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unding Areas
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AY, MAY 24, -4614 THURSD
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RAY AT 250-734 LIVINGSTONE-G
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Dan Morris Nanaimo’s Listing Specialist
THURSDAY, MAY 24, 2012
RDN unveils regional plan for agriculture
www.nanaimobulletin.com
VOL. 24, NO. 11
FOOD IN FOCUS While a UN representative rips into Canada for its weak effort on national strategies to address food production and poverty crises, the RDN presents its draft plan to enhance agriculture in the mid-Island
Each office independently owned and operated
Canada urged to implement food strategy
BY RACHEL STERN
BY TOBY GORMAN
Agriculture was an important economic contributor to the region for the last 200 years, but farmers are facing challenges seriously affecting food production. Pressure to develop property in the Agricultural Land Reserve, labour shortages, rising transportation costs, climate change and more are issues area food producers are tackling to continue growing and producing. Concerns about food sustainability and security were brought to the attention of Regional District of Nanaimo directors and in 2010, the RDN board directed staff to go after funding to help develop an official Agricultural Area Plan. In 2011 the planning and consultation process began and now the draft is available for public comment through an online survey – www.growingourfuture.ca – until June 11. “It was definitely grassroots driven – it was community driven,” said Lainya Rowett, RDN senior planner, about the decision to create the plan. “We are confident the majority of the issues have been identified, in terms of the issues and barriers and constraints to agriculture.” The RDN and members of the agricultural advisory commit-
A UN representative has sparked debate in Canada for a national food strategy. And many of the topics Olivier De Schutter, the UN’s special rapporteur for food, touched on during his 11-day visit to Canada, which included time spent in inner cities and on First Nation reserves, can be applied to Nanaimo, says a local food expert. De Schutter criticized the Canadian government for not having a national food strategy while more than 900,000 households – about 2.5 million citizens – are “in a desperate situation” when it comes to obtaining adequate daily nourishment. De Schutter, who has an extensive background in governance and human rights, said financial inequality is getting worse, with the top 10 per cent now 10 times more affluent than the bottom 10 per cent, and that minimum wage and social assistance levels are far too low for people to properly nourish themselves. Marjorie Stewart, board chairwoman of the Foodshare Society and president of the multi-stakeholder Heritage Foodservice Co-op, said a person doesn’t have to look far to see how families are struggling to provide both food and shelter. ◆ See ‘CHANGE’ /7
THE NEWS BULLETIN
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tee, consisting of representatives from farming groups and other interested stakeholder organizations, provided input toward creating the draft plan. Information was also gathered through public consultation.
Joanne McLeod, a member of the committee and the NanaimoCedar Farmers’ Institute, said she was impressed with the amount of consultation and is pleased with the report. “We had tons of public input,”
she said. “Protection of the ALR is very important and if the land continues to be excluded for development, we will lose our farmland and it’s very important to protect our farmland.” ◆ See ‘DRAFT’ ‘ /7