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RECENT MEDIA COVERAGE

 

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.

Click here to watch the video

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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.

Click here to read the rest of the article.

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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.

Click here to read the rest of the article.

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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.

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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.

Click here to read the rest of the article.

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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.

Click here to read the rest of the article.

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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.

Click here to read the rest of the article.

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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.

Click here to read the rest of the article.

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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.

Click here to read the rest of the article.

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Kate's Kitchen

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

Download PDF

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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.

Click here to read the rest of the article.

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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.

Click here to read the rest of the article.

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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?

Click here to read the rest of the article.

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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.

Click here to read the rest of the article.

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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.

Click here to read the rest of the article.

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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.

Click here to read the rest of the article.

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FoodShare on Radio Canada International Chinese program April 26

Click here to read the rest of the article.

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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.

Click here to read the rest of the article.

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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.

Click here to read the rest of the article.

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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.

Click here to read the rest of the article.

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Finding their Grove

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

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

Click here to read the rest of the article.

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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

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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

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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.

Click here to read the rest of the article.

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Recipe for Change-Foodshare

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

Click here to read the rest of the article

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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.

Click here to read the rest of the article

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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 read the rest of the article

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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.

Click here to watch the United Way video

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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".

Download the Jan/Feb 2010 TYFPC Newsletter

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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.

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.

Click here to read the rest of the article

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Golden Whisk Awards: Our top 10 recipes of 2009

Toronto Star, December 30, 2009

Click here to read the rest of the article

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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.

Click here to read the rest of the article

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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.

Click here to read the rest of the article

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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

Click here to read the rest of the article

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

BY WAYNE ROBERTS, NOW, November 5, 2009

Click here to read the rest of the article

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Toronto Youth Food Policy Council Newsletter
November-December 2009

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

Download the PDF newsletter here >>

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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

Click here to read the rest of the article

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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 read the rest of the article

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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

Click here to see the video

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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

Click here to read the rest of the article

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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

Click here to read the rest of the article

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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

Click here to read the rest of the article

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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

Click here to read the rest of the article

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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

Click here to read the rest of the article

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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

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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

Click here to read the rest of the article

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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

Click here to read the rest of the article

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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

Click here to read the rest of the article

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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

Click here to read the rest of the article

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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

Click here to read the rest of the article

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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

Click here to read the rest of the article

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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

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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

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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)

Click here to read the rest of the article

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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

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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

Click here to read the rest of the article

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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

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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

Click here to read the rest of the article

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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

Click here to read the rest of the article

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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

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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)

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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

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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,

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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

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

EPISODE 20 - MARCH 26TH 2009

Click here for video link

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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

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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
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The Great Big Crunch 2009 Media:

Great big crunch for dietary change

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

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The Great Big Crunch 2009 Media:

A great big crunch (with video)

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

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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

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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

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The Great Big Crunch 2009 Media:

The Great Big Crunch

Miramichi, NB School District 6

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The Great Big Crunch 2009 Media:

Big Crunch

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

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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)

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

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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

click here to read the rest of the article

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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

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A Greener Toronto

EPISODE 15 - FEB 19, 2009

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

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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

click here to read the rest of the article

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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

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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,

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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

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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

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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

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Winter biking basics

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

by Anil Kanji greenlivingonline.com

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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

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Video: United Way Donations Down

Debbie Field on Global's 6pm News January 7, 2009 with Sean Mallen

click here to view the video


 

Projects breaks eggs and barriers

Youth learn teamwork and cooking skills in program that boasts 80 per cent success rate.

Leslie Ferenc, Toronto Star, Friday October 10, 2008

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The Market Basket - Sunshine Garden Market

Sunshine Garden Market
1001 Queen Street West at Ossington Avenue
Mondays and Thursdays, 10:30am - 12:30pm
July 7th - October 13th (note - on holiday Mondays the market will take on the Tuesday)

When people say they want the produce at their farmers market to be local, what they generally mean is from an area somewhere within a hundred miles or so of the city. But what they don’t realize is that one local market offers a selection of items grown in the city, specifically right downtown.

from Taste T.O.
by Sheryl Kirby in Market Basket on July 21, 2008 at 8:09 am

click here to read the rest of the article

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FOOD CRISIS

Today on Listen Up – the Global Food Crisis. As food prices climb, millions around the world are pushed deeper into poverty and hunger.

