Lambton students bought into healthy eating on Thursday by simultaneously — and loudly — biting into apples at exactly 9:30 a.m.

“Last year we had two schools take part. This year we’ve had 14 so we’ve enjoyed a huge success this year,” said Leslie Palimaka, the county’s student nutrition coordinator.

TYLER KULA, March 6, 2009 The Observer (Lambton county)

The Great Big Crunch 2009 Media:
all the way from New Brunswick

An apple a day...

How do you like them apples? Well, District 16 students liked them just fine last week as they participated in a national challenge to encourage healthy eating.

February 16th, 2009; Wendy Patterson The Miramichi Leader

Savour

Vol. 1 Serve Up The Jewels Of Ontario’s Farmland

Click to donwload free PDF of the first issue of Savour

EPISODE 15 - FEB 19, 2009

A Greener Toronto

click on link to view video featuring FoodShare's Good Food Box and compost king Mike Nevin >>

Farms in the city win backing-but not pigs in the city

Councillor backs away from permitting chickens or livestock

Corn stalks growing along the Gardiner Expressway, tomato plants lining University Avenue, and chicken coops in thousands of backyards.

Friday, February 06, 2009 Presented by Financial Post

Activists envision crops along Gardiner

Urban farmers push city to grow food instead of grass and flowers in public spaces

VANESSA LU February 06, 2009 Toronto Star

Urban farming catches interest

By BRYN WEESE, SUN MEDIA, 6th February 2009,

The whole city is a farm – but not for chickens

by Allison Hanes February 05, 2009, 4:26 PM, National Post

Nutrition programs need cash

Advocates say school breakfast initiatives need $1.48M more from city this year to survive.

Laurie Monsebraaten Toronto Star, Jan 09, 2009 04:30 AM

He works wonders with food scraps

For Mike Nevin, composting is a way of life.

Winter biking basics

You’ve got the will. Now here’s how to avoid taking a spill.

by Anil Kanji greenlivingonline.com

If United Way campaign fails, 'city will suffer'

"We have a social safety net in the city and it's made up of community agencies," said Debbie Field, executive director of FoodShare Toronto. "If it wasn't for the United Way, we couldn't survive.

"If the United Way doesn't make its target, then the whole city of Toronto will suffer."

JASON MILLER, NOOR JAVED, The Toronto Star, January 08, 2009