At the end of April,
Agrocrop Exports Ltd. (AEL) and their employees celebrated the groundbreaking of their new 171,000 square ft. state-of-the-art processing and packaging facility in Bolton.
"The new and larger facility in Bolton means we can aggressively pursue new export opportunities," AEL CFO Peter Niclasen told us. "That means increased exports of Canadian grown pulses plus increased employment opportunities."
The Golden Horseshoe Food and Farming Alliance was one of 23 grant recipients during Local Food Week to receive funding from the Greenbelt Fund's Local Food Investment Fund.
The GHFFA and the
Toronto and Region Conservation Authority are thrilled to have received
$100,000 to increase municipal local food procurement across 3 Golden Horseshoe Municipalities in long-term care facilities.
541 Eatery understands the power good food can have in strengthening communities, and has been harnessing that power now for a couple of years.
Read our latest blog post on this Barton Street Eatery and Exchange that has brought good food and a quality community space
to a neighbourhood that sees some residents struggling with food security.
541 Eatery sources some of their produce from local farms and gardens, and this spring they planted new garden beds for their own community garden in a nearby parking lot.
Hamilton's Mohawk College is receiving $100,000 from the Greenbelt Fund and Ontario government to develop the
first provincial local food procurement model for Ontario's 24 colleges.
The pilot project is expected to increase local food purchases by $1.5 million over two years.
Read more on the project here, including thoughts from our GHFFA Executive Director, Janet Horner, who has been appointed to the Advisory Board.
Among the amendments, one-year farm leases will be replaced with leases of up to 30 years in an effort to ensure longer-term stability for park farmers and families.
Read more.
Craft Beer Week (June 10-19) kicked off with the provincial and federal governments announcing an investment of over $1.6 million in 20 Ontario craft breweries, helping to expand operations and to continue to grow Ontario's craft beer industry.
You can view a list of the projects receiving funding here; many are in Golden Horseshoe regions.
The province's news release states: "These investments help achieve the federal government's goal to support the agricultural and agri-food sector in a way that allows it to be a leader in job creation and innovation."