It’s been called “the silent tsunami.” A crisis unprecedented in the last half century. Food prices are going up. And while that may represent an inconvenience to most of us in the wealthy West, for the already poor, it can mean catastrophe. Today, we'll uncover some of the causes of the crisis and explore solutions, as we seek a Christian response.

from ListenUp TV, June 8, 2008

click here to read the rest of the article

click here to view the program


Look who's buzzing up the DVP

"Bees pollinate 80% of the food we eat," says Ravenna Barker, coordinator of the urban honeybee program run by Foodshare, a Toronto group devoted to urban agriculture. "Without them, we'd have to survive on wheat, corn and beets and not much more." They also make everyone's favourite healthy sweetener and, when tending to them, give you an excuse to dress up like one of the scientists from E.T.

But the news has carried reports that, all over North America, bees are dying in alarming numbers from mysterious causes. The extinction of the insect could mean a serious famine. One way to combat that is urban beekeeping.

Alison Broverman, National Post
Published: Saturday, May 17, 2008

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Seeds And The City Pt. 1: Urban Agriculture and Activism - Food Security For All

Planting an extra row of carrots or onions may seem like a meagre attempt to solve hunger and health crises in the city, but urban agriculturalists and anti-poverty activists don't see it that way. They believe growing fruits and vegetables in public spaces, backyards or on balconies encompasses the fights for food security, affordable housing, environmental awareness and adequate wages for all.

Monday May 12, 2008
Story and images by Shawne McKeown, CityNews

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Funding for school nutrition programs welcomed

News this week: The Ontario government will be spending more in school nutrition programs couldn't have come at a better time, Lori Nikkel says.

The chairperson of the Ontario Student Nutrition Network said breakfast, lunch and snack programs in Toronto schools have spread so rapidly there was no money for more.

Metroland Media Group Ltd., March 20, 2008

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ONE BIG BITE –
CRUNCH IS THE SOUND OF 200 CORTLANDS AT CAMBRIDGE SCHOOL

CRUNCH!
With a countdown similar to a space shuttle liftoff, Cambridge students made one big noise chomping into fresh Valley Cortland apples March 6.

Taking part in the nationwide “Big Crunch,” the kids did indeed make a significant noise as they gathered in the school gym after a day of stories and questions about apples.

Kings County Register, March 13, 2008

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Fallout from the Great Big Crunch

Cost of an apple - 50 cents
Cost for the tooth fairy - $2 (or whatever it is these days)
Cost of loosing your tooth during the first annual Great Big Crunch - PRICELESS!

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INSATIABLE: TORONTO BEES RAISED ON THE ROOF:
Buzzing on city honey

Much ink has been spilled over the worldwide disappearance of honeybees over the past couple of years. There are many threats to this sensitive species, from parasitic varroa mites to industrial agriculture to the mysterious colony collapse disorder that seems to be plaguing hives south of the border. But the biggest threat to our city's bees may be the Ontario Beekeeping Act, which makes it illegal to put a hive within 30 metres of an urban dwelling. Which is a shame, because Toronto honey tastes so good.

SASHA CHAPMAN, The Globe and Mail, February 23, 2008

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No more fries with that for Quebec students

Young Quebecers won't be able to enjoy a side of fries and Coke for lunch anymore as the first phase of a strict junk food policy for schools came into effect Monday.

Deep fryers and soft drinks are now banned from high school cafeterias, and lunches must contain at least one vegetable under Quebec's new school food regulations the government hopes will encourage healthier eating habits.

CBC News, Monday, January 7, 2008
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FoodShare receives Ontario Trillium Foundation Award

FoodShare's Community Garden Network was awarded a 'Great Grant Award' by the Ontario Trillium Foundation during its 25th anniversary celebration Monday evening.

