Simcoe drafts food and agriculture charter

By Sara Ross, Orillia Packet & Times August 7, 2012 

SIMCOE COUNTY – The County of Simcoe is continuing to seek public input in finalizing its food and agriculture charter.

“While we facilitated the work, it’s actually the community that created this document,” Brittany Doner, the county’s project consultant on the food and agriculture charter, said Tuesday.

The charter is being developed to provide support for a sustainable local food system that will improve the economic viability of the county’s food industry.

“It’s meant to be a document that outlines the values and beliefs of the community so that communities, businesses and government and other decision makers can refer to this document when making choices related to our local food system,” Doner said.

The charter, now in its first draft, has been developed through a civic engagement process.

This included an online survey and visioning day at Lakehead University in February.

“We took all of this community feedback and we compiled it into a document, which basically outlines all of the community’s views, beliefs and values towards our local food and agriculture system,” Doner said.

With the first draft of the charter complete, five public consultations are being held throughout the county.

The first consultation will take place Sept. 20 at the Ramara Centre at 5482 Hwy. 12. It runs from 5 to 7 p.m.

Midland’s North Simcoe Sports and Recreation Centre will host the second public consultation Sept. 27 from 5 to 7 p.m.

The third will be held Oct. 10 at the Bradford and District Memorial Community Centre from 5 to 7 p.m.

The Wasaga Beach RecPlex-Oakview Centre will host the fourth Oct. 18 from 5 to 7 p.m.

The final public consultation will be in Barrie at the Southshore Community Centre Oct. 24 from 1 to 3 p.m.

“It’s actually going to be a really fun opportunity to interact and discuss our local food system,” Doner said.

Those who haven’t attended any of the public consultations to date are invited to attend, along with those who have.

“If you’ve been involved the whole way, you’re definitely going to want to come out and see the progress we’ve made,” Doner said. “If you haven’t been involved, this isn’t exclusive. It’s actually a great opportunity to come out, get caught up and get involved.”

There will be a question-and-answer period at each public consultation.

“People can actually ask questions and interact with people who have been working on the charter,” Doner said.

The county got involved in the food and agriculture charter in 2010 after a request from Food Partners Alliance in Simcoe County.

From there, members along the entire food system — from farmers to retailers and restaurateurs — have been working together under the Simcoe County food and agriculture charter steering committee.

In Simcoe County, the food system includes growing, harvesting, marketing, processing, packaging and distributing food, along with the purchasing, preparation, eating and disposal of food waste and packaging, states the charter.

“It affects a lot of different industries, but also, it affects food security,” Doner said. “We need to make sure we’re producing enough food to feed everybody and the only way that we can do that is by ensuring the whole food system runs well and it’s supported by all the things going into it.”

The local food charter has four principles: equal access to healthy and nutritious food for all, a close-knit community achieved through a celebration of food and culture, sustainable economic growth and prosperity and agricultural stability and environmental responsibility.

“This county is actually founded on agriculture, so that’s a strong tradition around here in Simcoe County,” Doner said. “It’s something you want to keep going.”

The charter aims to make it easier to get into the farming business, to protect farmland and promote economic growth by creating new jobs and new industry.

“Ideally, too, what we were hoping this document would do is also increase education and employment in the areas of food and agriculture,” Doner said. “That’s something we’d kind of like to see a bit more of.”

The final draft is expected to be complete by the end of 2012.

“We’re asking county council to adopt the charter once we have a final draft,” Doner said. “Then it will just become a guide.”