What are we doing about food security? What are the key challenges when it comes to making sure we have a good food available to everyone in NL? What more could we be doing?
How to Feed a Province
Imagine a province where just about everyone has a garden, many have chickens (and maybe a cow), there are more sheep than people, and we ship in only a small proportion of what we eat. Welcome to Newfoundland and Labrador’s past. We’ve been there. But then our diets and expectations around food changed.
Farming
Number of farms in NL has dropped almost 90% since 1951. Between 2011 and 2016 the number of NL farms dropped 20%, the largest percentage decline in the country. In 2016, NL farms made up less than 1% of all farms in Canada.
Source: Statistics Canada
Number of Farmers 2011-2016 : There were 500 farm operators in Newfoundland and Labrador in 2016, down 25% from 2011.
Source: Statistics Canada
Types of Crops Grown: Hay accounts for 79% of the total crops grown in NL, field crops make up 8%.
Source: Statistics Canada
Bridging the Divide with Farming
Connecting with the land, tilling and tending it, is a fundamental human experience, one that transcends borders. In order to harness the potential of this shared practice, the Association for New Canadians (ANC) has started their “Bridge the Divide” program, which pairs job-seeking refugees with local farm employers.
Vital Signs NL 