The awards recognize "the vision, commitment and energy of Ontario's volunteers and community organizations," said Alex Waugh, grant review team chair for Toronto.

LISA RAINFORD, insidetoronto.com, December 6, 2007
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Feeding Hungry Minds

The Breakfast for Learning program is more than a worthy
charity; it can be a child’s meal ticket to a great future.

by Kathryn Dorell, Canadian Living Magazine, November 2007

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'Do-good' programs 1st to lose
Need land transfer tax: Miller

Groups like Foodshare which help thousands of Toronto residents would be the first to lose city funding if the mayor's proposed land transfer tax isn't passed by council tomorrow, Mayor David Miller said yesterday.

"These kind of programs are the first on the chopping block to go," Miller said at the opening of a Foodshare training and education centre on Croatia St.

"The tax will allow us to invest in communities and create new opportunities," he said.

By TOM GODFREY, SUN MEDIA, October 21, 2007

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Good food for all
Visiting community projects reveals how important fresh food is to everybod
y

Give thanks for your friends, family and health, of course. But give thanks to the farmers (hopefully they're from Ontario) who raised your turkeys and "grew" your side dishes and desserts (potatoes, brussels sprouts, corn, sweet potatoes, pumpkins and the like).

And, whether your meal is sparse or over-abundant, give thanks to the food security activists who strive to help everyone get fed.

by Jennifer Bain, October 2, 2007 , Toronto Star

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“These kids hate veggies”
Anti-Giambrone residents’ group bulldozes FoodShare garden

City Councillor Adam Giambrone pulled the plug on a FoodShare community garden at Erwin Krickhahn Park last week. You'd think the neighbourhood would be fuming at the removal of a program that could have offered locals in the hard-hit area space to grow their own food.

But it was residents, or some of them, who fought it the same foes of Giambrone who fought traffic calming measures, bike lanes and tree planting along Lansdowne.

ByPaul Terefenk, NOW Magazine, September 27, 2007

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There's sex education, why not food education?

There's a good reason why environmentalists should be interested in what children and teenagers eat. It has everything to do with their understanding and respect – for themselves, and ultimately for nature.

by Cameron Smith Sept. 22, 2007 Toronto Star
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Campaign cuisine: from farm-fresh eggs to congealed takeout
NDP camp: A lame airport burger and fries temporarily breaks the tyranny of all that local, organic, fair-trade fare

JEFF GRAY: The Globe and Mail, September 19, 2007

If you forget which party's media bus you're on, the food on Howard Hampton's NDP campaign trail is a dead giveaway: The first morning, we had granola. (For the record, I often eat granola, as do some of my best friends.)

Party operatives handed out a glossy sheet to the media explaining that the campaign tour's food comes from the catering wing of the organization FoodShare, and features local and organic foods in order to "reduce the ecological footprint of each meal eaten on the NDP tour." Even the cutlery was biodegradeable.

While one morning's "Indian breakfast burrito" - which featured eggs from the Quinte Organic Farmers' Co-operative, we were told - was excellent, the "aged Toscano cheese made from sheep's milk produced by Ontario Mennonite shepherds" promised in the bumph didn't materialize in the first week.

Mr. Hampton, who zipped ahead to campaign events in a hybrid sport utility vehicle, didn't eat with reporters.

Highlight: Tie between the zucchini frittata, the secret stash of fair-trade chocolate bars in a drawer by the fridge and copious cans of Creemore, Sleeman and Molson Canadian.

Lowlight: Rubbery French fries and lukewarm burgers at the Thunder Bay airport, which was actually a nice escape from the healthy virtuousness of the tour bus food.

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FoodShare’s Good Food Box

FoodShare’s Good Food Box is a box of produce available by special order to the general public. The boxes come in a variety of sizes with options ranging from a small box for $12 to a large box of organically grown produce for $32. These are very affordable prices for delicious fruits and vegetables, which may include a box of Clementines or a bag of freshly harvested tomatoes.

www.tasteto.com August 17, 2007
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FoodShare needs cash to 'replant':
'Royal Conservatory of Food' committed to cultivating new future

The Royal Conservatory of Music has a new neighbour that has playfully nicknamed itself the People's Conservatory of Food.

