Food rescue to address hunger
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Food rescue to address hunger

We all have seen the cost of food go up. Statistics Canada reported 11 percent higher grocery inflation in December 2022 than December 2021. You’ve probably already noticed that eggs are 17 percent more expensive than a year ago, and tomato prices increased 22 percent. Addressing hunger is more urgent than ever.  In recent years,…

Federal boost to charitable famine response
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Federal boost to charitable famine response

The government of Canada has provided $14 million to the Canadian Foodgrains Bank as a response to the global hunger crisis. These funds are going to be used to help respond to the food crisis in the Horn of Africa – specifically in Ethiopia, South Sudan, Kenya and Somalia. “We are likely weeks* away from…

The Garden of Hope
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The Garden of Hope

In the last two years, regions of East Africa have endured four back-to-back failed rainy seasons. This long drought has pushed an estimated 20 million people into acute food insecurity. One person struggling with the impact of the drought is smallholder farmer Kadzo Kenga Safari, a single mother, who lives in Kilifi County, Kenya. For…

Come and eat
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Come and eat

It was my sister-in-law who first pointed out to me that there is free food going to waste all over our neighbourhood. Every growing season, fruit trees hang over the fences of yards and spill into streets and alleyways. The neighbour who owns one of these trees tells me that the fruit is free for…

Deregulation of GMOs causes concern for Council of Churches
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Deregulation of GMOs causes concern for Council of Churches

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For three months last year, Health Canada invited feedback on new rules for “Novel Food Regulations” with a specific focus on plant breeding. Since 2006, the insertion of foreign DNA has triggered a Health Canada safety assessment of genetically modified plants and foods. As new genetic engineering techniques like CRISPR have been developed, plant breeders…

The Bad Kimchi Club
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The Bad Kimchi Club

It’s one of those days – all gray and grouchy, the sun seeming to have pulled the sheets over its head and gone back to sleep. I’m sipping coffee on my yellow recliner, trying to feel as happy as the chair looks.  And that’s when she calls. “Emily?” my pastor’s wife says. “I made you…

Canada’s place in a global hunger crisis
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Canada’s place in a global hunger crisis

Food prices reached their highest level ever this spring, adding to growing concerns about a global hunger crisis and hindering the work of humanitarian organizations. The food price spike was triggered by the conflict between Russia and Ukraine, both major players in worldwide food production. Between them, Russia and Ukraine account for about 30 percent…

Making Soup
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Making Soup

“When I boil these leftover bones / to loosen the flesh and eke out / every bit of gelatinous goodness…”

Redemptive eating
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Redemptive eating

Disclaimer: I am not a nutritionist or a dietician. Nor do I assert that veganism is the only way for everyone or the best way for all. However, it is an option for an everyday lifestyle, or for someone who wants to explore one or two days, or even one or two meals, without meat….

Food in small places
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Food in small places

I’m the proud owner of a small house. It was built in 1929 on a plot of land that was once an orchard, about a 10-minute walk from Victoria Park in the heart of Kitchener, Ontario. The architectural style is called “Germanic Cottage,” and it was designed by an architect named Edward Reitzel, whose blueprints…

Feeding the imagination
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Feeding the imagination

This spring, our city is running a healthy eating challenge, and our family was lucky to be chosen to participate. When I put in the application, I hoped it would give us something new to do during another stay-local holiday far away from our wider family. We like cooking together and usually like to try…

From my garden window
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From my garden window

Tulips are poking through the soil. My seed order has arrived. Even the thought of returning to the garden renews my spirit. Fresh, nutritious food during the summer and fall, with enough to share, is an extra blessing. Easy access to local, nutritious food should be true for far more people than it currently is….