Preface

The Healthier Food, Healthier People Project involved two main components, each of which are described in this report:

1. The Inventory of Atlantic Canada Food Security Initiatives

The project supported the development of an inventory describing food security initiatives and stakeholders across Atlantic Canada. The inventory can be used as a tool for stakeholders as they move forward with their food security initiatives, and by government for strategic decisions regarding possible future funding or policy development.

2. The Atlantic Food Security Forum

The Atlantic Food Security Forum was held on March 14 and 15, 2006, in Halifax, Nova Scotia. Forum participants included a limited number of people (just over 30 individuals with a minimum of five from each Atlantic province) working on food security issues in Atlantic Canada.

In order to guide the project, a steering committee was created. The Healthier Food, Healthier People Project Steering Committee was composed of representatives from all four Atlantic provinces involved in a wide array of food security initiatives, including Family Resource Centres and other community-based organizations, provincial governments, community health centres, and universities. The group met three times by teleconference between January and March 2006. Steering Committee members’ input into the development of the participant list and the forum agenda were invaluable in ensuring participation from rural and remote as well as urban communities throughout the region and in ensuring a practical and relevant agenda. (See Appendix A for a list of the Healthier Food, Healthier People Project Steering Committee members.)

This project experienced a number of limitations, including delays and uncertainty related to funding, the short time frame for the project, and the challenge of Public Health Agency of Canada and Health Canada staff having to work on this project over and above their regular work duties.

The Healthier Food, Healthier People Project was a worthwhile endeavour for the Public Health Agency of Canada and Health Canada and for those from around the region who participated. These departments and various stakeholders are now more informed of the work happening on food security around the region, and forum participants said they appreciated the opportunity to discuss and share strategies for addressing food insecurity with those in other parts of Atlantic Canada.

 

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