Its real name is FoodShare Toronto and it has been tackling food and hunger issues for 22 years.

But unless you've signed up for delivery of low-cost, fresh-food boxes, created a community garden, started a school salad bar, or rented an industrial kitchen to launch a food business, FoodShare has probably flown under your radar.

by Jennifer Bain, Food Editor, July 04, 2007 Toronto Star
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Healthy eating program offers breast cancer
survivors food tips and social contact

For many women, a breast cancer diagnosis can throw the often delicate balance of work and family off kilter. The result is often personal neglect, especially when it comes to eating right.


FoodShare Toronto’s Good Food for Life program aims to teach pre-menopausal women, who have or have had breast cancer
within the last three years, how to stay on course by eating well and staying healthy. Once a week for eight weeks, groups of 10
to 12 women get together to learn, cook and socialize.

by Pierre Lachaîne, May 15, 2007 The Medical Post

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Eat with Earth's health in mind

Our food system, the very thing that sustains us, has turned into an environmental hazard, spewing out vast amounts of greenhouse gases that contribute to global warming, researchers say.

"The continued use of massive quantities of petroleum, both in the production of synthetic fertilizers and machinery used in food production and in transporting our food across the globe, is clearly unsustainable," according to a 2005 study called Fighting Global Warming at the Farmer's Market.

Elvira Cordileone April 21, 2007, Toronto Star

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Recovery on the menu

Breast cancer survivors bond over healthy meals and shared experience

We all know that breaking bread together builds relationships and nurtures the soul. So when Toronto's Susan Porrit heard about Good Food For Life, a free nutritional support program for survivors of breast cancer, she was intrigued.

MARILYN LINTON, Apr. 15, 2007 Toronto Sun

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Nutritious fare is tough sell in schools

Lucrative fast-food contracts, plus students' taste for sugar and grease, thwart efforts to promote healthy eating

ANNAPOLIS VALLEY, N.S., AND TORONTO — Colin Sneyd sits at a crowded lunch table eating his sliced chicken breast, cheese, carrot sticks and apple. As he sips a small box of milk, a friend across the cafeteria table inhales a mound of gravy-soaked poutine. Another snacks on a bag of chips, washed down with a can of pop.

Behind the counter, a worker at Toronto's Northern Secondary School slits open bags of frozen fries, plunging them into boiling oil.

"People just have fries for lunch," says Colin, a slight 15-year-old who brings his own packed lunch to school. "I think it's kind of ridiculous. I don't think they need to serve fries. If you're trying to get kids to eat healthier, you should serve them only nutritious food."

CAROLINE ALPHONSO Jan.20, 2007 Globe and Mail

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MP seeks to reduce hunger in schools
New Democrat lobbies for national program to provide nutritious meals, cut child obesity

Canada needs a national food program to reduce hunger pangs, as well as obesity, suffered by schoolchildren, New Democrat MP Olivia Chow says.

Bruce Campion-Smith Toronto Star, January 17, 2007

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Sexy farmers and the end of organic?

An organic food conference in Guelph explores the push to eat locally and the need to make farming sexy. It'll still rot your teeth, but at least it's organic.

Eating organic isn't good enough. It's becoming better to buy locally, know where your food comes from and befriend farmers

JEN GERSON Toronto Star, Jan. 31, 2007

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A lesson from the lunch box

You've survived the first week of school. Morning routines are still not perfect — they never will be — but things are starting to click, a little.

So maybe it's time to take things up a notch and seize the learning opportunity that exists in your children's lunches. Lunch can be a chance for kids to learn about nutrition, health, balanced diets and the importance of eating right.

STUART LAIDLAW, Toronto Star Sep. 11, 2006.

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The Seed in the Stone: Growing food in the concrete jungle

City backyards are good for more than swimming pools and lawn chairs.

I hate to say it, but the warm months of summer are coming to a close. The Ontario tomatoes, corn and peaches, which are currently replacing tasteless international imports, are helping me get over my end-of-season nostalgia. And despite the fact that I’m living in downtown Toronto, I’m finding that the fall harvest is happening closer to my kitchen than I expected.

Kristen Howe, The Dominion, Sept 11, 2006

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This is the real meal

With Richard Linklater's film version of Eric Schlosser's blockbuster Fast Food Nation scheduled to hit theatres this fall, the subject of where our food comes from is poised to become one of the hot-button issues of the year.

by Christopher Frey
Special to The Globe and Mail, August 11, 2006

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Is Food Supply as Safe as Canadians Believe?

Most would not think of investigating food policies, production options, distribution systems and food security in their region or in a new location they're considering. Yet, food vulnerability is an increasing reality in this century, whether it takes the form of bird flu, drought, soaring fuel prices, vanishing agricultural land or a host of unpredictable events.

by PJ Wade, REALTYTIMES, July 25, 2006

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Thinking locally wins food group $1-million
Non-profit greenbelt organization awards cash injection to promote ethical farming

Lori Stahlbrand's dream of establishing a strong network for locally grown food in Ontario is moving one giant step closer to reality today as the ethical-food guru receives a $1-million cash injection for her efforts.

Her non-profit organization, Local Flavour Plus, is being awarded $1-million by the Friends of the Greenbelt to promote ethical farming, loosely defined as farming that promotes environmental, social and financial benefits in local economies.

by Scott Deveau, THE GLOBE AND MAIL, July 11, 2006

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An apple a day CAN keep the doctor away

If three apples cost $1.87 while three boxes of macaroni and cheese cost $1.65 at your grocery store, which would you buy to feed your family if money was tight? Sadly, this is not a math problem in a grade school textbook. People living in poverty in Toronto face this kind of decision every day.

by Milvi Tiislar, TORONTO STAR, Monday Jul. 3, 2006

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Canadian kids fail health report card

Educating your children about food makes sense
With the end to the school year comes the annual report card. And things are not looking good for Canadian kids - at least when it comes to the Active Healthy Kids Canada Report Card on Physical Activity for Children and Youth. For the second year in a row, youngsters continue to maintain a failing grade. Simply put, our kids are headed for trouble as they continue on the road to overweight and obesity as a result of sedentary living and fat-laden food styles.

by Rosie Schwartz, NATIONAL POST, Wednesday May 30, 2006

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Celebs Tackle Childhood Obesity

We are a society obsessed with celebrities. Witness the media coverage of the state of Paul Mccartney's marriage. While some figures may use this celebrity to step up to the podium to advance their causes, not all may achieve their goals.

by Rosie Schwartz, NATIONAL POST, Wednesday May 24, 2006

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Adventures in Urban Bee Keeping

A unique partnership with a few hundred thousand honeybees is creating numerous educational and micro-enterprise opportunities in Toronto.

by Jennifer Skelton - photos by Laura Berman
BRIARPATCH MAGAZINE  June/July 2006

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Feeding youth jobs and life skills

When Shem Mwagni arrived in Canada from Kenya nearly five years ago, he was eager to gain work experience so he could land a job. He never imagined that gaining that experience would lead him to university.

By Linda White, TORONTO SUN, Tuesday January 11, 2006

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Dreaming of a green Christmas

Have yourself a Kyoto-friendly Christmas. Make your yuletide green. Environmentally green.

by Stuart Laidlaw, TORONTO STAR, Dec. 18, 2005

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Making schoolchildren food-literate is charity's goal

Having successfully introduced one idea to Toronto schools — that given a choice, most students will eat healthy, fresh food — the charity FoodShare Toronto is putting the finishing touches to its next idea: that students are ready to learn a lot more about food.

by Cameron Smith, TORONTO STAR, October 29, 2005

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A fresh approach
Seventeen Toronto elementary schools now offer salad bar programs at lunch ...

by Jennifer Bain, TORONTO STAR, October 5, 2005

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